Nikolai Golubev

We review the physics potential of a next generation search for solar axions: the International Axion Observatory (IAXO) . Endowed with a sensitivity to discover axion-like particles (ALPs) with a coupling to photons as small as gaγ∼ 10−12 GeV−1, or to electrons gae∼10−13, IAXO has the potential to find the QCD axion in the 1 meV∼1 eV mass range where it solves the strong CP problem, can account for the cold dark matter of the Universe and be responsible for the anomalous cooling observed in a number of stellar systems. At the same time, IAXO will have enough sensitivity to detect lower mass axions invoked to explain: 1) the origin of the anomalous "transparency" of the Universe to gamma-rays, 2) the observed soft X-ray excess from galaxy clusters or 3) some inflationary models. In addition, we review string theory axions with parameters accessible by IAXO and discuss their potential role in cosmology as Dark Matter and Dark Radiation as well as their connections to the above mentioned conundrums.

We report the first results of a high-sensitivity $(\ensuremath{\sim}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}23}\mathrm{W})$ search for light halo axions through their conversion to microwave photons. At the 90% confidence level, we exclude a Kim-Shifman-Vainshtein-Zakharov axion of mass $2.9\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}6}$ to $3.3\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}6}\mathrm{eV}$ as the dark matter in the halo of our galaxy.

The end-point region of the β-spectrum of tritium has been measured with an integral electrostatic spectrometer with adiabatic magnetic collimation and gaseous tritium source. The search for the neutrino rest mass has resulted in mν2 = − 22 ± 4.8 eV2 / c4. It is shown that the negative mν2 effect may be explained by the local enhancement in the region 7–15 eV below the end point with an integral B.R. of about 10−10. After accounting for this anomaly one is able to deduce that mν < 4.35 eV at 95% C.L.

A Short-Baseline Neutrino (SBN) physics program of three LAr-TPC detectors located along the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) at Fermilab is presented. This new SBN Program will deliver a rich and compelling physics opportunity, including the ability to resolve a class of experimental anomalies in neutrino physics and to perform the most sensitive search to date for sterile neutrinos at the eV mass-scale through both appearance and disappearance oscillation channels. Using data sets of 6.6e20 protons on target (P.O.T.) in the LAr1-ND and ICARUS T600 detectors plus 13.2e20 P.O.T. in the MicroBooNE detector, we estimate that a search for muon neutrino to electron neutrino appearance can be performed with ~5 sigma sensitivity for the LSND allowed (99% C.L.) parameter region. In this proposal for the SBN Program, we describe the physics analysis, the conceptual design of the LAr1-ND detector, the design and refurbishment of the T600 detector, the necessary infrastructure required to execute the program, and a possible reconfiguration of the BNB target and horn system to improve its performance for oscillation searches.

A bstract This article describes BabyIAXO, an intermediate experimental stage of the International Axion Observatory (IAXO), proposed to be sited at DESY. IAXO is a large-scale axion helioscope that will look for axions and axion-like particles (ALPs), produced in the Sun, with unprecedented sensitivity. BabyIAXO is conceived to test all IAXO subsystems (magnet, optics and detectors) at a relevant scale for the final system and thus serve as prototype for IAXO, but at the same time as a fully-fledged helioscope with relevant physics reach itself, and with potential for discovery. The BabyIAXO magnet will feature two 10 m long, 70 cm diameter bores, and will host two detection lines (optics and detector) of dimensions similar to the final ones foreseen for IAXO. BabyIAXO will detect or reject solar axions or ALPs with axion-photon couplings down to g aγ ∼ 1 . 5 × 10 − 11 GeV − 1 , and masses up to m a ∼ 0 . 25 eV. BabyIAXO will offer additional opportunities for axion research in view of IAXO, like the development of precision x-ray detectors to identify particular spectral features in the solar axion spectrum, and the implementation of radiofrequency-cavity-based axion dark matter setups.

