An atomic probe of dark matter differential interactions with elementary particles

Abstract

Searching for physics beyond the Standard Model is one of the main tasks of experimental physics. Candidates for dark matter include axion-like ultralight bosonic particles. Comagnetometers form ultra-high sensitivity probes for such particles and any exotic field that interacts with the spin of an atom. Here, we propose a multi-atom-species probe that enables not only to discover such fields and measure their spectrum but also to determine the ratios of their coupling strengths to sub-atomic elementary particles, electrons, neutrons and protons. We further show that the multi-faceted capabilities of this probe may be demonstrated with synthetic exotic fields generated by a combination of regular magnetic fields and light-induced fictitious magnetic fields in alkali atoms. These synthetic fields also enable the accurate calibration of any magnetometer or comagnetometer probe for exotic physics.