WIMP Dark Matter Searches with the LUX-ZEPLIN Experiment

This project will focus on using data from the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment at SURF in South Dakota, USA, to search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) constituting the dark matter in our galaxy. The project will focus on three aspects: (1) the use of multiple-scatter (MS) events to assess the magnitude of irreducible neutron-induced nuclear recoil backgrounds to a WIMP signal, (2) the use of MS events obtained from d-d neutron source calibrations to measure the charge yield in liquid xenon from nuclear recoil events, (3) the use of SS and MS control regions to constrain electron and nuclear recoil backgrounds in the final PLR statistical analysis, and the incorporation of related background model systematics via the profile likelihood construction.