| Description |
There is overwhelming evidence for the presence of
dark matter in the universe, accounting for approximately 25% of
the total energy density. However, all of this evidence has been
gathered via the gravitational interactions of dark matter. Parti-
cle physics models have candidates for quantized dark matter, the
most compelling of which is the Weakly Interacting Massive Par-
ticle (WIMP) hypothesis. In particular, Supersymmetry presents
the possibility of the Neutralino, which is a stable particle with
all of the desired properties. Detecting WIMPs on earth, via their
very small cross sections for elastic scattering off of heavy nuclei,
will be the subject of my talk. I will survey the field of exper-
iments studying nuclear recoil detection and present the current
best limits. I will go into some depth in the most promising of
these technologies: dual-phase liquid xenon time projection cham-
bers. I will also present the plans for the next decade and beyond
of how this field will evolve.
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