We discuss the physics case for and the concept of a medium-scale axion helioscope with sensitivities in the axion-photon coupling a few times better than CERN Axion Solar Telescope (CAST). Search for an axion-like particle with these couplings is motivated by several persistent astrophysical anomalies. We present early conceptual design, existing infrastructure, projected sensitivity and timeline of such a helioscope (Troitsk Axion Solar Telescope Experiment, TASTE) to be constructed in the Institute for Nuclear Research, Troitsk, Russia. The proposed instrument may be also used for the search of dark-matter halo axions.

An axion detector consisting of a tunable high-Q cavity, a superconducting magnet, and a superheterodyne receiver with an ultra-low noise pre-amplifier has been built to search for galactic halo axions in the mass range of 1.3–13 μeV. The detector instrumentation, search process, and data analysis are described. For the first time, this class of detector has reached sufficient sensitivity to detect halo axions with high confidence.

The amplitude of the signal collected from the PbWO4 crystals of the CMS electromagnetic calorimeter is reconstructed by a digital filtering technique. The amplitude reconstruction has been studied with test beam data recorded from a fully equipped barrel supermodule. Issues specific to data taken in the test beam are investigated, and the implementation of the method for CMS data taking is discussed.

The effect of irradiation on lead tungstate PbWO4 (PWO) scintillator properties has been studied at different irradiation facilities. Lead tungstate crystals, grown with the oxide content in the melt tuned to the stoichiometry of pure sheelite or sheelite-like crystal types and doped with heterovalent, trivalent and pentavalent impurities, have been studied in order to optimize their resistance to irradiation. A combination of a selective cleaning of raw materials, a tuning of the melt from crystallization to crystallization and a destruction or compensation of the point-structure defects has to be used to minimize the short-term instability of PWO parameters under irradiation.

Performance tests of some aspects of the CMS ECAL were carried out on modules of the "barrel" sub-system in 2002 and 2003. A brief test with high energy electron beams was made in late 2003 to validate prototypes of the new Very Front End electronics. The final versions of the monitoring and cooling systems, and of the high and low voltage regulation were used in these tests. The results are consistent with the performance targets including those for noise and overall energy resolution, required to fulfil the physics programme of CMS at the LHC.

Results of the “Troitsk ν-mass” experiment on the search for the neutrino rest mass in the tritium beta-decay are presented. Study of time dependence of anomalious, bump-like structure at the end of beta spectrum reported earlier gives indication of periodic shift of the position of the bump with respect to end-point energy with period of 0.5 year. New upper limit for electron antineutrino rest mass mν < 2.5eV/c2 is derived after accounting for the bump. Possible variants of more sensitive facility are discussed.

We have developed a high-efficiency pulsed slow positron beam for experiments with orthopositronium in vacuum. The new pulsing scheme is based on a double-gap coaxial buncher powered by an RF pulse of appropriate shape. The modulation of the positron velocity in the two gaps is used to adjust their time-of-flight to a target. This pulsing scheme allows to minimize non-linear aberrations in the bunching process and to efficiently compress positron pulses with an initial pulse duration ranging from ∼300 to 50 ns into bunches of 2.3 to 0.4 ns width, respectively, with a repetition period of 1μs. The compression ratio achieved is ≃100, which is a factor 5 better than has been previously obtained with slow positron beams based on a single buncher. Requirements on the degree, to which the moderated positrons should be mono-energetic and on the precision of the waveform generation are presented. Possible applications of the new pulsed positron beam for measurements of thin films are discussed.

