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arXiv · 1705.05965

Measurement of the directional sensitivity of DMTPC detectors

Cosmin Deaconu·Michael Leyton·Ross Corliss·Gabriela Druitt·Richard Eggleston·Natalia Guerrero·Shawn Henderson·Jeremy Lopez·Jocelyn Monroe·Peter Fisher
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Abstract

The Dark Matter Time Projection Chamber (DMTPC) is a direction-sensitive detector designed to measure the direction of recoiling $^{19}$F and $^{12}$C nuclei in low-pressure CF$_4$ gas using optical and charge readout systems. In this paper, we employ measurements from two DMTPC detectors, with operating pressures of 30-60 torr, to develop and validate a model of the directional response and performance of such detectors as a function of recoil energy. Using our model as a benchmark, we formulate the necessary specifications for a scalable directional detector with sensitivity comparable to that of current-generation counting (non-directional) experiments, which measure only recoil energy. Assuming the performance of existing DMTPC detectors, as well as current limits on the spin-dependent WIMP-nucleus cross section, we find that a 10-20 kg scale direction-sensitive detector is capable of correlating the measured direction of nuclear recoils with the predicted direction of incident dark matter particles and providing decisive (3$\sigma$) confirmation that a candidate signal from a non-directional experiment was indeed induced by elastic scattering of dark matter particles off of target nuclei.

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Cosmin Deaconu, Michael Leyton, Ross Corliss, Gabriela Druitt, Richard Eggleston, Natalia Guerrero, Shawn Henderson, Jeremy Lopez, Jocelyn Monroe, Peter Fisher. 2017-05-17. Measurement of the directional sensitivity of DMTPC detectors. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevd.95.122002

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