Journal
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
Volume 112, Issue 1, Pages -Publisher
AMER PHYSICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.112.011301
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- Simons Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
- NSF [PHY-0756966]
- Division Of Physics
- Direct For Mathematical & Physical Scien [1314198] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The scattering rate in dark-matter direct-detection experiments should modulate annually due to Earth's orbit around the Sun. The rate is typically thought to be extremized around June 1, when the relative velocity of Earth with respect to the dark-matter wind is maximal. We point out that gravitational focusing can alter this modulation phase. Unbound dark-matter particles are focused by the Sun's gravitational potential, affecting their phase-space density in the lab frame. Gravitational focusing can result in a significant overall shift in the annual-modulation phase, which is most relevant for dark matter with low scattering speeds. The induced phase shift for light O(10) GeV dark matter may also be significant, depending on the threshold energy of the experiment.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available