We extend and explore the general non-relativistic effective theory of dark matter (DM) direct detection. We describe the basic non-relativistic building blocks of operators and discuss their symmetry properties, writing down all Galilean-invariant operators up to quadratic order in momentum transfer arising from exchange of particles of spin 1 or less. Any DM particle theory can be translated into the coefficients of an effective operator and any effective operator can be simply related to most general description of the nuclear response. We find several operators which lead to novel nuclear responses. These responses differ significantly from the standard minimal WIMP cases in their relative coupling strengths to various elements, changing how the results from different experiments should be compared against each other. Response functions are evaluated for common DM targets -F, Na, Ge, I, and Xe -using standard shell model techniques. We point out that each of the nuclear responses is familiar from past studies of semi-leptonic electroweak interactions, and thus potentially testable in weak interaction studies. We provide tables of the full set of required matrix elements at finite momentum transfer for a range of common elements, making a careful and fully model-independent analysis possible. Finally, we discuss embedding non-relativistic effective theory operators into UV models of dark matter.

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We summarize and critically evaluate the available data on nuclear fusion cross sections important to energy generation in the Sun and other hydrogen-burning stars and to solar neutrino production. Recommended values and uncertainties are provided for key cross sections, and a recommended spectrum is given for 8 B solar neutrinos. We also discuss opportunities for further increasing the precision of key rates, including new facilities, new experimental techniques, and improvements in theory. This review, which summarizes the conclusions of a workshop held at the Institute for Nuclear Theory, Seattle, in January 2009, is intended as a 10-year update and supplement to Reviews of Modern Physics 70 (1998) 1265.

A model independent formulation of WIMP-nucleon scattering was recently developed in Galileaninvariant effective field theory and embedded in the nucleus, determining the most general WIMP-nucleus elastic response. This formulation shows that the standard description of WIMP elastic scattering in terms spin-dependent and spin-independent responses frequently fails to identify the dominant operators governing the scattering, omitting four of the six responses allowed by basic symmetry considerations. Consequently comparisons made between experiments that are based on a spin-independent/spindependent analysis can be misleading for many candidate interactions, mischaracterizing the magnitude and multipolarity (e.g., scalar or vector) of the scattering. The new responses are associated with velocitydependent WIMP couplings and correspond to familiar electroweak nuclear operators such as the orbital angular momentum l(i) and the spin-orbit interaction σ(i) · l(i). Such operators have distinct selection rules and coherence properties, and thus open up new opportunities for using low-energy measurements to constrain ultraviolet theories of dark matter.The community's reliance on simplified descriptions of WIMP-nucleus interactions reflects the absence of analysis tools that integrate general theories of dark matter with standard treatments of nuclear response functions. To bridge this gap, we have constructed a public-domain Mathematica package for WIMP analyses based on our effective theory formulation. Script inputs are 1) the coefficients of the effective theory, through which one can characterize the low-energy consequences of arbitrary ultraviolet theories of WIMP interactions; and 2) one-body density matrices for commonly used targets, the most compact description of the relevant nuclear physics. The generality of the effective theory expansion guarantees that the script will remain relevant as new ultraviolet theories are explored; the use of density matrices to factor the nuclear physics from the particle physics will allow nuclear structure theorists to update the script as new calculations become available, independent of specific particle-physics contexts. The Mathematica package outputs the resulting response functions (and associated form factors) and also the differential event rate, once a galactic WIMP velocity profile is specified, and thus in its present form provides a complete framework for experimental analysis. The Mathematica script requires no a priori knowledge of the details of the non-relativistic effective field theory or nuclear physics, though the core concepts are reviewed here and in [1].

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We review and analyze the available information on the nuclear-fusion cross sections that are most important for solar energy generation and solar neutrino production. We provide best values for the low-energy cross-section factors and, wherever possible, estimates of the uncertainties. We also describe the most important experiments and calculations that are required in order to improve our knowledge of solar fusion rates. [S0034-6861(98)00704-1]

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We generate new standard solar models using newly analyzed nuclear fusion cross sections and present results for helioseismic quantities and solar neutrino fluxes. We discuss the status of the solar abundance problem and investigate whether nonstandard solar models with accretion from the protoplanetary disk might alleviate the problem. We examine a broad range of possibilities, analyzing both metal-enriched and metal-depleted accretion models and exploring three scenarios for the timing of the accretion. Only partial solutions are found: one can bring either the depth of the convective zone or the surface helium abundance into agreement with helioseismic results, but not both simultaneously. In addition, detailed results for solar neutrino fluxes show that neutrinos are a competitive source of information about the solar core and can help constrain possible accretion histories of the Sun. Finally, we briefly discuss how measurements of solar neutrinos from the CN-cycle could shed light on the interaction between the early Sun and its protoplanetary disk.