Probing the UV with IR Axion Dark Matter Experiments

There is an ongoing and future experimental program searching for axions as both extensions of the Standard Model and as candidates for the observed dark matter. In this paper, we examine the feasibility of being able to pin down precise features of axions within the context of this program. We define a set of infrared data that can be probed by experiments and explain how it encodes the ultraviolet data defining particular models of the QCD axion. We then critically examine the extent to which these data can be determined. If the parameters are favorable, we will be able to determine the axion couplings to photons, electrons, nuclei, as well as the dark matter halo density. However, further experimental proposals are needed to fully flesh out the ultraviolet model of the axion.