Listening for ultra-heavy dark matter with underwater acoustic detectors
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arXiv
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| Autori principali: | , , |
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| Natura: | Preprint |
| Pubblicazione: |
2025
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| _version_ | 1866912628025065472 |
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| author | Cleaver, Damon McCabe, Christopher O'Hare, Ciaran A. J. |
| author_facet | Cleaver, Damon McCabe, Christopher O'Hare, Ciaran A. J. |
| contents | Ultra-heavy dark matter candidates evade traditional direct detection experiments due to their low particle flux. We explore the potential of large underwater acoustic arrays, originally developed for ultra-high energy neutrino detection, to detect ultra-heavy dark matter interactions. These particles deposit energy via nuclear scattering while traversing seawater, generating thermo-acoustic waves detectable by hydrophones. We present the first robust first-principles calculation of dark matter-induced acoustic waves, establishing a theoretical framework for signal modelling and sensitivity estimates. Our framework incorporates frequency-dependent attenuation effects, including viscous and chemical relaxation, not considered in previous calculations. A sensitivity analysis for a hypothetical 100 cubic kilometre hydrophone array in the Mediterranean Sea demonstrates that such an array could extend sensitivity to the previously unexplored mass range of $0.1$-$10\,μ\mathrm{g}$ ($\sim10^{20}$-$10^{23}\,\mathrm{GeV}$), with sensitivity to both spin-independent and spin-dependent interactions. Our results establish acoustic detection as a complementary dark matter search method, enabling searches in existing hydrophone data and informing future detector designs. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2502_17593 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Listening for ultra-heavy dark matter with underwater acoustic detectors Cleaver, Damon McCabe, Christopher O'Hare, Ciaran A. J. High Energy Physics - Phenomenology Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics High Energy Physics - Experiment Ultra-heavy dark matter candidates evade traditional direct detection experiments due to their low particle flux. We explore the potential of large underwater acoustic arrays, originally developed for ultra-high energy neutrino detection, to detect ultra-heavy dark matter interactions. These particles deposit energy via nuclear scattering while traversing seawater, generating thermo-acoustic waves detectable by hydrophones. We present the first robust first-principles calculation of dark matter-induced acoustic waves, establishing a theoretical framework for signal modelling and sensitivity estimates. Our framework incorporates frequency-dependent attenuation effects, including viscous and chemical relaxation, not considered in previous calculations. A sensitivity analysis for a hypothetical 100 cubic kilometre hydrophone array in the Mediterranean Sea demonstrates that such an array could extend sensitivity to the previously unexplored mass range of $0.1$-$10\,μ\mathrm{g}$ ($\sim10^{20}$-$10^{23}\,\mathrm{GeV}$), with sensitivity to both spin-independent and spin-dependent interactions. Our results establish acoustic detection as a complementary dark matter search method, enabling searches in existing hydrophone data and informing future detector designs. |
| title | Listening for ultra-heavy dark matter with underwater acoustic detectors |
| topic | High Energy Physics - Phenomenology Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics High Energy Physics - Experiment |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.17593 |