The EDELWEISS-III experiment uses Germanium low-temperature detectors with heat and ionization readout for direct dark matter search. These advanced high-purity detectors are operated at 18 mK in a
low-radioactivity environment of the Modane underground laboratory (LSM, France). In the long-term measurement campaign 2014-2015, eight detectors with best energy resolutions were selected for low-mass WIMP analysis. Statistical analyses of the acquired data show up to two orders of magnitude improvement with respect to the previous EDELWEISS-II low-mass WIMP search for e.g. 7 GeV/c2 WIMPs.
The current R&D program concentrates on further improvements of ionization and heat baseline resolutions and the use of voltage-assisted heat amplification technique (so-called Neganov-Luke mode). Significant improvement in sensitivity can be realized with a moderate exposure of 350 kg.d at actual background conditions within the next 2 years.
We report on recent results, current R&D activities, sensitivity projections and the EDELWEISS prospects beyond 2018.
