Journal Club: Excess electronic recoils events in XENON1T

Fri., Feb. 26, 2021 3:30 p.m. - Fri., Feb. 26, 2021 4:30 p.m.

Location: Zoom

Abstract: The existence of dark matter has been implied by several astrophysical observations and though it may make up the majority of the mass of the universe, it has yet to be understood. The XENON1T experiment is designed to detect the interaction of dark matter with xenon, specifically weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). Between 2016-18, the experiment was operated underground at the INFN Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS), Italy, with ultra-pure liquid xenon surrounded by PMTs. Although the detector is designed for WIMPs, its low background rate means it can also potentially detect other dark matter candidates. An excess over background was found at low energies, in the reference region of 1–7 keV, with a 3.5 sigma statistical significance. Furthermore, the excess is of electronic recoil events, which are not characteristic of WIMP events. As a result, we consider searches for solar axions, an enhanced neutrino magnetic moment using solar neutrinos, and bosonic dark matter.

Journal Article "Excess electronic recoil events in XENON1T"

Speaker: Azizah Mahmood, University of Regina