Phys. Rev. D 102, 072010 (2020) - Finding dark matter faster with explicit profile likelihoods

Open Access

Finding dark matter faster with explicit profile likelihoods

J. Aalbers, B. Pelssers, V. C. Antochi, P. L. Tan, and J. Conrad

Phys. Rev. D 102, 072010 – Published 29 October 2020

Abstract

Liquid xenon time-projection chambers are the world’s most sensitive detectors for a wide range of dark matter candidates. We show that the statistical analysis of their data can be improved by replacing detector response Monte Carlo simulations with an equivalent deterministic calculation. This allows the use of high-dimensional undiscretized models, yielding up to $\sim 2$ times better discrimination of the dominant backgrounds. In turn, this could significantly extend the physics reach of upcoming experiments such as XENONnT and LZ, and bring forward a potential $5 σ$ dark matter discovery by over a year.

Received 30 March 2020
Revised 25 August 2020
Accepted 8 October 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.102.072010

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by Bibsam.

Published by the American Physical Society