Record-Setting Dark Matter Detector Comes Up Empty—and That’s Good News
WIMPs (weakly interacting massive particles) are one of the most serious contenders for dark matter—the “missing” mass supposedly constituting 85% of our universe. Given its elusiveness, dark matter tests the patience and creativity of physicists. But the latest results from LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ), the South Dakota-based detector, may have brought scientists a small step closer to catching WIMPs in action. In a recent Physical Review Letters paper, scientists analyzed 280 days’ worth of data from LUX-