Gianfranco Bertone Awarded ERC Advanced Grant for De Tenebris (“On Darkness”): Dark matter phenomenology in strong gravity

De Tenebris (“On Darkness”) pioneers a new way to detect dark matter - the elusive substance comprising most of the Universe’s mass - by "listening" to ripples in spacetime called gravitational waves. When two black holes spiral together and merge, they send out gravitational waves that we can detect here on Earth. If dark matter is present around those black holes, it can subtly change the shape and timing of those waves.

Bertone’s project will develop models and computer codes to predict exactly how different types of dark matter would alter a black hole merger signal, and to identify key waveform signatures that reveal dark matter’s nature. By 2031, De Tenebris will deliver all of its models, computer codes, and event catalogs so that, when next-generation detectors begin operating, scientists will be fully equipped to hunt for dark matter through the “sound” of merging black holes.