The search for axion dark matter

This talk reviews the original motivation for the axion as a solution to the strong CP problem and the constraints that have been placed on the axion by experimental searches and by astrophysical and cosmological considerations. As a result of the bounds, the axion mass is presently restricted to a window extending from about 10-2 ampersand hthinsp;eV to about 10-6 ampersand hthinsp;eV. In this window, axions are a form of cold dark matter. It is possible to detect galactic halo axions by stimulating their conversion to photons in a laboratory magnetic field. I close-quote ll report on two experiments of this type, one at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the other at Kyoto University. I close-quote ll also discuss what can be learned about the structure of our galactic halo if a signal is found. copyright 1998 American Institute of Physics