Search for axion-like particles through nuclear Primakoff production using the GlueX detector

• DOI: 10.1016/j.physletb.2024.138790
• Publication Date: 2024-06-12T17:08:40Z
• Authors: J.R. Pybus; T. Kolar; B. Devkota; P. Sharp; B. Yu; O. Hen; E. Piasetzky; S.N. Santiesteban; A. Schmidt; A. Somov; Y. Soreq; H. Szumila-Vance; S. Adhikari; C.S. Akondi; C. Ayerbe Gayoso; V.V. Berdnikov; H. Bhatt; D. Bhetuwal; M.M. Dalton; A. Deur; R. Dotel; C. Fanelli; J. Guo; T.J. Hague; D.W. Higinbotham; N.D. Hoffman; P. Hurck; I. Jaegle; A. Karki; W. Li; V. Lyubovitskij; H. Marukyan; M.D. McCaughan; M.E. McCracken; S. Oresic; Z. Papandreou; C. Paudel; S. Ratliff; E.M. Seroka; S. Somov; I. Strakovsky; K. Suresh; A. Thiel; B. Zihlmann
• Keywords: Photon coupling; QC1-999; FOS: Physical sciences; 530; 01 natural sciences; High Energy Physics - Experiment; Primakoff effect; High Energy Physics - Experiment (hep-ex); High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph); Instrumentation related to nuclear science and technology; 0103 physical sciences; Nuclear; Experimental physics; High energy physics; Nuclear Experiment (nucl-ex); ALP decay; Nuclear Experiment; Axion-like particles (ALPs); Particle detection; GlueX detector; Physics; Experimental luminosity; Primakoff production; Elementary Particles and Fields and String Theory; High Energy Physics - Phenomenology; Photon beam; Nuclear targets; Jefferson Lab

We report on the results of the first search for the production of axion-like particles (ALP) via Primakoff production on nuclear targets using the GlueX detector. This search uses an integrated luminosity of 100 pb$^{-1}\cdot$nucleon on a $^{12}$C target, and explores the mass region of 200 < $m_a$ < 450 MeV via the decay $X\rightarrowγγ$. This mass range is between the $π^0$ and $η$ masses, which enables the use of the measured $η$ production rate to obtain absolute bounds on the ALP production with reduced sensitivity to experimental luminosity and detection efficiency. We find no evidence for an ALP, consistent with previous searches in the quoted mass range, and present limits on the coupling on the scale of $O$(1 TeV). We further find that the ALP production limit we obtain is hindered by the peaking structure of the non-target-related dominant background in GlueX, which we treat by using data on $^4$He to estimate and subtract these backgrounds. We comment on how this search can be improved in a future higher-statistics dedicated measurement.