Prying Open the Dark Sector Window with SBND Off-Target Mode

Bhaskar Dutta; Debopam Goswami; Aparajitha Karthikeyan; Vishvas Pandey; Zahra Tabrizi; Adrian Thompson; Richard G. Van de Water

arXiv · 2603.25818

Prying Open the Dark Sector Window with SBND Off-Target Mode

Bhaskar Dutta·Debopam Goswami·Aparajitha Karthikeyan·Vishvas Pandey·Zahra Tabrizi·Adrian Thompson·Richard G. Van de Water

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Abstract

Accelerator-based neutrino experiments with high-intensity proton beams and advanced detector technologies provide a powerful and complementary approach to probing physics beyond the Standard Model. The MiniBooNE experiment at Fermilab pioneered a dedicated Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) off-target (beam-dump) run, setting leading constraints on sub-GeV dark matter. In this work, we explore the physics opportunities enabled by operating the Short-Baseline Near Detector (SBND) at Fermilab in a future BNB off-target configuration, as well as in a dedicated beam-dump configuration. By redirecting the proton beam away from the nominal beryllium target, or by employing a dedicated beam-dump, neutrino-induced backgrounds are substantially suppressed, thereby enhancing SBND's sensitivity to many new physics scenarios. We demonstrate that such running modes significantly extend the reach for new physics. As representative examples, we present projected sensitivities to light dark matter, axion-like particles, heavy neutral leptons, and meson-portal scenarios.

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Bhaskar Dutta, Debopam Goswami, Aparajitha Karthikeyan, Vishvas Pandey, Zahra Tabrizi, Adrian Thompson, Richard G. Van de Water. 2026-03-26. Prying Open the Dark Sector Window with SBND Off-Target Mode. https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.25818

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