TY - JOUR
KW - Multidisciplinary
AU - K. Backes
AU - Daniel Palken
AU - Al Kenany
AU - Benjamin Brubaker
AU - S. Cahn
AU - A. Droster
AU - Gene Hilton
AU - Sumita Ghosh
AU - H. Jackson
AU - S. Lamoreaux
AU - A. Leder
AU - Konrad Lehnert
AU - S. Lewis
AU - M. Malnou
AU - R. Maruyama
AU - N. Rapidis
AU - M. Simanovskaia
AU - Sukhman Singh
AU - D. Speller
AU - I. Urdinaran
AU - Leila Vale
AU - E. van Assendelft
AU - K. van Bibber
AU - H. Wang
AB - The manipulation of quantum states of light1 holds the potential to enhance searches for fundamental physics. Only recently has the maturation of quantum squeezing technology coincided with the emergence of fundamental physics searches that are limited by quantum uncertainty2,3. In particular, the quantum chromodynamics axion provides a possible solution to two of the greatest outstanding problems in fundamental physics: the strong-CP (charge–parity) problem of quantum chromodynamics4 and the unknown nature of dark matter5,6,7. In dark matter axion searches, quantum uncertainty manifests as a fundamental noise source, limiting the measurement of the quadrature observables used for detection. Few dark matter searches have approached this limit3,8, and until now none has exceeded it. Here we use vacuum squeezing to circumvent the quantum limit in a search for dark matter. By preparing a microwave-frequency electromagnetic field in a squeezed state and near-noiselessly reading out only the squeezed quadrature9, we double the search rate for axions over a mass range favored by some recent theoretical projections. We find no evidence of dark matter within the axion rest energy windows of 16.96–17.12 and 17.14–17.28 microelectronvolts. Breaking through the quantum limit invites an era of fundamental physics searches in which noise reduction techniques yield unbounded benefit compared with the diminishing returns of approaching the quantum limit.
BT - Nature
DA - 2021-02
DO - 10.1038/s41586-021-03226-7
IS - 7845
N2 - The manipulation of quantum states of light1 holds the potential to enhance searches for fundamental physics. Only recently has the maturation of quantum squeezing technology coincided with the emergence of fundamental physics searches that are limited by quantum uncertainty2,3. In particular, the quantum chromodynamics axion provides a possible solution to two of the greatest outstanding problems in fundamental physics: the strong-CP (charge–parity) problem of quantum chromodynamics4 and the unknown nature of dark matter5,6,7. In dark matter axion searches, quantum uncertainty manifests as a fundamental noise source, limiting the measurement of the quadrature observables used for detection. Few dark matter searches have approached this limit3,8, and until now none has exceeded it. Here we use vacuum squeezing to circumvent the quantum limit in a search for dark matter. By preparing a microwave-frequency electromagnetic field in a squeezed state and near-noiselessly reading out only the squeezed quadrature9, we double the search rate for axions over a mass range favored by some recent theoretical projections. We find no evidence of dark matter within the axion rest energy windows of 16.96–17.12 and 17.14–17.28 microelectronvolts. Breaking through the quantum limit invites an era of fundamental physics searches in which noise reduction techniques yield unbounded benefit compared with the diminishing returns of approaching the quantum limit.
PB - Springer Science and Business Media LLC
PY - 2021
SP - 238
EP - 242
T2 - Nature
TI - A quantum enhanced search for dark matter axions
UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03226-7
VL - 590
SN - 0028-0836, 1476-4687
ER -