Light Dark Matter Search with a High-Resolution Athermal Phonon Detector Operated Above Ground

Abstract

We present limits on spin-independent dark matter-nucleon interactions using a $10.6$ $\mathrm{g}$ Si athermal phonon detector with a baseline energy resolution of $\ddot{I}{ƒ}_E=3.86\pm 0.04$ $(stat.{)}_{-0.00}^{+0.19}$ $(syst.)$ $\mathrm{eV}$. This exclusion analysis sets the most stringent dark matter-nucleon scattering cross-section limits achieved by a cryogenic detector for dark matter particle masses from $93$ to $140$ $\mathrm{MeV}/c^2$, with a raw exposure of $9.9$ $\mathrm{g}\cdot \mathrm{d}$ acquired at an above-ground facility. This work illustrates the scientific potential of detectors with athermal phonon sensors with eV-scale energy resolution for future dark matter searches.

7 pages, 4 figures, this version includes ancillary files from official data release