PandaX-II Constraints on Spin-Dependent WIMP-Nucleon Effective Interactions

TL;DR

This paper reports PandaX-II experiment constraints on various spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon interactions, setting the most stringent limits for certain WIMP masses and demonstrating sensitivity to multiple interaction types.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive constraints on multiple WIMP-nucleon effective interactions beyond standard axial spin-dependent scattering.

Findings

Set new upper limits on WIMP-neutron spin-dependent cross sections.

Achieved the best current SD limits for WIMP masses above 40 GeV/c^2.

Demonstrated PandaX-II's sensitivity to various candidate interactions.

Abstract

We present PandaX-II constraints on candidate WIMP-nucleon effective interactions involving the nucleon or WIMP spin, including, in addition to standard axial spin-dependent (SD) scattering, various couplings among vector and axial currents, magnetic and electric dipole moments, and tensor interactions. The data set corresponding to a total exposure of 54-ton-days is reanalyzed to determine constraints as a function of the WIMP mass and isospin coupling. We obtain WIMP-nucleon cross section bounds of $\rm 1.6 \times 10^{-41} cm^2$ and $\rm 9.0 \times 10^{-42} cm^2$ ($90\%$ c.l.) for neutron-only SD and tensor coupling, respectively, for a mass $M_\mathrm{WIMP} \sim {\rm 40~GeV}/c^2$. The SD limits are the best currently available for $M_\mathrm{WIMP} > {\rm 40~GeV}/c^2$. We show that PandaX-II has reached a sensitivity sufficient to probe a variety of other candidate spin-dependent interactions at the weak scale.