Projected sensitivity of the SuperCDMS SNOLAB experiment
2017
SuperCDMS SNOLAB will be a next-generation experiment aimed at directly detecting
low-massparticles (with masses ≤ 10 GeV/c^2) that may constitute
dark matterby using cryogenic
detectorsof two types (HV and iZIP) and two target materials (germanium and silicon). The experiment is being designed with an initial sensitivity to nuclear
recoilcross sections ∼ 1×10^(−43) cm^2 for a
dark matterparticle mass of 1 GeV/c^2, and with capacity to continue exploration to both smaller masses and better sensitivities. The phonon sensitivity of the HV
detectorswill be sufficient to detect nuclear
recoilsfrom sub-GeV
dark matter. A detailed calibration of the
detectorresponse to low-energy
recoilswill be needed to optimize running conditions of the HV
detectorsand to interpret their data for
dark mattersearches. Low-activity shielding, and the depth of SNOLAB, will reduce most backgrounds, but cosmogenically produced ^3H and naturally occurring ^(32)Si will be present in the
detectorsat some level. Even if these backgrounds are 10 times higher than expected, the science reach of the HV
detectorswould be over 3 orders of magnitude beyond current results for a
dark mattermass of 1 GeV/c^2. The iZIP
detectorsare relatively insensitive to variations in
detectorresponse and backgrounds, and will provide better sensitivity for
dark matterparticles with masses ≳ 5 GeV/c^2. The mix of
detectortypes (HV and iZIP), and targets (germanium and silicon), planned for the experiment, as well as flexibility in how the
detectorsare operated, will allow us to maximize the
low-massreach, and understand the backgrounds that the experiment will encounter. Upgrades to the experiment, perhaps with a variety of ultra-low-background cryogenic
detectors, will extend
dark mattersensitivity down to the “neutrino floor,” where coherent scatters of
solar neutrinosbecome a limiting background.
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