DarkNESS: A skipper-CCD NanoSatellite for Dark Matter Searches

Journal Article · Thu May 22 04:00:00 EDT 2025 · No journal information

DOI:https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2505.16981· OSTI ID:2568577

Alpine, Phoenix ^[1]; Bhatia, Samriddhi ^[1]; Botti, Ana M. ^[2]; Cervantes-Vergara, Brenda A. ^[2]; Chavez, Claudio R. ^[2]; Chierchie, Fernando ^[3]; Drlica-Wagner, Alex ^[4]; Essig, Rouven ^[5]; Estrada, Juan ^[4]; Etzion, Erez ^[6]; Harnik, Roni ^[2]; Kim, Terry ^[7]; Lembeck, Michael ^[1]; Lim, Qi ^[1]; Rauscher, Bernard J. ^[8]; Saffold, Nathan ^[9]; Tiffenberg, Javier ^[2]; Uemura, Sho ^[2]; Xu, Hailin ^[5]

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1. Illinois U., Urbana (main)
2. Fermilab
3. Buenos Aires, CONICET; Bahia Blanca, U. Natl. Del Sur
4. Fermilab; Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.
5. YITP, Stony Brook
6. Tel Aviv U.
7. Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.
8. NASA, Goddard
9. Fermilab; Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.; Chicago U., EFI; Chicago U., KICP

The Dark matter Nanosatellite Equipped with Skipper Sensors (DarkNESS) deploys a recently developed skipper-CCD architecture with sub-electron readout noise in low Earth orbit (LEO) to investigate potential signatures of dark matter (DM). The mission addresses two interaction channels: electron recoils from strongly interacting sub-GeV DM and X-rays produced through decaying DM. Orbital observations avoid attenuation that limits ground-based measurements, extending sensitivity reach for both channels. The mission proceeds toward launch following laboratory validation of the instrument. A launch opportunity has been secured through Firefly Aerospace's DREAM 2.0 program, awarded to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). This will constitute the first use of skipper-CCDs in space and evaluate their suitability for low-noise X-ray and single-photon detection in future space observatories.

• Research Organization: Bahia Blanca, U. Natl. Del Sur; Buenos Aires, CONICET; Illinois U., Urbana (main); Chicago U., KICP; Tel Aviv U.; Chicago U., EFI; Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States); Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.; NASA, Goddard; YITP, Stony Brook
• Sponsoring Organization: US Department of Energy
• DOE Contract Number: 89243024CSC000002
• OSTI ID: 2568577
• Report Number(s): FERMILAB-PUB-25-0354-PPD; oai:inspirehep.net:2924116; arXiv:2505.16981
• Journal Information: No journal information, Journal Name: No journal information
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English