The study of elementary particles that originate in astrophysical processes has gained great relevance in recent years. Of particular importance is the study of neutrinos coming from within the earth, the sun, supernovae, and other astrophysical settings that produce ultra-energetic neutrinos. In addition to their relevance to astrophysics, these studies provide information on the properties of neutrinos. On the other hand, it has been well established that baryonic matter only constitutes 5% of the matter in the universe, while about 27% corresponds to dark matter (DM), which manifests itself through its gravitational effects, but of which any other property is unknown. Understand the nature of OM in one of the most relevant topics in science.
At IFUNAM, an intense theoretical and experimental research program is being carried out on these topics. Various aspects of neutrino physics are studied and extensions of the standard model are analyzed that, among other elements, incorporate particles that are possible candidates for dark matter. Scenarios where there is a connection between neutrino physics (masses and mixtures) with OM are also analyzed.
As for the experimental groups, they actively participate in several of the most important international projects: (i) The HAWC experiment (Puebla, Mexico) designed to detect gamma rays and ultra-cosmic rays. energetic; (ii) The AMS 02 (International Space Station) detector where cosmic rays and antimatter are monitored; (iii) The SNOLAB underground laboratory (Canada) participates in several experiments related to the study of neutrinos and the direct search for dark matter.
On the other hand, IFUNAM has laboratories where particle detectors are designed for some of the aforementioned experiments, as well as as prototypes of dark matter and neutrino detectors.
