Detection of Super-light Dark Matter Using Graphene Sensor

We propose a new dark-matter detection strategy that will enable the search of super-light dark matter $m_\chi \simeq 0.1$ keV, representing an improvement of the minimum detectable mass by more than three order of magnitude over the ongoing experiments. This is possible by integrating intimately the target material, $\pi$-bond electrons in graphene, into a Josephson junction to achieve a high sensitivity detector that can resolve a small energy exchange from dark matter as low as $\sim 0.1$ meV. We investigate detection prospects with pg-, ng-, and $\mu$g-scale detectors by calculating the scattering rate between dark matter and free electrons confined in two-dimensional graphene with Pauli-blocking factors included. We find not only that the proposed detector can serve as a complementary probe of super-light dark matter but also achieve higher experimental sensitivities than other proposed experiments, thanks to the extremely low energy threshold of our Josephson junction sensor.
Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, Funding agency information for the actual experiment added, Appendix expanded, More figures added