Searching for Cold Dark Matter. A case of coexistence of Supersymmetry and Nuclear Physics

The direct detection rate for supersymmetric cold dark matter (CDM) particles is calculated for a number of suitable nuclear targets. Both the coherent and spin contributions are considered. By considering representative phenomenologically acceptable input in the restricted SUSY parameter space, detectable rates are predicted for some choices of the parameters. The modulation effect, due to the Earth's annual motion, has also been considered and found to be $\le 4%$. Its precise value depends on the mass of CDM particles (LSP) and the structure of the target.