New results from DAMA/LIBRA

DAMA/LIBRA is running at the Gran Sasso National Laboratory of the I.N.F.N.. Here the results obtained with a further exposure of 0.34 ton x yr are presented. They refer to two further annual cycles collected one before and one after the first DAMA/LIBRA upgrade occurred on September/October 2008. The cumulative exposure with those previously released by the former DAMA/NaI and by DAMA/LIBRA is now 1.17 ton x yr, corresponding to 13 annual cycles. The data further confirm the model independent evidence of the presence of Dark Matter (DM) particles in the galactic halo on the basis of the DM annual modulation signature (8.9 sigma C.L. for the cumulative exposure). In particular, with the cumulative exposure the modulation amplitude of the single-hit events in the (2 -- 6) keV energy interval measured in NaI(Tl) target is (0.0116 +- 0.0013) cpd/kg/keV; the measured phase is (146 +- 7) days and the measured period is (0.999 +- 0.002) yr, values well in agreement with those expected for the DM particles.Comment: presented at the Int. Conf. Beyond the Standard Models of Particle Physics, Cosmology and Astrophysics (BEYOND 2010), 1-6 February 2010, Cape Town, South Afric

Single-hit criterion in DAMA/LIBRA DM search and daemons - they are anything but weakly interacting

Our prediction that the more massive DAMA/LIBRA detector would detect a smaller number of events per unit of mass and time than the DAMA/NaI system has got confirmation. This is easy to understand, because DM objects are by far not the WIMPs of the Galactic halo that interact only weakly with matter but are apparently instead electrically charged Planckian objects, i.e., daemons which fall from Earth-crossing orbits with V = 30-50 km/s and undergo multiple interaction with condensed matter already in its outer layers, on a path of a few tens of cm. Therefore, one should use not compact massive detectors but rather systems with a large surface area, as we did to detect daemons with thin ZnS(Ag) scintillators. There are grounds to believe that correct use of the single-hit criterion in LIBRA should reveal DM particles with V = 30-50 km/s, and subsequently, with V = 10-15 km/s as well.Comment: 8 page

First results from dark matter search experiment with LiF bolometer at Kamioka Underground Laboratory

Tokyo group has performed first underground dark matter search experiment in 2001 through 2002 at Kamioka Observatory(2700m.w.e). The detector is eight LiF bolometers with total mass 168g aiming for the direct detection of WIMPs via spin-dependent interaction. With a total exposure of 4.1 kg days, we derived the limits in the a_p-a_n (WIMP-nucleon couplings) plane and excluded a large part of the parameter space allowed by the UKDMC experiment.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure

DAMA/LIBRA findings urge replacement of the WIMP hypotheses by the daemon paradigm as a basis for experimental studies of DM objects

The simplest version of the daemon paradigm suggests the modulated 2-6-keV range events in DAMA/NaI and DAMA/LIBRA detectors are caused by the iodine ions knocked out elastically by the electrically neutral c-daemons moving with V = 30-50 km/s (c-daemon is a complex of negative daemon located in a remainder of formerly captured nucleus where the daemon decomposes nucleons one by one with ~10^-6 s mean interval). Furthermore, after the 2-6 keV event occurred, in subsequent ~10^-6 s, the c-daemon (which becomes negative during this time) recaptures new nucleus with resulting scintillations in ~10 MeV range! The last possibility was so far overlooked in the experiments as it did not stem from WIMP hypotheses. A modification of the NaI(Tl) experiments is suggested for revealing the effect described. Independently of the outcome, any obtained result will be important for refining the daemon paradigm further on.Comment: 6 page

Daemons and DAMA: Their Celestial-Mechanics Interrelations

The assumption of the capture by the Solar System of the electrically charged Planckian DM objects (daemons) from the galactic disk is confirmed not only by the St.Petersburg (SPb) experiments detecting particles with V<30 km/s. Here the daemon approach is analyzed considering the positive model independent result of the DAMA/NaI experiment. We explain the maximum in DAMA signals observed in the May-June period to be associated with the formation behind the Sun of a trail of daemons that the Sun captures into elongated orbits as it moves to the apex. The range of significant 2-6-keV DAMA signals fits well the iodine nuclei elastically knocked out of the NaI(Tl) scintillator by particles falling on the Earth with V=30-50 km/s from strongly elongated heliocentric orbits. The half-year periodicity of the slower daemons observed in SPb originates from the transfer of particles that are deflected through ~90 deg into near-Earth orbits each time the particles cross the outer reaches of the Sun which had captured them. Their multi-loop (cross-like) trajectories traverse many times the Earth's orbit in March and September, which increases the probability for the particles to enter near-Earth orbits during this time. Corroboration of celestial mechanics calculations with observations yields ~1e-19 cm2 for the cross section of daemon interaction with the solar matter.Comment: 12 pages including 5 figure

Light Neutralinos and WIMP direct searches

The predictions of our previous analyses about possible low-mass (lower than 50 GeV) relic neutralinos are discussed in the light of the most recent results from WIMP direct detection experiments. It is proved that these light neutralinos are quite compatible with the new annual-modulation data of the DAMA Collaboration; our theoretical predictions are also compared with the upper bounds of the CDMS and EDELWEISS Collaborations.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figures, typeset with ReVTeX4. The paper may also be found at http://www.to.infn.it/~fornengo/papers/note.ps.gz or through http://www.to.infn.it/astropart/index.htm

Neuromechanical Consequences of Epimuscular Myofascial Force Transmission:Impact of connective tissues on muscle action

Dieen, J.H. van [Promotor]Maas, H. [Copromotor

10 GeV dark matter candidates and cosmic-ray antiprotons

Recent measurements performed with some direct dark matter detection experiments, e.g. CDMS-II and CoGENT (after DAMA/LIBRA), have unveiled a few events compatible with weakly interacting massive particles. The preferred mass range is around 10 GeV, with a quite large spin-independent cross section of $10^{-43}$-$10^{-41}\,{\rm cm^2}$. In this paper, we recall that a light dark matter particle with dominant couplings to quarks should also generate cosmic-ray antiprotons. Taking advantage of recent works constraining the Galactic dark matter mass profile on the one hand and on cosmic-ray propagation on the other hand, we point out that considering a thermal annihilation cross section for such low mass candidates very likely results in an antiproton flux in tension with the current data, which should be taken into account in subsequent studies.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. V2: minor changes to match the published versio

The Poker Face of Inelastic Dark Matter: Prospects at Upcoming Direct Detection Experiments

The XENON100 and CRESST experiments will directly test the inelastic dark matter explanation for DAMA's 8.9? sigma anomaly. This article discusses how predictions for direct detection experiments depend on uncertainties in quenching factor measurements, the dark matter interaction with the Standard Model and the halo velocity distribution. When these uncertainties are accounted for, an order of magnitude variation is found in the number of expected events at CRESST and XENON100.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure