LHC experiments for long-lived particles of the dark sector

TL;DR

This paper reviews LHC and dedicated detector experiments designed to discover long-lived particles from the dark sector, highlighting their designs and potential to elucidate dark matter properties.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of current and proposed experiments targeting long-lived dark sector particles at the LHC, including their designs and expected sensitivities.

Findings

Multiple experiments aim to detect long-lived dark matter particles.

Detector designs are optimized for particles decaying away from the interaction point.

Expected sensitivities extend the discovery potential for dark sector physics.

Abstract

Dark matter scenarios are being tested at the LHC in the general-purpose experiments through promptly decaying states. In parallel, new dedicated detectors have been proposed for the LHC to probe dark matter portal theories predicting long-lived particles that decay away from the interaction point: MoEDAL-MAPP, MoEDAL-MALL, FASER, SND@LHC, CODEX-b, MATHUSLA, AL3X, ANUBIS, FACET, milliQan, FORMOSA. In addition, the SHiP beam-dump experiment is planned to operate with the SPS beam to extend the discovery reach for such particles. The detector design and expected physics sensitivity of these experiments is presented with emphasis on scenarios explaining the nature of dark matter.