Russian Researchers Develop Highly Sensitive Radio Astronomy Sensor for Axion Dark Matter Detection
Researchers from the Institute for Physics of Microstructures of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University have developed a radio astronomy sensor whose sensitivity is reportedly two to three times higher than that of existing international counterparts, and it has been granted a Russian patent. The device is designed for detecting weak electromagnetic radiation signals and can be used in frontier physics experiments such as cosmic microwave background radiation studies and axion dark matter searches. The researchers explain that this type of detector is essentially an electromagnetic radiation receiver. When electromagnetic radiation strikes the sensitive element, the electron temperature rises, thereby altering the recorded signal. To improve detection sensitivity, the research team introduced a thin hafnium layer into the structure, which acts as a thermal...
2026-08-17