Dark Matter at Colliders

Date/Time
Date(s) - 10/02/2011
10:30 am - 11:30 am

Title: Dark Matter at Colliders

Speaker: Dr. Yang Bai, Stanford University

Institute:

Location: ABB 163

Description:

Although the fact that a large fraction of the matter in the universe is non-baryonic is beyond doubt, the exact composition of the dark matter is still shrouded in mystery. Using ultra-sensitive detectors in the deep underground laboratories, physicists are attempting to directly detect dark matter particles streaming from space. At colliders, physicists hope to manufacture large numbers of dark matter particles and study their properties. I will first use an effective field theory approach to demonstrate the power of colliders by comparing these two approaches. I will then describe the recent efforts on measuring dark matter properties at colliders and how imminent discoveries may change our fundamental understanding of physics and the universe.