Several models of dark matter suggest the existence of dark sectors consisting of SU(3)_C x SU(2)_L x U(1)_Y singlet fields. These sectors of particles do not interact with the ordinary matter directly but could couple to it via gravity. In addition to gravity, there might be another very weak interaction between the ordinary and dark matter mediated by U'(1) gauge bosons A' (dark photons) mixing with our photons. In a class of models the corresponding dark gauge bosons could be light and have the $γ$-A' coupling strength laying in the experimentally accessible and theoretically interesting region. If such A' mediators exist, their di-electron decays A' -&gt; e+e- could be searched for in a light-shining-through-a-wall experiment looking for an excess of events with the two-shower signature generated by a single high energy electron in the detector. A proposal to perform such an experiment aiming to probe the still unexplored area of the mixing strength 10^-5 &lt; $ε$ &lt; 10^-3 and masses M_A' &lt; 100 MeV by using 10-300 GeV electron beams from the CERN SPS is presented. The experiment can provide complementary coverage of the parameter space, which is intended to be probed by other searches. It has also a capability for a sensitive search for A's decaying invisibly to dark-sector particles, such as dark matter, which could cover a significant part of the still allowed parameter space. The full running time of the proposed measurements is requested to be up to several months, and it could be taken at different SPS secondary beams.

This article describes BabyIAXO, an intermediate experimental stage of the International Axion Observatory (IAXO), proposed to be sited at DESY. IAXO is a large-scale axion helioscope that will look for axions and axion-like particles (ALPs), produced in the Sun, with unprecedented sensitivity. BabyIAXO is conceived to test all IAXO subsystems (magnet, optics and detectors) at a relevant scale for the final system and thus serve as prototype for IAXO, but at the same time as a fully-fledged helioscope with relevant physics reach itself, and with potential for discovery. The BabyIAXO magnet will feature two 10 m long, 70 cm diameter bores, and will host two detection lines (optics and detector) of dimensions similar to the final ones foreseen for IAXO. BabyIAXO will detect or reject solar axions or ALPs with axion-photon couplings down to $g_{a\gamma} \sim 1.5 \times 10^{-11}$ GeV$^{-1}$, and masses up to $m_a\sim 0.25$ eV. BabyIAXO will offer additional opportunities for axion research in view of IAXO, like the development of precision x-ray detectors to identify particular spectral features in the solar axion spectrum, and the implementation of radiofrequency-cavity-based axion dark matter setups.

The behaviour of fine-mesh vacuum phototriodes (VPTs) with the external diameters of 21 and 25 mm has been investigated in an axial magnetic field up to 4 T in view of their applications as readout devices for CMS Endcap Electromagnetic Calorimeter. The measured VPT parameters are: the photocathode's sensitivity and its homogeneity, the gain in zero and 4 T magnetic field at tilt angles corresponding to the pseudorapidity range of CMS ECAL Endcap 1.48–3.0 as a function of fine-mesh cell dimensions, excess noise factor and the stability of the photocathode response under the illumination by light emission diodes (LED) and the irradiation by 14 MeV neutrons. Phototriodes with 100 lines per mm fine-mesh and 25 mm external diameter are found to be the best candidates for coupling with rear PbWO4 crystals by dimensions of 30×30 mm, proposed to be used in CMS ECAL Endcaps. VPTs provide a gain of the order (6–8) in a 4 T magnetic field and an excess noise factor of 2–2.5 under illumination of a full photocathode's area.

A decommissioned LHC test magnet is being prepared as the CERN Axion Solar Telescope (CAST) experiment. The magnet has a field of 9.6 Tesla and length of 10 meters. It is being mounted on a platform to track the sun over ±8° vertically and ±45°, horizontally. A sensitivity in axion-photon coupling gαγγ < 5 × 10−11GeV−1 can be reached for mα ≤ 10−2eV, and with a gas filled tube-can reach gαγγ ≤ 10−10GeV−1 for axion masses mα < 2eV.

The CERN Axion Solar Telescope (CAST), a 10 meter long LHC, 9 Tesla, test magnet is mounted on a moving platform that tracks the sun about 1.5 hours during sunrise, again during sunset. It moves ±80 vertically and ±400 horizontally. It has been taking data continuously since July 10, 2003. Data analyzed thus far yield an upper bound on the photon-axion coupling constant, gaγγ ⩽ 3 × 10−10 GeV−1 for axion masses less than 5 × 10−2 eV.

