Search for Magnetic Monopoles with MACRO

TL;DR

This paper reports a comprehensive search for magnetic monopoles across all expected velocities using the MACRO detector, setting stringent flux limits based on null results, and also searching for other rare particles.

Contribution

It presents the first complete velocity range search for magnetic monopoles with the MACRO detector, utilizing multiple detection methods and establishing new flux limits.

Findings

No magnetic monopoles detected, setting new flux limits.

Established flux limits for monopoles as slow as 10^-5c.

Conducted searches for other rare particles like nuclearites and Q-balls.

Abstract

Data from the complete MACRO detector have been used to search for magnetic monopoles (MMs) of all expected velocities. Scintillator, streamer tube (instrumented with specialized electronics) and nuclear track detectors have been used to search for signatures coming from MMs; the scintillator and nuclear track subdetectors were used also for searches for other rare particles (nuclearites, charged Q-balls). Based on no observation of such signals, we establish strigent flux limits, for MMs as slow as a few 10^-5c.