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First axion search results of the SUPAX prototype experiment

T. Schneemann*

H. Bekker and A. Wickenbrock

D. Budker

K. Schmieden† and M. Schott

M. Unni

  • *Contact author: tischnee@uni-mainz.de
  • †Contact author: kristof.schmieden@cern.ch
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Phys. Rev. D 114, 032012 – Published 24 August, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/n4gd-k232

Abstract

The SUPerconduction AXion search experiment (supax) is a future haloscope-type detector designed to probe axionlike particles as candidates for dark matter and solutions to the strong-CP problem in the mass range between 8  μeV and 30  μeV. In the course of the preparation of supax, a prototype experiment was built and operated. Using a copper cavity, cooled down to a temperature of 2 K and operated in a magnetic field of 12 T, we probe axion masses around 34  μeV and exclude axion-photon couplings down to |gaγγ|>1.6×10−13  GeV−1. The data were also used to exclude dark photons in the same mass range with a kinetic mixing parameter of χ>1.4×10−12. Details of the experimental setup and the analysis strategy are summarized in this paper.

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Phys. Rev. D 114, 032012– Published 24 August, 2026
  • Received 2 April 2026
  • Accepted 28 July 2026
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by SCOAP3.

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