Semiconductor Probes of Light Dark Matter

TL;DR

This paper discusses how advanced semiconductor detectors could enable the detection of very light dark matter particles, especially those with electric or magnetic dipole moments, surpassing current experimental limits.

Contribution

It introduces the potential of semiconductor technology to detect sub-GeV dark matter via single electron events, extending sensitivity to higher mass scales and dipole interactions.

Findings

Semiconductor detectors can detect dark matter as light as 1 MeV.

They offer sensitivity to dipole moments far beyond current bounds.

Detection could probe new physics at scales up to 1000 TeV.

Abstract

Dark matter with mass below about a GeV is essentially unobservable in conventional direct detection experiments. However, newly proposed technology will allow the detection of single electron events in semiconductor materials with significantly lowered thresholds. This would allow detection of dark matter as light as an MeV in mass. Compared to other detection technologies, semiconductors allow enhanced sensitivity because of their low ionization energy around an eV. Such detectors would be particularly sensitive to dark matter with electric and magnetic dipole moments, with a reach many orders of magnitude beyond current bounds. Observable dipole moment interactions can be generated by new particles with masses as great as 1000 TeV, providing a window to scales beyond the reach of current colliders.