Search for Cosmic Axions using an Optical Interferometer

TL;DR

This paper proposes using high finesse optical cavities to detect cosmic axions in a specific mass range by observing resonant sidebands, achieving potential sensitivity to the KSVZ axion model within a year.

Contribution

It introduces a novel optical interferometer method employing high finesse cavities to search for axions across a defined mass range.

Findings

Potential to detect axions with g/m_a = 0.4 GeV^{-2}

Full mass range coverage in one-year search

Applicable with either single-arm or two-arm cavity configurations

Abstract

A high finesse optical cavity can be used to search for cosmic axions in the mass range 10^{-6}< m_a <10^{-4} eV. Either a two-arm or a single-arm cavity is suitable and in either case the signal as resonant sidebands imposed on the carrier. Assuming for the local axion density the usual figure of 500 MeV/cm^3 [8], the KSVZ axion line [4] g/m_a = 0.4 Gev^{-2}, can be reached over the full mass range in a one year search.