Martin Huber
University of Colorado at Denver
Cosmology at 50 mK
The Cryogenic Search for Dark Matter
Friday, February 15, 2008, 4:00 p.m.
Refreshments at 3:45 p.m. in TH 334
ABSTRACT
The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) collaboration is operating a direct-detection experiment with world-leading sensitivity to Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) at the Soudan Mine in Minnesota. Detection of WIMPs would have a profound impact on cosmology and particle physics. This talk presents the case for dark matter (from both observational and theoretical perspectives) and gives a brief overview of direct-detection efforts. The focus of the talk is the state-of-the-art cryogenic silicon and germanium WIMP detectors--their principles of operation, their fabrication technology, and the readout system. A discussion of the present status of the experiment and plans for the next generation experiment, SuperCDMS, conclude the talk.