APEC Seminar (Astronomy - Particle Physics - Experimental Physics - Cosmology)

Speaker: Tom Melia (UC Berkeley)
Title: "Magnetic bubble chambers" for sub-GeV dark matter direct detection
Date (JST): Wed, May 31, 2017, 13:30 - 14:30
Place: Seminar Room A
Abstract: I will discuss a proposed new application of single molecule magnet crystals: their use as “magnetic bubble chambers’’ for the direct
detection of sub-GeV dark matter. The detection signal is a spin avalanche (or "magnetic deflagration") that amplifies the effect of a small initial heat deposit. Much like the temperature and pressure in a conventional bubble chamber, the temperature and an external magnetic field can be tuned to set the detection threshold. If successfully developed, energy thresholds ranging from a few 10s of eV down to a few meV could be achievable, opening up new parameter space for the direct detection of dark matter.