Thermal detector model for cryogenic composite detectors for the dark matter experiments CRESST and EURECA

Weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) are candidates for non-baryonic cold dark matter. The dark Matter experiments CRESST (cryogenic rare event search with superconducting thermometers) and the EURECA (european underground rare event calorimeter array) project are aimed at the direct detection of WIMPs with modularised cryogenic detectors. To decouple the transition edge sensor production from the choice of the target material and to avoid heating cycles of the absorber crystal, a composite detector design is developed and studied. On the basis of an existing thermal detector model for cryogenic detectors, an extension to this model has been developed. This extended model can be expected to provide an enormous help when tailoring composite detectors to the requirements of various experiments