ALCDA - Analysis of Large Cryogenic Detector Arrays

Astronomical measurements show that the universe is predominantly dark: 85% of the mass in the universe is so-called dark matter. While the existence of dark matter is considered proven, its composition remains entirely unknown. We are attempting to solve this mystery through experiments aimed at detecting potential interactions of dark matter particles. Since the mass of dark matter particles is unknown, multiple technologies are used in these experiments. Specialists in light dark matter particles use cryogenic detectors operating at temperatures of about one-hundredth of a degree above absolute zero. However, these detectors face a fundamental dilemma. On the one hand, the detectors should be light and small to lower the energy threshold. On the other hand, they should be large and heavy to increase the rate of potential events. The solution to this contradiction is experiments using an array of many small individual detectors. The ALCDA project aims to develop the necessary tools and software for data analysis of such an array. The developed methods will be applied in the CRESST and COSINUS experiments to analyze new measurement data for the search for dark matter. In 2025, CRESST will increase the number of its readout channels from 30 to 288. COSINUS is a new experiment that will start in 2025 with up to 48 channels. ALCDA is embedded in the joint research group for the search for rare events (Rare Event Search) of the Atominstitut of TU Wien and the Institute for High Energy Physics in Vienna (HEPHY, Austrian Academy of Sciences). It is led by Florian Reindl (TU Wien) with Jochen Schieck (HEPHY) as a partner and additional support from Martin Stahlberg (Max Planck Institute for Physics, Munich).