This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
It will fund the Syracuse University group to participate in the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) experiment and research to develop and test detectors for possible future Dark Matter detection experiments. Observations indicate that 80% of the matter in the Universe is not made of normal atoms, but must be otherwise undetected elementary Dark Matter particles that do not emit or absorb light. Particle physics theories predict the existence of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) with just the right properties to be this dark matter. If WIMPs are the dark matter, they may be detectable when they scatter in Earth-based detectors. To detect the low expected WIMP interaction rate, experiments must provide exquisite rejection of interactions from background radioactivity. For most experiments, radioactive contamination on the detector surfaces provides the dominant background. SuperCDMS work concentrates on removing these backgrounds through two methods. First, they will achieve better rejection of surface interactions by event reconstruction aided by detailed simulations of the detector response. Second, the group will reduce the amount of surface contamination, aided by the world's most sensitive detector of radioactive surface contamination, the BetaCage, being constructed with a group at Caltech.
Among the broader impacts, the technological development of phonon-mediated detectors has widespread applications in astronomy and physics. Operation and improvement of the BetaCage screener has broader impacts on other rare-event searches and even on the Si-chip industry. Its use for trace radioactive counting applications such as 14-C and tritium radioisotope dating has applications to other scientific fields, many with significant benefits to society. Furthermore, as part of the SuperCDMS collaboration, the group will develop and participate actively in the public outreach programs at the Soudan Mine, which hosts 60,000 visitors and tens of classes each year. Finally, the project will support the planning, development, and construction of a museum exhibit at Syracuse's Museum of Science and Technology that will introduce dark matter to the general public, increasing their understanding of modern science through their appreciation of the wonders of the Universe.
