An Antenna for Directional Detection of WISPy Dark Matter

TL;DR

This paper proposes a new antenna-based method for the directional detection of WISPy dark matter, enabling the measurement of the dark matter particles' velocity vector spectrum using reflecting surfaces.

Contribution

It introduces a technique that allows for directional detection and velocity inference of dark matter particles via reflecting surfaces, expanding detection capabilities.

Findings

Technique enables directional detection of dark matter.

Allows inference of the full velocity vector spectrum.

Highlights relevance of dark matter velocity for detection experiments.

Abstract

It is an intriguing possibility that the cold dark matter of the Universe may consist of very light and very weakly interacting particles such as axion(-like particles) and hidden photons. This opens up (but also requires) new techniques for direct detection. One possibility is to use reflecting surfaces to facilitate the conversion of dark matter into photons, which can be concentrated in a detector with a suitable geometry. In this note we show that this technique also allows for directional detection and inference of the full vectorial velocity spectrum of the dark matter particles. We also note that the non-vanishing velocity of dark matter particles is relevant for the conception of (non-directional) discovery experiments and outline relevant features.