Publications
173 results found
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2019, Improved measurements of the beta-decay response of liquid xenon with the LUX detector, Physical Review D: Particles, Fields, Gravitation and Cosmology, Vol: 100, ISSN: 1550-2368
We report results from an extensive set of measurements of the β-decay response in liquid xenon. These measurements are derived from high-statistics calibration data from injected sources of both 3H and 14C in the LUX detector. The mean light-to-charge ratio is reported for 13 electric field values ranging from 43 to 491 V/cm, and for energies ranging from 1.5 to 145 keV.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2019, Results of a search for sub-GeV Dark Matter using 2013 LUX data, Physical Review Letters, Vol: 122, ISSN: 0031-9007
The scattering of dark matter (DM) particles with sub-GeV masses off nuclei is difficult to detect using liquid xenon-based DM search instruments because the energy transfer during nuclear recoils is smaller than the typical detector threshold. However, the tree-level DM-nucleus scattering diagram can be accompanied by simultaneous emission of a bremsstrahlung photon or a so-called “Migdal” electron. These provide an electron recoil component to the experimental signature at higher energies than the corresponding nuclear recoil. The presence of this signature allows liquid xenon detectors to use both the scintillation and the ionization signals in the analysis where the nuclear recoil signal would not be otherwise visible. We report constraints on spin-independent DM-nucleon scattering for DM particles with masses of 0.4–5 GeV/c2 using 1.4×104 kg day of search exposure from the 2013 data from the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment for four different classes of mediators. This analysis extends the reach of liquid xenon-based DM search instruments to lower DM masses than has been achieved previously.
Tomás A, Araújo HM, Bailey AJ, et al., 2018, Study and mitigation of spurious electron emission from cathodic wires in noble liquid time projection chambers, Astroparticle Physics, Vol: 103, Pages: 49-61, ISSN: 0927-6505
Noble liquid radiation detectors have long been afflicted by spurious electron emission from their cathodic electrodes. This phenomenon must be understood and mitigated in the next generation of liquid xenon (LXe) experiments searching for WIMP dark matter or neutrinoless double beta decay, and in the large liquid argon (LAr) detectors for the long-baseline neutrino programmes. We present a systematic study of this spurious emission involving a series of slow voltage-ramping tests on fine metal wires immersed in a two-phase xenon time projection chamber with single electron sensitivity. Emission currents as low as 10−18A can thus be detected by electron counting, a vast improvement over previous dedicated measurements. Emission episodes were recorded at surface fields as low as ∼ 10 kV/cm in some wires and observed to have complex emission patterns, with average rates of 10–200 counts per second (c/s) and outbreaks as high as ∼ 106c/s. A fainter, less variable type of emission was also present in all untreated samples. There is evidence of a partial conditioning effect, with subsequent tests yielding on average fewer emitters occurring at different fields for the same wire. We find no evidence for an intrinsic threshold particular to the metal-LXe interface which might have limited previous experiments up to fields of at least 160 kV/cm. The general phenomenology is not consistent with enhanced field emission from microscopic filaments, but it appears instead to be related to the quality of the wire surface in terms of corrosion and the nature of its oxide layer. This study concludes that some surface treatments, in particular nitric acid cleaning applied to stainless steel wires, can bring about at least order-of-magnitude improvements in overall electron emission rates, and this should help the next generation of detectors achieve the required electrostatic performance.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2018, LUX trigger efficiency, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, Vol: 908, Pages: 401-410, ISSN: 0168-9002
The Large Underground Xenon experiment (LUX) searches for dark matter using a dual-phase xenon detector. LUX uses a custom-developed trigger system for event selection. In this paper, the trigger efficiency, which is defined as the probability that an event of interest is selected for offline analysis, is studied using raw data obtained from both electron recoil (ER) and nuclear recoil (NR) calibrations. The measured efficiency exceeds 98% at a pulse area of 90 detected photons, which is well below the WIMP analysis threshold on the S2 pulse area. The efficiency also exceeds 98% at recoil energies of 0.2 keV and above for ER, and 1.3 keV and above for NR. The measured trigger efficiency varies between 99% and 100% over the fiducial volume of the detector.
