The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) experiment is designed to detect weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) via their interactions with germanium and silicon nuclei inside solid state detectors. WIMPs are a well-motivated candidate for the dark matter which makes up most of the mass in the universe. As the Earth moves through the dark matter cloud which surrounds our galaxy, the WIMP particles pass through our detectors and can occasionally interact. Direct detection of this WIMP ‘wind’ would confirm indirect evidence of dark matter from astrophysical observations.
The CDMS experiment is at the Soudan Underground Laboratory in Minnesota where it is operating a total detector mass of ~10kg. Subsequently, the experiment plans to increase the experimental payload by a factor of 10 and operate at the deeper SNOLAB facility in Sudbury, Canada. This location provides significantly improved shielding from cosmic rays which are a source of background in the WIMP search.
The Computing Sector supports the CDMS experiment in the following areas:
-
Maintain the software for "tapeless movement" of raw detector data from the Soudan Underground Lab to Fermilab
-
Adminster the DAQ cluster at Soudan Underground Lab, and CDMS data servers at the Soudan Underground Lab and at Fermilab.
