Engineering topics

Eby, Joshua

Publications and source records attributed to Eby, Joshua.

11 records

DOE OSTI2024

Earth-catalyzed detection of magnetic inelastic dark matter with photons in large underground detectors

Inelastic dark matter with moderate splittings, $\mathcal{O}$ (few to 150) keV, can upscatter to an excited state in the Earth, with the excited state subsequently decaying, leaving a distinctive monoenergetic photon signal in large underground detectors. The photon signal can exhibit sidereal-daily modulation, providing excellent separation from backgrounds. Using a detailed numerical simulation, we examine this process as a search strategy for magnetic inelastic dark matter with the dark matter mass near the weak scale, where the upscatter to the excited state and decay proceed through the same magnetic dipole transition operator. At lower inelastic splittings, the scattering is dominated by moderate mass elements in the Earth with high spin, especially 27 Al, while at larger splittings, 56 Fe becomes the dominant target. We show that the proposed large volume gaseous detector CYGNUS will have excellent sensitivity to this signal. Xenon detectors also provide excellent sensitivity through the inelastic nuclear recoil signal, and if a future signal is seen, we show that the synergy among both types of detection can provide strong evidence for magnetic inelastic dark matter. In the course we have calculated nuclear response functions for elements relevant for scattering in the Earth, which are publicly available on GitHub.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2024

OSIRIS-REx constraints on local dark matter and cosmic neutrino profiles

We derive purely gravitational constraints on dark matter and cosmic neutrino profiles in the solar system using asteroid (101955) Bennu. We focus on Bennu because of its extensive tracking data and high-fidelity trajectory modeling resulting from the OSIRIS-REx mission. We find that the local density of dark matter is bound by $ρ_{DM}$ ≲ 3.3 × 10 -15 kg/m 3 ≃ 6 × 10 6 $\bar{ρ_{DM}}$, in the vicinity of ~ 1.1 au (where $\bar{ρ_{DM}}$ ≃ 0.3 GeV/cm 3 ). We show that high-precision tracking data of solar system objects can constrain cosmic neutrino overdensities relative to the Standard Model prediction n̅ν, at the level of η ≡ nν/n̅ν ≲ 1.7 × 10 11 (0.1 eV/m ν ) (Saturn), comparable to the existing bounds from KATRIN and other previous laboratory experiments (with m ν the neutrino mass). These local bounds have interesting implications for existing and future direct-detection experiments. Our constraints apply to all dark matter candidates but are particularly meaningful for scenarios including solar halos, stellar basins, and axion miniclusters, which predict overdensities in the solar system. Furthermore, introducing a DM-SM long-range fifth force with a strength tilde alphaDtimes stronger than gravity, Bennu can set a constraint on ρDM ≲ $\bar{ρ_{DM}}$(6 × 10 6 /$_{\tilde{αD}}$). These constraints can be improved in the future as the accuracy of tracking data improves, observational arcs increase, and more missions visit asteroids.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Terrestrial Very-Long-Baseline Atom Interferometry: Workshop Summary

This document presents a summary of the 2023 Terrestrial Very-Long-Baseline Atom Interferometry Workshop hosted by CERN. The workshop brought together experts from around the world to discuss the exciting developments in large-scale atom interferometer (AI) prototypes and their potential for detecting ultralight dark matter and gravitational waves. The primary objective of the workshop was to lay the groundwork for an international TVLBAI proto-collaboration. This collaboration aims to unite researchers from different institutions to strategize and secure funding for terrestrial large-scale AI projects. The ultimate goal is to create a roadmap detailing the design and technology choices for one or more km-scale detectors, which will be operational in the mid-2030s. The key sections of this report present the physics case and technical challenges, together with a comprehensive overview of the discussions at the workshop together with the main conclusions.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2022

