Towards model-independent tests of WIMP dark matter
by
Riccardo Catena(Chalmers)
→
Europe/Stockholm
A12167
A12167
Description
Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) are among the most extensively studied candidates for dark matter. The detection of WIMPs through the observation of nuclear recoil events in target materials, or their annihilation in space is now finally a realistic prospect. Direct detection (DD) experiments and Neutrino telescopes (NT) will play a pivotal role in this context in the coming years. The recently proposed non-relativistic effective theory of dark matter-nucleon interactions is a first step towards model-independent tests of WIMP dark matter at DD and NT experiments. In the talk I will describe the phenomenology of this general theoretical framework in detail. Emphasis will be placed on the expected rate of WIMP capture and annihilation in the Sun and Earth, and on the predicted annual modulation in the rate of nuclear recoil events at the DAMA experiment. Connections between the theory presented in the talk and a class of simplified models testable at the LHC will also be highlighted.
