First search for invisible decays of orthopositronium confined in a vacuum cavity

2018 
The experimental setup and results of the first search for invisible decays of ortho-positronium (\ops) confined in a vacuum cavity are reported. No evidence of invisible decays at a level $\text{Br}\left(\text{o-Ps}\to\text{invisible}\right) < 5.9\times 10^{-4}$ (90% C.~L.) was found. This decay channel is predicted in Hidden Sector models such as the Mirror Matter (MM), which could be a candidate for Dark Matter. Analyzed within the MM context, this result provides an upper limit on the kinetic mixing strength between ordinary and mirror photons of $\epsilon < 3.1 \times 10^{-7}$ (90% C.~L.). This limit was obtained for the first time in vacuum free of systematic effects due to collisions with matter.
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