A New Record in the Search for Dark Matter ⚡ экспресс
The ALPS II experiment in Hamburg searched for axions (hypothetical light particles) using the 'light through a wall' method: a laser beam was aimed at an opaque barrier, and a detector tried to catch photons on the other side. During the first run (February–May 2024), no axions were found, but a record limit was set on their interaction with photons: 1.5×10⁻⁹ GeV⁻¹ for masses below 0.1 meV — 20 times more precise than all previous searches. Constraints were also obtained for scalar, vector, and tensor bosons. Analogy: if axions are whispers, ALPS II listened with noise-canceling headphones, but heard only silence; however, now we know just how quiet that whisper can be.
At the DESY lab, the ALPS II experiment was launched to hunt for axions—hypothetical ghost particles that might make up dark matter. This invisible mass acts like a skeleton, preventing galaxies from flying apart due to their spin. Discovering the axion would mean a breakthrough beyond the current table of elementary particles. The setup 'shines through a wall': a super-powerful laser fires at an opaque barrier, hoping that some light will briefly turn into ghosts and leak through to be detected on the other side. Over four months, more photons were sent through the wall than there are stars in the observable universe, but not a single one transformed into an axion. That's not a failure, though—the instrument worked perfectly and tightened the limits on how strongly axions interact with light by a factor of 20. Now the system is being upgraded: mirrors and laser are being improved to boost sensitivity another hundredfold.
🎯 The name 'axion' was coined by [scientist:Frank Wilczek]Frank Wilczek[/scientist], inspired by a laundry detergent ad—the particle was supposed to 'clean up' physics inconsistencies.
🎬 In science fiction, ghosts pass through walls—axions do it at the subatomic level.