Spin-dependent dark matter scattering in quasi-two-dimensional magnets

Abstract

We study the prospects of detecting dark matter coupled to the spin of the electron, such that it may scatter and excite magnons - collective excitations of electronic spins. We show that materials exhibiting long-range magnetic order where the spins are coupled only along a plane may act as directional dark matter detectors. These quasi-2D materials possess anisotropic dispersion relations and structure functions which induce a sidereal modulation in the excitation rate. We calculate the expected signal rate for some candidate (anti)ferromagnets, demonstrating a possible route to the direct detection of spin-dependent dark matter in the keV to MeV mass range.