Cold atoms in space: community workshop summary and proposed road-map

We summarise the discussions at a virtual Community Workshop on Cold Atoms in Space concerning the status of cold atom technologies, the prospective scientific and societal opportunities offered by their deployment in space, and the developments needed before cold atoms could be operated in space. The cold atom technologies discussed include atomic clocks, quantum gravimeters and accelerometers, and atom interferometers. Prospective applications include metrology, geodesy and measurement of terrestrial mass change due to, e.g., climate change, and fundamental science experiments such as tests of the equivalence principle, searches for dark matter, measurements of gravitational waves and tests of quantum mechanics. We review the current status of cold atom technologies and outline the requirements for their space qualification, including the development paths and the corresponding technical milestones, and identifying possible pathfinder missions to pave the way for missions to exploit the full potential of cold atoms in space. Finally, we present a first draft of a possible road-map for achieving these goals, that we propose for discussion by the interested cold atom, Earth Observation, fundamental physics and other prospective scientific user communities, together with the European Space Agency (ESA) and national space and research funding agencies.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2019

Luminous signals of inelastic dark matter in large detectors

In this work, we study luminous dark matter signals in models with inelastic scattering. Dark matter $\chi_1$ that scatters inelastically off elements in the Earth is kicked into an excited state $\chi_2$ that can subsequently decay into a monoenergetic photon inside a detector. The photon signal exhibits large sidereal-daily modulation due to the daily rotation of the Earth and anisotropies in the problem: the dark matter wind comes from the direction of Cygnus due to the Sun's motion relative to the galaxy, and the rock overburden is anisotropic, as is the dark matter scattering angle. This allows outstanding separation of signal from backgrounds. We investigate the sensitivity of two classes of large underground detectors to this modulating photon line signal: large liquid scintillator neutrino experiments, including Borexino and JUNO, and the proposed large gaseous scintillator directional detection experiment CYGNUS. Borexino's (JUNO's) sensitivity exceeds the bounds from xenon experiments on inelastic nuclear recoil for mass splittings $\delta \gtrsim 240 (180)$ keV, and is the only probe of inelastic dark matter for ${350 \text{ keV} \lesssim \delta \lesssim 600 \text{ keV}}$. CYGNUS's sensitivity is at least comparable to xenon experiments with $\sim 10 \; {\rm m}^3$ volume detector for $\delta \lesssim 150$ keV, and could be substantially better with larger volumes and improved background rejection. Such improvements lead to the unusual situation that the inelastic signal becomes the superior way to search for dark matter even if the elastic and inelastic scattering cross sections are comparable.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2018

Expansion in higher harmonics of boson stars using a generalized Ruffini-Bonazzola approach. Part 1. Bound states

The method pioneered by Ruffini and Bonazzola (RB) to describe boson stars involves an expansion of the boson field which is linear in creation and annihilation operators. This expansion constitutes an exact solution to a non-interacting field theory, and has been used as a reasonable ansatz for an interacting one. In this work, we show how one can go beyond the RB ansatz towards an exact solution of the interacting operator Klein-Gordon equation, which can be solved iteratively to ever higher precision. Our Generalized Ruffini-Bonazzola approach takes into account contributions from nontrivial harmonic dependence of the wavefunction, using a sum of terms with energy $k\,E_0$, where $k\geq1$ and $E_0$ is the chemical potential of a single bound axion. The method critically depends on an expansion in a parameter $\Delta \equiv \sqrt{1-E_0{}^2/m^2}<1$, where $m$ is the mass of the boson. In the case of the axion potential, we calculate corrections which are relevant for axion stars in the transition or dense branches. We find with high precision the local minimum of the mass, $M_{min}\approx 463\,f^2/m$, at $\Delta\approx0.27$, where $f$ is the axion decay constant. This point marks the crossover from transition to dense branches of solutions, and a corresponding crossover from structural instability to stability.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2018

