Princeton University Dark Cosmos Seminar

Abstract: It is well known that the study and observation of core collapse Supernovae provide powerful tools to probe possible scenarios of physics beyond the Standard Model (SM). In this seminar, I will provide an overview of the mechanisms underlying these phenomena and discuss innovative strategies to leverage existing data—and future observations—to test scenarios of new physics. First, I will present how constraints from Supernova cooling can probe interactions between SM particles and hypothetical dark sectors, offering sensitivity comparable to, or exceeding, that of collider experiments, with important consequences for dark matter searches. Next, I will focus on the emission of axion-like particles (ALPs) from astrophysical sources. Light ALPs can convert into photons in the presence of external magnetic fields, while heavier ALPs may decay into photon pairs, both producing observable gamma-ray signatures. I will discuss how gamma-ray data from SN1987A constrains ALP parameter space and highlight the potential implications of similar signals from a future galactic supernova. I will conclude discussing our proposal of a full-sky network of gamma-ray telescopes to continuously monitor transient gamma-ray signals.