Nuclear Tracks from Cold Dark Matter Interactions in Mineral Crystals: A Computational Study

Recoiling nuclei from Cold Dark Matter (CDM) elastic scattering interactions with the constituent elements of some minerals may produce etchable damage tracks in the crystal structure. Present calculations show that in muscovite mica, CDM tracks from recoiling potassium atoms could be readily distinguished from others due to alpha-decays in the uranium and thorium chains. Under favorable conditions, this technique could greatly improve the existing limits on Weakly Interacting Massive Particles as the constituents of the galactic halo.