A team of international researchers has developed an innovative approach to uncover the secrets of dark matter in the cosmos. University of Queensland PhD student Ashlee Caddell co-led a study in collaboration with Germany’s metrology institute that searched for dark matter using atomic clocks and cavity-stabilized lasers.
The researchers were able to search for forms of dark matter that have been invisible in previous searches because it emits no light or energy. “By comparing precision measurements across vast distances, we identified the subtle effects of oscillating dark matter fields that would otherwise cancel themselves out in conventional setups,” Ms Caddell said.
UQ physicist and co-author Dr Benjamin Roberts said the study brings researchers closer to understanding one of the universe’s most elusive and fundamental components.