Search for dark matter in the hidden-photon sector with a large spherical mirror

TL;DR

This paper proposes an experimental setup using a large spherical mirror to detect hidden-photon dark matter by observing emitted photons caused by kinetic mixing, covering the eV and sub-eV mass range.

Contribution

It introduces a novel large-scale spherical mirror experiment designed specifically to search for hidden-photon dark matter in the eV and sub-eV range.

Findings

Design of a 14 m^2 spherical mirror for dark matter detection

Sensitivity analysis for hidden-photon parameter space

Potential to explore new regions in dark matter parameter space

Abstract

If dark matter consists of hidden-sector photons which kinetically mix with regular photons, a tiny oscillating electric-field component is present wherever we have dark matter. In the surface of conducting materials this induces a small probability to emit single photons almost perpendicular to the surface, with the corresponding photon frequency matching the mass of the hidden photons. We report on a construction of an experimental setup with a large ~14 m2 spherical metallic mirror that will allow for searches of hidden-photon dark matter in the eV and sub-eV range by application of different electromagnetic radiation detectors. We discuss sensitivity and accessible regions in the dark matter parameter space.