The current experimental landscape of particle physics provides significant impetus to develop new probes of physics beyond the standard model. For example, astrophysical observations indicate that most of the matter in the universe is “dark.” This dark matter interacts only very weakly with terrestrial detectors, and has not yet been observed at particle colliders or in dedicated searches. These extremely weak interactions—possibly only through gravity—strongly motivate the development of new, ultra-sensitive technologies for their detection.
Meanwhile, paradigmatic advances in the ability to create, control, and detect quantum states of massive mechanical objects has enabled unprecedented levels of sensitivity to small displacements and forces. This meeting is designed to bring together theoretical and experimental researchers from both the particle physics and quantum sensing communities, with the goal of developing new experimental probes of physics beyond the standard model using mechanical devices with meso-to-macroscopic masses operating in the quantum regime.
The workshop is intended to be informal, with limited talks and extensive time available for free discussion, especially between members of different research communities. A particular focus question is: how do we roadmap the path to a large-scale mechanical sensing array, enabling purely gravitational detection of dark matter?
This workshop is invite-only, in order to facilitate focused discussion.
To arrange your travel details, please email both Dan Carney (carney@umd.edu) and Kelly Phillips (kephil@umd.edu).
Sponsored by: Moore Foundation APS Fundamental Physics Convening Award, Joint Quantum Institute, and JILA NSF Physics Frontier Center.