Alexander Kavner, University of Zurich
Date: Tue. September 23rd, 2025, 11:30 am-12:30 pmSearching for Low Mass Dark Matter with TESSERACT & Qrocodile
Despite overwhelming cosmological evidence, direct dark matter detection remains elusive. Recent theoretical and experimental developments have led to significant interest in low-mass dark matter searches. The TESSERACT and Qrocodile experiments aim to probe the largely unexplored phase space below about 1 GeV. TESSERACT leverages a multi-target approach utilizing superfluid helium, sapphire, GaAs, and high purity germanium detectors to achieve sensitivity to nuclear-type, electron-type, and dark photon-type dark matter interactions. Each detector will be instrumented with the identical transition-edge-sensors (TESs) which will allow discrimination and suppression of novel low energy backgrounds. TESSERACT will be deployed to the Laboratory Subterine de Modane in 2028. Qrocodile leverages advancements in WSi nano-wires to achieve larger masses and lower thresholds than traditional nano-wire technology. We have recently published a first dark matter search and outline a roadmap to deployment at an underground site in Switzerland.