Paredes BL, Araujo HM, Froborg E, et al., 2018, Response of photomultiplier tubes to xenon scintillation light, Astroparticle Physics, Vol: 102, Pages: 56-66, ISSN: 0927-6505
We present the precision calibration of 35 Hamamatsu R11410-22 photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) with xenon scintillation light centred near 175 nm. This particular PMT variant was developed specifically for the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) dark matter experiment. A room-temperature xenon scintillation cell coupled to a vacuum cryostat was used to study the full-face PMT response at both room and low temperature ( ∼ −100 °C), in particular to determine the quantum efficiency (QE) and double photoelectron emission (DPE) probability in LZ operating conditions. For our sample with an average QE of (32.4 ± 2.9)% at room temperature, we find a relative improvement of (17.9 ± 5.2)% upon cooling (where uncertainty values refer to the sample standard deviation). The mean DPE probability in response to single vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photons is (22.6 ± 2.0)% at low temperature; the DPE increase relative to room temperature, measured here for the first time, was (12.2 ± 3.9)%. Evidence of a small triple photoelectron emission probability ( ∼ 0.6%) has also been observed. Useful correlations are established between these parameters and the QE as measured by the manufacturer. The single VUV photon response is also measured for one ETEL D730/9829QB, a PMT with a more standard bialkali photocathode used in the ZEPLIN-III experiment, for which we obtained a cold DPE fraction of (9.1 ± 0.1)%. Hence, we confirm that this effect is not restricted to the low-temperature bialkali photocathode technology employed by Hamamatsu. This highlights the importance of considering this phenomenon in the interpretation of data from liquid xenon scintillation and electroluminescence detectors, and from many other optical measurements in this wavelength region.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2018, Search for annual and diurnal rate modulations in the LUX experiment, Physical Review D - Particles, Fields, Gravitation and Cosmology, Vol: 98, ISSN: 1550-2368
Various dark matter models predict annual and diurnal modulations of dark matter interaction rates in Earth-based experiments as a result of the Earth’s motion in the halo. Observation of such features can provide generic evidence for detection of dark matter interactions. This paper reports a search for both annual and diurnal rate modulations in the LUX dark matter experiment using over 20 calendar months of data acquired between 2013 and 2016. This search focuses on electron recoil events at low energies, where leptophilic dark matter interactions are expected to occur and where the DAMA experiment has observed a strong rate modulation for over two decades. By using the innermost volume of the LUX detector and developing robust cuts and corrections, we obtained a stable event rate of 2.3±0.2 cpd/keVee/tonne, which is among the lowest in all dark matter experiments. No statistically significant annual modulation was observed in energy windows up to 26 keVee. Between 2 and 6 keVee, this analysis demonstrates the most sensitive annual modulation search up to date, with 9.2σ tension with the DAMA/LIBRA result. We also report no observation of diurnal modulations above 0.2 cpd/keVee/tonne amplitude between 2 and 6 keVee.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2018, Liquid xenon scintillation measurements and pulse shape discrimination in the LUX dark matter detector, PHYSICAL REVIEW D, Vol: 97, ISSN: 2470-0010
Weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) are a leading candidate for dark matter and are expected to produce nuclear recoil (NR) events within liquid xenon time-projection chambers. We present a measurement of the scintillation timing characteristics of liquid xenon in the LUX dark matter detector and develop a pulse shape discriminant to be used for particle identification. To accurately measure the timing characteristics, we develop a template-fitting method to reconstruct the detection times of photons. Analyzing calibration data collected during the 2013–2016 LUX WIMP search, we provide a new measurement of the singlet-to-triplet scintillation ratio for electron recoils (ER) below 46 keV, and we make, to our knowledge, a first-ever measurement of the NR singlet-to-triplet ratio at recoil energies below 74 keV. We exploit the difference of the photon time spectra for NR and ER events by using a prompt fraction discrimination parameter, which is optimized using calibration data to have the least number of ER events that occur in a 50% NR acceptance region. We then demonstrate how this discriminant can be used in conjunction with the charge-to-light discrimination to possibly improve the signal-to-noise ratio for nuclear recoils.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2018, Calibration, event reconstruction, data analysis, and limit calculation for the LUX dark matter experiment, PHYSICAL REVIEW D, Vol: 97, ISSN: 2470-0010