We propose a large-scale experimental search for dark-matter axions which may constitute an important fraction of our own galactic halo. As shown by Sikivie, 1 dark-matter axions may be detected by their stimulated conversion into monochromatic microwave photons in a tunable high-Q cavity inside a strong magnetic field. The principal improvement in power sensitivity over two earlier pilot experiments (×25) derives from the large-volume high field superconducting magnet (the NASA SUMMA coils). The improvement in mass range (1.5 to 12.6 μeV) will result from the use of several microwave cavity arrays, of 2 n cavities each, over the course of the experimental program, rather than a single cavity. We are participating in a joint venture with the Institute for Nuclear Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences to do R&amp;D on metalized precision-formed ceramic microwave cavities for the axion search.

Mirror matter is a possible dark matter candidate. It is predicted to exist if parity is an unbroken symmetry of the vacuum. The existence of the mirror matter, which in addition to gravity is coupled to our world through photon-mirror photon mixing, would result in orthopositronium (o-Ps) to mirror orthopositronium (o-Ps') oscillations. The experimental signature of this effect is the invisible decay of o-Ps in vacuum. This paper describes the design of the new experiment for a search for the o-Ps -> invisible decay in vacuum with a sensitivity in the branching ratio of Br(o-Ps -> invisible)\simeq 10^{-7}, which is an order of magnitude better than the present limit on this decay mode from the Big Bang Nucleosynthesis. The experiment is based on a high-efficiency pulsed slow positron beam, which is also applicable for other experiments with o-Ps, and (with some modifications) for applied studies. Details of the experimental design and of a new pulsing method, as well as preliminary results on requirements for the pulsed beam components are presented. The effects of o-Ps collisions with the cavity walls as well as the influence of external fields on the o-Ps to o-Ps' oscillation probability are also discussed.

Axions are a natural consequence of the Peccei-Quinn mechanism, the most compelling solution to the strong-CP problem. Similar axion-like particles (ALPs) also appear in a number of possible extensions of the Standard Model, notably in string theories. Both axions and ALPs are very well motivated candidates for Dark Matter, and in addition, they would be copiously produced at the sun’s core. A relevant effort during the last decade has been the CAST experiment at CERN, the most sensitive axion helioscope to-date. The International Axion Observatory (IAXO) is a large-scale 4th generation helioscope. As its primary physics goal, IAXO will look for solar axions or ALPs with a signal to background ratio of about 5 orders of magnitude higher than CAST. Recently the IAXO collaboration has proposed and intermediate experimental stage, BabyIAXO, conceived to test all IAXO subsystems (magnet, optics, detectors and sun-tracking systems) at a relevant scale for the final system and thus serve as pathfinder for IAXO but at the same time as a fully-fledged helioscope with record and relevant physics reach in itself with potential for discovery. BabyIAXO was endorsed by the Physics Review committee of DESY last May 2019. Here we will review the status and prospects of BabyIAXO and its potential to probe the most physics motivated regions of the axion & ALPs parameter space.

Test beam results of a calorimetric module based on 3×3×22 cm3 PbWO4 crystals, identical to those used in the CMS ECAL Endcaps, read out by a pair of photodetectors coupled to the two opposite sides (front and rear) of each crystal are presented. Nine crystals with different level of induced absorption, from 0 to 20 m−1, have been tested using electrons in the 50–200 GeV energy range. Photomultiplier tubes have been chosen as photodetectors to allow for a precise measurement of highly damaged crystals. The information provided by this double side read-out configuration allows to correct for event-by-event fluctuations of the longitudinal development of electromagnetic showers. By strongly mitigating the effect of non-uniform light collection efficiency induced by radiation damage, the double side read-out technique significantly improves the energy resolution with respect to a single side read-out configuration. The non-linearity of the response arising in damaged crystals is also corrected by a double side read-out configuration and the response linearity of irradiated crystals is restored. In high radiation environments at future colliders, as it will be the case for detectors operating during the High Luminosity phase of the Large Hadron Collider, defects can be created inside the scintillator volume leading to a non-uniform response of the calorimetric cell. The double side read-out technique presented in this study provides a valuable way to improve the performance of calorimeters based on scintillators whose active volumes are characterized by high aspect ratio cells similar to those used in this study.