Decay of ultralight axion condensates

Axion particles can form macroscopic condensates, whose size can be galactic in scale for models with very small axion masses $m\sim10^{-22}$ eV, and which are sometimes referred to under the name of Fuzzy Dark Matter. Many analyses of these condensates are done in the non-interacting limit, due to the weakness of the self-interaction coupling of axions. We investigate here how certain results change upon inclusion of these interactions, finding a decreased maximum mass and a modified mass-radius relationship. Further, these condensates are, in general, unstable to decay through number-changing interactions. We analyze the stability of galaxy-sized condensates of axion-like particles, and sketch the parameter space of stable configurations as a function of a binding energy parameter. As a result, we find a strong lower bound on the size of Fuzzy Dark Matter condensates which are stable to decay, with lifetimes longer than the age of the universe.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2017

QCD axion star collapse with the chiral potential

In a previous study, we analyzed collapsing axion stars using the low-energy instanton potential, showing that the total energy is always bounded and that collapsing axion stars do not form black holes. In this paper, we provide a proof that the conclusions are unchanged when using instead the more general chiral potential for QCD axions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2017

Collisions of Dark Matter Axion Stars with Astrophysical Sources

If QCD axions form a large fraction of the total mass of dark matter, then axion stars could be very abundant in galaxies. As a result, collisions with each other, and with other astrophysical bodies, can occur. We calculate the rate and analyze the consequences of three classes of collisions, those occurring between a dilute axion star and: another dilute axion star, an ordinary star, or a neutron star. In all cases we attempt to quantify the most important astrophysical uncertainties, we also pay particular attention to scenarios in which collisions lead to collapse of otherwise stable axion stars, and possible subsequent decay through number changing interactions. Collisions between two axion stars can occur with a high total rate, but the low relative velocity required for collapse to occur leads to a very low total rate of collapses. On the other hand, collisions between an axion star and an ordinary star have a large rate, Γ$_{⊙}$ ∼ 3000 collisions/year/galaxy, and for sufficiently heavy axion stars, it is plausible that most or all such collisions lead to collapse. We identify in this case a parameter space which has a stable region and a region in which collision triggers collapse, which depend on the axion number (N ) in the axion star, and a ratio of mass to radius cubed characterizing the ordinary star (M$_{s}$ /R$_{s}^{3}$ ). Finally, we revisit the calculation of collision rates between axion stars and neutron stars, improving on previous estimates by taking cylindrical symmetry of the neutron star distribution into account. Collapse and subsequent decay through collision processes, if occurring with a significant rate, can affect dark matter phenomenology and the axion star mass distribution.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2016

Collider signatures of flavorful Higgs bosons

Motivated by our limited knowledge of the Higgs couplings to the first two generation fermions, we analyze the collider phenomenology of a class of two Higgs doublet models (2HDMs) with a nonstandard Yukawa sector. One Higgs doublet is mainly responsible for the masses of the weak gauge bosons and the third-generation fermions, while the second Higgs doublet provides mass for the lighter fermion generations. The characteristic collider signatures of this setup differ significantly from well-studied 2HDMs with natural flavor conservation, flavor alignment, or minimal flavor violation. New production mechanisms for the heavy scalar, pseudoscalar, and charged Higgs involving second-generation quarks can become dominant. The most interesting decay modes include H/A → cc,tc,μμ,τμ and H ± → cb,cs,μν. As a result, searches for low-mass dimuon resonances are currently among the best probes of the heavy Higgs bosons in this setup.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2016

Collapse of Axion Stars

Axion stars, gravitationally bound states of low-energy axion particles, have a maximum mass allowed by gravitational stability. Weakly bound states obtaining this maximum mass have sufficiently large radii such that they are dilute, and as a result, they are well described by a leading-order expansion of the axion potential. Heavier states are susceptible to gravitational collapse. Inclusion of higher-order interactions, present in the full potential, can give qualitatively different results in the analysis of collapsing heavy states, as compared to the leading-order expansion. In this work, we find that collapsing axion stars are stabilized by repulsive interactions present in the full potential, providing evidence that such objects do not form black holes. In the last moments of collapse, the binding energy of the axion star grows rapidly, and we provide evidence that a large amount of its energy is lost through rapid emission of relativistic axions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