Abstract
Theories of dark energy require a screening mechanism to explain why the associated scalar fields do not mediate observable long range fifth forces. The archetype of this is the chameleon field. Here we show that individual atoms are too small to screen the chameleon field inside a large high-vacuum chamber, and therefore can detect the field with high sensitivity. We derive new limits on the chameleon parameters from existing experiments, and show that most of the remaining chameleon parameter space is readily accessible using atom interferometry.
Highlights
The growing expansion rate of the universe, and the uneven distribution of light and matter within it, all lead to the conclusion that most of the energy in the universe is ‘dark energy’ [1]
Laboratory and solar-system experiments show that any such ‘fifth force’ is far weaker than gravity [3], suggesting in a simple Yukawa model that the underlying physics is at energies far above the Planck scale and impossible to incorporate into normal quantum field theory
We show that individual atoms, though dense in the nucleus, are too small to screen the chameleon field inside a large enough high-vacuum chamber, and can detect the field with high sensitivity
Summary
The growing expansion rate of the universe, and the uneven distribution of light and matter within it, all lead to the conclusion that most of the energy in the universe is ‘dark energy’ [1]. Laboratory and solar-system experiments show that any such ‘fifth force’ is far weaker than gravity [3], suggesting in a simple Yukawa model that the underlying physics is at energies far above the Planck scale and impossible to incorporate into normal quantum field theory. This difficulty can only be avoided if the properties of the scalar field vary with environment.
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