Speaker
Description
The PICO Collaboration searches for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) using superheated C$_3$F$_8$ bubble chambers, achieving world-leading sensitivity to spin-dependent WIMP–proton interactions. The PICO-40L detector, housed at SNOLAB, is the first large-scale implementation of the "right-side-up" bubble chamber design in which the absence of a buffer fluid in contact with the target minimises backgrounds from particulates entering the chamber. PICO-40L has been fully assembled and has taken preliminary data, and is currently being recommissioned for further data collection.
PICO-500 is the next-generation PICO bubble chamber. With a 260-L C$_3$F$_8$ target and projected ton-year exposure, it will significantly extend PICO's sensitivity to spin-dependent dark matter interactions. Assembly is underway at SNOLAB, with several major installation milestones recently completed. This talk will provide an update on PICO-500 assembly progress and commissioning plans, along with reflections on the future of bubble chambers in dark matter searches and the broader applications of PICO research and development both within and outside astroparticle physics.
| wwoodley@ualberta.ca | |
| Research Theme | Dark Matter |