The LUX experiment has performed searches for dark-matter particles scattering elastically on xenon nuclei, leading to stringent upper limits on the nuclear scattering cross sections for dark matter. Here, for results derived from 1.4×104 kg days of target exposure in 2013, details of the calibration, event-reconstruction, modeling, and statistical tests that underlie the results are presented. Detector performance is characterized, including measured efficiencies, stability of response, position resolution, and discrimination between electron- and nuclear-recoil populations. Models are developed for the drift field, optical properties, background populations, the electron- and nuclear-recoil responses, and the absolute rate of low-energy background events. Innovations in the analysis include in situ measurement of the photomultipliers’ response to xenon scintillation photons, verification of fiducial mass with a low-energy internal calibration source, and new empirical models for low-energy signal yield based on large-sample, in situ calibrations.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2018, Position reconstruction in LUX, Journal of Instrumentation, Vol: 13, ISSN: 1748-0221
The (x, y) position reconstruction method used in the analysis of the complete exposure of the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment is presented. The algorithm is based on a statistical test that makes use of an iterative method to recover the photomultiplier tube (PMT) light response directly from the calibration data. The light response functions make use of a two dimensional functional form to account for the photons reflected on the inner walls of the detector. To increase the resolution for small pulses, a photon counting technique was employed to describe the response of the PMTs. The reconstruction was assessed with calibration data including ⁸³mKr (releasing a total energy of 41.5 keV) and ³H (β− with Q = 18.6 keV) decays, and a deuterium-deuterium (D-D) neutron beam (2.45 MeV) . Within the detector's fiducial volume, the reconstruction has achieved an (x, y) position uncertainty of σ = 0.82 cm and σ = 0.17 cm for events of only 200 and 4,000 detected electroluminescence photons respectively. Such signals are associated with electron recoils of energies ~0.25 keV and ~10 keV, respectively. The reconstructed position of the smallest events with a single electron emitted from the liquid surface (22 detected photons) has a horizontal (x, y) uncertainty of 2.13 cm.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2017, Ultralow energy calibration of LUX detector using Xe-127 electron capture, PHYSICAL REVIEW D, Vol: 96, ISSN: 2470-0010
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2017, 83mKr calibration of the 2013 LUX dark matter search, Physical Review D - Particles, Fields, Gravitation and Cosmology, Vol: 96, ISSN: 1550-2368
LUX was the first dark matter experiment to use a 83mKr calibration source. In this paper, we describe the source preparation and injection. We also present several 83mKr calibration applications in the context of the 2013 LUX exposure, including the measurement of temporal and spatial variation in scintillation and charge signal amplitudes, and several methods to understand the electric field within the time projection chamber.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2017, 3D modeling of electric fields in the LUX detector, Journal of Instrumentation, Vol: 12, ISSN: 1748-0221
This work details the development of a three-dimensional (3D) electric field model for the LUX detector. The detector took data to search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) during two periods. After the first period completed, a time-varying non-uniform negative charge developed in the polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) panels that define the radial boundary of the detector's active volume. This caused electric field variations in the detector in time, depth and azimuth, generating an electrostatic radially-inward force on electrons on their way upward to the liquid surface. To map this behavior, 3D electric field maps of the detector's active volume were generated on a monthly basis. This was done by fitting a model built in COMSOL Multiphysics to the uniformly distributed calibration data that were collected on a regular basis. The modeled average PTFE charge density increased over the course of the exposure from -3.6 to −5.5 μC/m2. From our studies, we deduce that the electric field magnitude varied locally while the mean value of the field of ~200 V/cm remained constant throughout the exposure. As a result of this work the varying electric fields and their impact on event reconstruction and discrimination were successfully modeled.
