On a Search for Hidden Photon CDM by a Multicathode Counter

A V Kopylov,V V Petukhov,I V Orekhov

doi:10.1155/2016/2058372

A V Kopylov, V V Petukhov + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/2058372

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Abstract

We report a new technique of a multicathode counter (MCC) developed to search for hidden photon (HP) cold dark matter (CDM) with a mass from 5 to 500 eV. The method is suggested in the assumption that HP-photon mixing causes emission of single electrons from a metal cathode if the mass of hidden photonmγ′is greater than a work function of the metalφW. The measured effect from HP should be dependent onφWand on the structure of electronic shells of the metal used as a cathode. Potentially this can be used for a verification of the results obtained. Some preliminary results for the upper limit for mixing parameterχhave been obtained for HP with a mass from 5 eV to 10 keV as a pure illustration of the potential of this technique. The efforts are continued to refine the procedure of data treatment and to improve the work of MCC. A new detector with a more developed design is under construction.

Highlights

The present data on the structure formation in the Universe indicate that most dark matter (DM) is “cold”; that is, it should be nonrelativistic
Where α2 = cos2 θ, θ is the angle between the hidden photons (HP) field, when it points in the same direction everywhere, and the plane of antenna, α2 = 2/3 if HPs have random orientation, χ is the dimensionless parameter quantifying the kinetic mixing, ρCDM ≈ 0.3 GeV/cm3 is the energy density of cold dark matter (CDM) which is taken here to be equal to the energy density of HPs, and Adish is the antenna’s surface
A new technique of multicathode counter (MCC) has been developed to search for hidden photon CDM in the assumption that all dark matter is composed of hidden photons (HPs)

Summary

Introduction

The present data on the structure formation in the Universe indicate that most dark matter (DM) is “cold”; that is, it should be nonrelativistic. The efforts towards discovering axion are described in detail in [2] Another interesting opportunity is a hidden photon which is a light extra U(1) gauge boson. That is, it has a spatially constant mode k = 0, oscillating with frequency ω = mγ󸀠 This method works well only if the reflectance of antenna is high which is observed for ω < 5 eV. Our work was the search for hidden photons for the upper range of mγ󸀠 using a gaseous proportional counter as a detector of electrons emitted from a metal cathode by hidden photons. This constitutes the novelty of our method

A Method and Experimental Apparatus

Energy Calibration and Analysis

Sensitivity of the Method

First Data Obtained

Findings

Conclusion