  The sub-micron range in the field of short distance interactions has yet to
be opened to experimental investigation, and may well hold the key to
understanding al least part of the dark matter puzzle. The aKWISP
(advanced-KWISP) project introduces the novel Double Membrane Interaction
Monitor (DMIM), a combined source-sensing device where interaction distances
can be as short as 100 nm or even 10 nm, much below the 1-10 micron distance
which is the lower limit encountered by current experimental efforts. aKWISP
builds on the technology and the results obtained with the KWISP
opto-mechanical force sensor now searching at CAST for the direct coupling to
matter of solar chameleons. It will reach the ultimate quantum-limited
sensitivity by exploiting an array of technologies, including operation at
milli-Kelvin temperatures. Recent suggestions point at short-distance
interactions studies as intriguing possibilities for the detection of axions
and of new physical phenomena.
