Paleodetector Bounds on Cosmic-Ray-Boosted Dark Matter

Abstract

We present the first dedicated analysis of cosmic-ray boosted dark matter (CRDM) in paleodetectors. Owing to their large kinetic energies, CRDM particles generate nuclear-recoil tracks that extend to substantially larger lengths than those produced by dominant backgrounds from neutrinos and intrinsic radioactivity. Combined with the ultra-large effective geological exposure of $\mathcal{O}(10^5)\mathrm{t}\mathrm{yr}$, paleodetectors provide high sensitivity to sub-GeV DM. Considering both constant and vector-mediator interactions, we find that paleodetectors improve the sensitivity to the DM--proton scattering cross section by one to two orders of magnitude compared with the latest XENONnT limits.

8 pages, 3 figures; Matches published version in Physical Review D