Symmetron dark energy in laboratory experiments

TL;DR

This paper investigates symmetron dark energy models with parameters near the dark energy scale and Standard Model energies, showing that laboratory experiments can constrain these models by detecting fifth forces at submillimeter distances.

Contribution

It explores a new parameter regime of symmetron models where the vacuum mass and matter coupling are near the dark energy scale and Standard Model energies, respectively, and demonstrates experimental constraints.

Findings

E"ot-Wash experiment can exclude symmetrons with certain parameters.

Symmetron fifth forces are detectable at submillimeter scales.

Constraints apply for self-couplings up to λ ≈ 7.5.

Abstract

The symmetron scalar field is a matter-coupled dark energy candidate which effectively decouples from matter in high-density regions through a symmetry restoration. We consider a previously unexplored regime, in which the vacuum mass $\mu \sim 2.4\times 10^{-3}$ eV of the symmetron is near the dark energy scale, and the matter coupling parameter $M \sim 1$ TeV is just beyond Standard Model energies. Such a field will give rise to a fifth force at submillimeter distances which can be probed by short-range gravity experiments. We show that a torsion pendulum experiment such as E\"ot-Wash can exclude symmetrons in this regime for all self-couplings $\lambda \lesssim 7.5$.