Quantum muonium experiment could beat existing dark matter limits

Researchers propose utilizing muonium, a fleeting particle composed of a muon and electron, as a novel quantum sensor to search for axion dark matter. Combining theoretical calculations with simulation results, the team demonstrates that a muonium-based experimental approach could tighten constraints on the axion-muon coupling beyond current limits from muon g-2 measurements, specifically for axion masses between 18 and 130 μeV. This work establishes a new spectroscopic channel in muonium that enables searches for axion and axion-like particle dark matter, offering a complementary path to existing dark matter detection efforts. High-intensity muon beams offer a pathway to detecting axion dark matter through a Muonium-based Axion Search utilizing resonant quantum transitions between hyperfine states, a technique…