Speaker
Description
Axions and axion-like particles (ALPs) are dark matter candidates that appear in many extensions to the Standard Model. If they exist, they would be emitted by the Sun and could be converted to X-rays in a strong magnetic field. The International Axion Observatory (IAXO) and its intermediate stage BabyIAXO are the next generation of experiments looking for these solar axions. BabyIAXO will already have a sensitivity surpassing all prior experiments and probe new ALP parameter space, with IAXO improving these limits even further. Reaching this goal requires highly efficient ultra-low background X-ray detectors. There are several detectors in development for IAXO, spanning gaseous, semiconductor and cryogenic technologies, all of which have to meet challenging requirements to reach the IAXO sensitivity goals. In this talk, I will give an introduction to IAXO and BabyIAXO, with a particular focus on detector development.