We report first results from a large-scale search for dark matter axions. The experiment probes axion masses of 1.3–13 μeV at a sensitivity which is about 50 times higher than previous pilot experiments. We have already scanned part of this mass range at a sensitivity better than required to see at least one generic axion model, the KSVZ axion. Data taking at full sensitivity commenced in February 1996 and scanning the proposed mass range will require three years.

The performance of prototype vacuum phototriodes is presented from the first full sized supercrystal array for the CMS ECAL endcaps. The array was exposed to high-energy electrons and tested in magnetic fields of up to 3 T, in the CERN North area, in July and August 1999. The mean VPT electron yield, normalised to a naked crystal light yield of 8 photoelectrons/MeV into an HPMT, was found to be 25 electrons/MeV at 3 T for devices from Research Institute Electron, 35 electrons/MeV for devices from Hamamatsu and 18/23 electrons/MeV from Electron Tubes.

Tests of a prototype for the electromagnetic calorimeter (ECAL) of the compact muon solenoid experiment (CMS) at the large hadron collider are described. The basic unit for the endcap ECAL in CMS is a “supercrystal” of 25 lead tungstate crystals. Results are presented from tests of the first full-sized supercrystal in electron beams and in a 3 T magnetic field. The supercrystal was exposed to electron beams with energies from 25 to 180 GeV. An energy resolution (σE/E) of (0.48±0.01)% was measured at 180 GeV.

The processes of the radiation damage and recovery of PbWO/sub 4/ crystals were studied in the present paper. The crystals had different faults and were subjected to the effect of /spl gamma/-irradiation with the dose power of 30 rad/min and 500 rad/min. At low radiation doses, measurements were made directly in the irradiation process and just after it.

More than 80 years after the postulation of dark matter, its nature remains one of the fundamental questions in cosmology. Axions are currently one of the leading candidates for the hypothetical, non-baryonic dark matter that is expected to account for about 25% of the energy density of the Universe. Especially in the light of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN slowly closing in on Weakly-Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP) searches, axions and axion-like particles (ALPs) provide a viable alternative approach to solving the dark matter problem. The fact that makes them particularly appealing is that they were initially introduced to solve a long-standing problem in quantum chromodynamics and the Standard Model of particle physics.Helioscopes are a type of axion experiment searching for axions produced in the core of the Sun via the Primakoff effect. The International Axion Observatory (IAXO) is a next generation axion helioscope aiming at a sensitivity to the axion-photon coupling of 1 - 1.5 orders of magnitude beyond the current most sensitive axion helioscope, which is the CERN Axion Solar Telescope (CAST). IAXO will be able to challenge the stringent bounds from supernova SN1987A and test the axion interpretation of anomalous white-dwarf cooling. Beyond standard axions, this new experiment will also be able to search for a large variety of axion-like particles and other novel excitations at the low-energy frontier of elementary particle physics. BabyIAXO is proposed as an intermediate-scale experiment increasing the sensitivity to axion-photon couplings down to a few 10 <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">-11</sup> GeV <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">-1</sup> and thus delivering significant physics results while demonstrating the feasibility of the full-scale IAXO experiment. Here we introduce the IAXO and BabyIAXO experiments, report on the current status of both and outline the expected IAXO science reach.

