Title: Full analysis of the background for the search of neutrinoless double beta decay in Gerda Abstract: The GERmanium Detector Array (Gerda) experiment aims for the discovery of neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ) decay in 76Ge. It uses HPGe detectors enriched in the isotope 76Ge, which are directly immersed into liquid argon (LAr). In second […]

Speaker: Karthik Ramanathan (University of Chicago)   Title: Dark Matter Taking Selfies: The DAMIC Experiment  Abstract: The DAMIC (Dark Matter in CCDs) experiment uses silicon charge-coupled devices (CCDs), traditionally employed for imaging purposes, to detect potential ionization signals from dark matter interactions. These approx. mm thick devices feature an impressively low leakage current (< 10-21 A/cm2) and […]

Speaker: Harikrishnan Ramani (LBNL)   Title: Nuclear Isomers as Dark Matter accelerators Abstract: Weak-scale dark matter particles, in collisions with nuclei, can mediate transitions between different nuclear energy levels. In particular, owing to sizeable momentum exchange, dark matter particles can enable de-excitation of nuclear isomers that are extremely long lived with respect to regular radioactive decays. […]

Title: Breakthrough Listen's search for intelligent life in the Universe  Abstract: The discovery of the ubiquity of habitable extrasolar planets, combined with revolutionary advances in instrumentation and observational capabilities, have ushered in a renaissance in the millennia-old quest to answer our most profound question about the Universe and our place within it - Are we alone? […]

Speaker: Wouter Van De Pontseele (Harvard/Oxford)   Title: The MicroBooNE Neutrino Experiment at Fermilab Abstract: MicroBooNE is a liquid argon time projection chamber in the Booster Neutrino Beam at Fermilab. The technology provides high-resolution imaging of neutrino interactions leading to low-threshold event reconstruction with full angular coverage. As such, this is an ideal place to probe […]

Speaker: Chiara Capelli (University of Zurich) Title: Data analysis at high-energies for the XENON1T experiment and light calibration system of XENONn  Abstract: The XENON1T experiment searches for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) with a dual-phase xenon Time Projection Chamber (TPC). To extend its physics reach, the efforts of the XENON collaboration are directed toward exploring other […]

Speaker: Gulden Othman (University of North Carolina) Title: CAGE Scanner: Investigating Surface Backgrounds in HPGe Detectors for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay Searches Abstract: A potential source of problematic backgrounds in a ton-scale 76Ge-based neutrinoless double-beta decay (0nuBB) program may arise from particle interactions occurring near the surfaces of high purity germanium (HPGe) detectors. The Collimated Alphas, Gammas, […]

  Speaker: Rebecca Carney (SLAC)   Title: Silicon tracking in the search for rare processes    Abstract: The ATLAS Detector, below the surface of the Swiss-French border, measures the remnants of high-energy proton-proton collisions, accelerated by the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. A little over a year ago the LHC paused operations, having delivered an integrated luminosity […]

Speaker: Zara Bagdasarian (UC Berkeley) Title: Borexino. Sun. Earth. Neutrinos Abstract: Borexino experiment is a 280-ton liquid scintillator detector located at a 3800 m w.e. depth in the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (Italy). In more than 12 years of data taking, Borexino has demonstrated how its unprecedented radio-purity led to exploring a wide range […]

Speaker: Nicholas Rodd (LBNL)   Title: Evidence the 3.5 keV line is not from dark matter decay Abstract: X-ray observations of nearby clusters and galaxies have reported an unexpected X-ray line around 3.5 keV. This line has received significant attention due to its possible explanation through decaying dark matter; in particular, decaying sterile neutrino models, […]

Speaker: Ethan Bernard (UC Berkeley) Title: The Construction of the LZ Dark Matter Detector Abstract: The assembly of the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) dark matter detector within the Homestake mine in Lead, South Dakota is nearing completion.  This detector features a two-phase time projection chamber containing seven tons of liquid xenon specifically instrumented to detect low-energy nuclear […]

Speaker: Rémi Adam (LLR/CNRS) Title: Diffuse gas in galaxy clusters: on the thermal and non-thermal components Abstract: The clusters of galaxies represent the last step of the formation of large scale structures in the Universe. They are both useful cosmological probes and unique astrophysical laboratories. The clusters grow by accretion of surrounding structures and from […]

Speaker: Zachary Marshall (LBNL)  Title: Unidentified New Physics: LHC Searches for SUSY and Dark Matter Abstract: ATLAS and CMS, two large, general-purpose experiments at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, have a rich program of searches for new physics. This seminar will take a look at some of the most interesting and difficult searches for […]

Speaker: Chia-Cheng Chang (LBNL)  Title: Time evolution of open quantum many-body systems Abstract: The increasing interest and efforts put forth towards the development of quantum computing have lead to a shift in how one goes about tackling problems that are typically thought of as difficult. In this talk I will discuss a specific paradigm of […]

Speaker: Eric Charles (Stanford) Title: Indirect Dark Matter Detection: Status and Summary of WIMP Searches     Abstract:  The nature of dark matter is a longstanding enigma of physics; it may consist of particles beyond the Standard Model that are still elusive to experiments. Searches for signals from the annihilation or decay of weakly interacting massive particle (WMIP) […]

Speaker: Luca Pagani (UC Davis) Title: Recent results from the ACED and the ARTIE experiments Abstract: Liquid argon is becoming a popular medium for particle detection, with applications ranging from low-background dark matter searches to high-energy neutrino detection. Because neutrons represent both an important source of background (e.g., for dark matter experiments) and a product […]

Speaker: Micah Buuck (SLAC) Title: Neurtrinoless Double-Beta Decay and Radioactive Backgrounds in the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR Abstract: Neutrinoless double-beta decay (0νββ) is a lepton-number-violating process whose existence would indicate that neutrinos are Majorana fermions. The MAJORANA collaboration is searching for 0νββ in germanium-76 using a modular array of high-purity germanium detectors, housed at the Sanford Underground […]

Speaker: Jorge Morales (SLAC) Title: TBA Abstract: TBA

Speaker: Jorge Morales (SLAC) Title: Simulation of Dark Matter and Standard Model Interactions in the SuperCDMS Soudan Experiment Abstract: Astronomical observations lead us to believe that dark matter constitutes the majority of the mass of the Universe, yet it has never been directly observed experimentally. The Super Cryogenic Dark Matter Search Experiment (SuperCDMS) aims to […]