Searching for high-frequency axion in quantum electromagnetodynamics through interface haloscopes

Abstract

The so-called Witten effect implies the existence of electromagnetic interactions between axion and magnetic monopole due to the axion-photon coupling. A sound quantization in the presence of magnetic monopoles, called quantum electromagnetodynamics (QEMD), was utilized to construct a more generic axion-photon Lagrangian in the low-energy axion effective field theory. This generic axion-photon Lagrangian introduces the interactions between axion and two four-potentials, and leads to new axion-modified Maxwell equations. The interface haloscopes place an interface between two electromagnetic media with different properties and are desirable to search for high-mass axions $m_a\gtrsim \mathcal{O}(10)~\mu{\rm eV}$. In this work, for the generic axion-photon couplings built under QEMD, we perform comprehensive calculations of the axion-induced propagating waves and energy flux densities in different interface setups. We also obtain the sensitivity to new axion-photon couplings for high-mass axions.