Discovering the Dark Universe

  • Feb. 18, 2021, 2:30 pm US/Central
  • Asher Berlin, New York U.
  • Roni Harnik
  • slides
  • video

Although it is known to provide the gravitational scaffolding of our universe, the existence of dark matter is a mystery that cannot be explained by our current understanding of fundamental particle physics. Recent years have seen a growing interest in applying developing technologies to enable qualitatively new ways to look for types of dark matter that are traditionally difficult to detect due to their extremely feeble interactions with normal matter. In particular, this moment in time provides a unique opportunity to take advantage of the incredible progress in quantum sensing, which we can leverage to explore theories of dark matter and other new physics over a large range of scales that was previously unaccessible with past technology. I will discuss how this exciting opportunity is well within our reach, provided that we steer new technological developments to have the biggest impact in our search for physics beyond the Standard Model.