Scovell PR, Meehan E, Araújo HM, et al., 2017, Low-background gamma spectroscopy at the Boulby Underground Laboratory, Astroparticle Physics, Vol: 97, Pages: 160-173, ISSN: 0927-6505
The Boulby Underground Germanium Suite (BUGS) comprises three low-background, high-purity germanium detectors operating in the Boulby Underground Laboratory, located 1.1 km underground in the north-east of England, UK. BUGS utilises three types of detector to facilitate a high-sensitivity, high-throughput radio-assay programme to support the development of rare-event search experiments. A Broad Energy Germanium (BEGe) detector delivers sensitivity to low-energy gamma-rays such as those emitted by 210 Pb and 234 Th. A Small Anode Germanium (SAGe) well-type detector is employed for efficient screening of small samples. Finally, a standard p-type coaxial detector provides fast screening of standard samples. This paper presents the steps used to characterise the performance of these detectors for a variety of sample geometries, including the corrections applied to account for cascade summing effects. For low-density materials, BUGS is able to radio-assay to specific activities down to 3.6mBqkg −1 for 234 Th and 6.6mBqkg −1 for 210 Pb both of which have uncovered some significant equilibrium breaks in the 238 U chain. In denser materials, where gamma-ray self-absorption increases, sensitivity is demonstrated to specific activities of 0.9mBqkg −1 for 226 Ra, 1.1mBqkg −1 for 228 Ra, 0.3mBqkg −1 for 224 Ra, and 8.6mBqkg −1 for 40 K with all upper limits at a 90% confidence level. These meet the requirements of most screening campaigns presently under way for rare-event search experiments, such as the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) dark matter experiment. We also highlight the ability of the BEGe detector to probe the X-ray fluorescence region which can be important to identify the presence of radioisotopes associated with neutron production; this is of particular relevance in experiments sensitive to nuclear recoils.
Akerib DS, Araújo HM, Bai X, et al., 2017, Chromatographic separation of radioactive noble gases from xenon, Astroparticle Physics, Vol: 97, Pages: 80-87, ISSN: 0927-6505
The Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment operates at the Sanford Underground Research Facility to detect nuclear recoils from the hypothetical Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) on a liquid xenon target. Liquid xenon typically contains trace amounts of the noble radioactive isotopes 85 Kr and 39 Ar that are not removed by the in situ gas purification system. The decays of these isotopes at concentrations typical of research-grade xenon would be a dominant background for a WIMP search experiment. To remove these impurities from the liquid xenon, a chromatographic separation system based on adsorption on activated charcoal was built. 400 kg of xenon was processed, reducing the average concentration of krypton from 130 ppb to 3.5 ppt as measured by a cold-trap assisted mass spectroscopy system. A 50 kg batch spiked to 0.001 g/g of krypton was processed twice and reduced to an upper limit of 0.2 ppt.
Akerib DS, Akerlof CW, Akimov DY, et al., 2017, Identification of radiopure titanium for the LZ dark matter experiment and future rare event searches, Astroparticle Physics, Vol: 96, Pages: 1-10, ISSN: 0927-6505
The LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) experiment will search for dark matter particle interactions with a detector containing a total of 10 tonnes of liquid xenon within a double-vessel cryostat. The large mass and proximity of the cryostat to the active detector volume demand the use of material with extremely low intrinsic radioactivity. We report on the radioassay campaign conducted to identify suitable metals, the determination of factors limiting radiopure production, and the selection of titanium for construction of the LZ cryostat and other detector components. This titanium has been measured with activities of 238Ue < 1.6 mBq/kg, 238Ul < 0.09 mBq/kg, 232The=0.28±0.03 mBq/kg, 232Thl=0.25±0.02 mBq/kg, 40K < 0.54 mBq/kg, and 60Co < 0.02 mBq/kg (68% CL). Such low intrinsic activities, which are some of the lowest ever reported for titanium, enable its use for future dark matter and other rare event searches. Monte Carlo simulations have been performed to assess the expected background contribution from the LZ cryostat with this radioactivity. In 1,000 days of WIMP search exposure of a 5.6-tonne fiducial mass, the cryostat will contribute only a mean background of 0.160 ± 0.001(stat) ± 0.030(sys) counts.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Aquino C, et al., 2017, First searches for axions and axionlike particles with the LUX experiment, Physical Review Letters, Vol: 118, ISSN: 0031-9007
The first searches for axions and axionlike particles with the Large Underground Xenon experiment are presented. Under the assumption of an axioelectric interaction in xenon, the coupling constant between axions and electrons gAe is tested using data collected in 2013 with an exposure totaling 95 live days ×118 kg. A double-sided, profile likelihood ratio statistic test excludes gAe larger than 3.5×10−12 (90% C.L.) for solar axions. Assuming the Dine-Fischler-Srednicki-Zhitnitsky theoretical description, the upper limit in coupling corresponds to an upper limit on axion mass of 0.12 eV/c2, while for the Kim-Shifman-Vainshtein-Zhakharov description masses above 36.6 eV/c2 are excluded. For galactic axionlike particles, values of gAe larger than 4.2×10−13 are excluded for particle masses in the range 1–16 keV/c2. These are the most stringent constraints to date for these interactions.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2017, Limits on spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon cross section obtained from the complete LUX exposure, Physical Review Letters, Vol: 118, ISSN: 0031-9007
We present experimental constraints on the spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon elastic cross sections from the total 129.5 kg yr exposure acquired by the Large Underground Xenon experiment (LUX), operating at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota (USA). A profile likelihood ratio analysis allows 90% C.L. upper limits to be set on the WIMP-neutron (WIMP-proton) cross section of σn=1.6×10−41 cm2 (σp=5×10−40 cm2) at 35 GeV c−2, almost a sixfold improvement over the previous LUX spin-dependent results. The spin-dependent WIMP-neutron limit is the most sensitive constraint to date.