Axions are a natural consequence of the Peccei-Quinn mechanism, the most compelling solution to the strong-CP problem. Similar axion-like particles (ALPs) also appear in a number of possible extensions of the Standard Model, notably in string theories. Both axions and ALPs are very well motivated candidates for Dark Matter, and in addition, they would be copiously produced at the sun's core. A relevant effort during the last decade has been the CAST experiment at CERN, the most sensitive axion helioscope to-date. The International Axion Observatory (IAXO) is a large-scale 4th generation helioscope. As its primary physics goal, IAXO will look for solar axions or ALPs with a signal to background ratio of about 5 orders of magnitude higher than CAST. Recently the IAXO collaboration has proposed and intermediate experimental stage, BabyIAXO, conceived to test all IAXO subsystems (magnet, optics, detectors and sun-tracking systems) at a relevant scale for the final system and thus serve as pathfinder for IAXO but at the same time as a fully-fledged helioscope with record and relevant physics reach in itself with potential for discovery. BabyIAXO was endorsed by the Physics Review committee of DESY last May 2019. Here we will review the status and prospects of BabyIAXO and its potential to probe the most physics motivated regions of the axion & ALPs parameter space.

We describe the status of a sensitive search for halo axions with masses in the {mu}eV range. A tunable large-volume and low-loss microwave cavity is operated at low temperature in a strong magnetic field. Resonant Primakoff conversion of axions into photons takes place when the cavity frequency is matched to the axion mass. No positive signal has been found so far, and we are able to exclude hadronic axions as the dominant halo component over a significant axion mass range. Future plans for a detector upgrade are outlined.

An experiment proposed to search for dark-matter axions in the mass range 0.6-16 mu eV is described. The method is based on the Primakoff conversion of axions into monochromatic microwave photons inside a tunable microwave cavity in a large-volume high-field magnet. This proposal capitalizes on the availability of two Axicell magnets from the MFTF-B fusion machine at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Assuming a local dark-matter density in axions of rho /sub a/=0.3 GeV/cm/sup 3/, the axion would be found or ruled out at the 97% c.l. in the above mass range in 48 months.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>

The end point region of the tritium beta-spectrum has been studied on the “Troitsk ν -mass” set-up during 1993–1997. Fits to the data give evidence for the existence of a bump-like structure placed 5–12 eV below end point with a relative intensity about 10−10. The comparison of the anomaly region of the spectrum measured at different time reveals a movement of the bump position back and forth with respect to end point energy. After accounting for the bump and a correction for effect of electron trapping in the source the shape of all the measured part of the beta spectrum agree with mν2 about zero thus eliminating the problem of “negative mν2”. An upper limit for the neutrino mass including only data of 1994–1996 runs is: mν < 3, 8 eV/c2 at 95% C.L.

Early results from a large-scale search for dark matter axions are presented. In this experiment, axions constituting our dark-matter halo may be resonantly converted to monochromatic microwave photons in a high-Q microwave cavity permeated by a strong magnetic field. Sensitivity at the level of one important axion model (KSVZ) has been demonstrated.

The design, construction and testing results of the superconducting magnet system for a molecular tritium circulation source are presented. The system is used for electron antineutrino mass measuring experiments by tritium /spl beta/-decay spectrum analysis. There are 13 superconducting tritium source solenoids, as well as 4 spectrometer magnets cooled by a two-phase helium mixture circulating through a 100 watt refrigerator. The temperature of the magnets is 4.5 to 4.8 K at 0.6 to 0.7 torr. The total cold mass is about 600 kg.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>

An experiment is described to detect dark matter axions trapped in the halo of our galaxy. Galactic axions are converted into microwave photons via the Primakoff effect in a static background field provided by a superconducting magnet. The photons are collected in a high Q microwave cavity and detected by a low noise receiver. The axion mass range accessible by this experiment is 1.3-13 micro-eV. The expected sensitivity will be roughly 50 times greater than achieved by previous experiments in this mass range. The assembly of the detector is well under way at LLNL and data taking will start in mid-1995.