Speaker
Description
The Migdal In Galactic Dark mAtter expLoration (MIGDAL) detector is a state-of-the-art low energy optical time projection chamber capable of resolving low dE/dx electrons alongside very high dE/dx nuclear recoils. The goal of this experiment is to make the first observation of the Migdal effect, a rare nuclear scattering process invoked to extend the sensitivity of dark matter experiments to light WIMPs. To date, the MIGDAL experiment has completed two science runs and is expected to begin the third in the coming months. I will give a preview of results from the ongoing analysis and show results demonstrating the performance of the detector. I will also discuss R&D with negative ion drift gas mixtures that include a high fraction of noble gases. The goals of this work is to enhance spatial resolution needed for low energy track reconstruction for Migdal and other rare searches.
