Novel Neutrino-Floor and Dark Matter Searches with Deformed Shell Model Calculations

Abstract

Event detection rates for WIMP-nucleus interactions are calculated for 71Ga, 73Ge, 75As, and 127I (direct dark matter detectors). The nuclear structure form factors, which are rather independent of the underlying beyond the Standard Model particle physics scenario assumed, are evaluated within the context of the deformed nuclear shell model (DSM) based on Hartree-Fock nuclear states. Along with the previously published DSM results for 73Ge, the neutrino-floor due to coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEνNS), an important source of background to dark matter searches, is extensively calculated. The impact of new contributions to CEνNS due to neutrino magnetic moments and Z′ mediators at direct dark matter detection experiments is also examined and discussed. The results show that the neutrino-floor constitutes a crucial source of background events for multi-ton scale detectors with sub-keV capabilities.