Complementarity in dark matter searches

por David G. Cerdeño (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)

jueves 2 feb. 2012 12:00 → 13:00 Europe/Madrid

Sala Seminarios IFIC (Edf. Institutos de Investigación)

I will discuss the complementary role of the different experimental methods to search for dark matter. In particular, I will first show how hypothetical future collider data may not suffice to completely identify the model for dark matter (exemplified with the neutralino in the MSSM) and how direct or indirect dark matter detection could be used to determine some of its properties in an unambiguous way. I then will concentrate on direct dark matter detection, and comment on how the use of different targets in direct detection experiments can be used to discriminate among different dark matter candidates (e.g., supersymmetric or Kaluza-Klein dark matter). This is possible with targets which are sensitive to both the spin-dependent and -independent components of the WIMP-nucleus cross section. I will illustrate this with some examples in which the astrophysical uncertainties in the dark matter halo are taken into account.