Araujo HMDOP, 2017, LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Technical Design Report, LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Technical Design Report, LBNL-1007256
In this Technical Design Report (TDR) we describe the LZ detector to be built at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF). The LZ dark matter experiment is designed to achieve sensitivity to a WIMP-nucleon spin-independent cross section of three times ten to the negative forty-eighth square centimeters.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2017, Signal yields, energy resolution, and recombination fluctuations in liquid xenon, Physical Review D, Vol: 95, ISSN: 2470-0010
This work presents an analysis of monoenergetic electronic recoil peaks in the dark-matter-search and calibration data from the first underground science run of the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) detector. Liquid xenon charge and light yields for electronic recoil energies between 5.2 and 661.7 keV are measured, as well as the energy resolution for the LUX detector at those same energies. Additionally, there is an interpretation of existing measurements and descriptions of electron-ion recombination fluctuations in liquid xenon as limiting cases of a more general liquid xenon recombination fluctuation model. Measurements of the standard deviation of these fluctuations at monoenergetic electronic recoil peaks exhibit a linear dependence on the number of ions for energy deposits up to 661.7 keV, consistent with previous LUX measurements between 2 and 16 keV with 3H. We highlight similarities in liquid xenon recombination for electronic and nuclear recoils with a comparison of recombination fluctuations measured with low-energy calibration data.
Akerib DS, Alsum S, Araujo HM, et al., 2017, Results from a search for dark matter in the complete LUX exposure, Physical Review Letters, Vol: 118, ISSN: 1079-7114
We report constraints on spin-independent weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP)-nucleon scattering using a 3.35×104 kg day exposure of the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment. A dual-phase xenon time projection chamber with 250 kg of active mass is operated at the Sanford Underground Research Facility under Lead, South Dakota (USA). With roughly fourfold improvement in sensitivity for high WIMP masses relative to our previous results, this search yields no evidence of WIMP nuclear recoils. At a WIMP mass of 50 GeV c−2, WIMP-nucleon spin-independent cross sections above 2.2×10−46 cm2 are excluded at the 90% confidence level. When combined with the previously reported LUX exposure, this exclusion strengthens to 1.1×10−46 cm2 at 50 GeV c−2.
Carmona-Benitez MC, Akerib DS, Araújo HM, et al., 2016, First Results of the LUX Dark Matter Experiment, Nuclear and Particle Physics Proceedings, Vol: 273-275, Pages: 309-313, ISSN: 2405-6014
LUX (Large Underground Xenon) is a dark matter direct detection experiment deployed at the 4850' level of the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, SD, operating a 370 kg dual-phase xenon TPC. Results of the first WIMP search run were presented in late 2013, for the analysis of 85.3 live-days with a fiducial volume of 118 kg, taken during the period of April to August 2013. The experiment exhibited a sensitivity to spin-independent WIMP-nucleon elastic scattering with a minimum upper limit on the cross section of 7.6×10-46cm2 at a WIMP mass of 33 GeV/c2, becoming the world's leading WIMP search result, in conflict with several previous claimed hints of discovery.
Akerib DS, Araujo HM, Bai X, et al., 2016, Results on the spin-dependent scattering of weakly interacting massive particles on nucleons from the run 3 data of the LUX experiment, Physical Review Letters, Vol: 116, ISSN: 1079-7114
We present experimental constraints on the spin-dependent WIMP (weakly interacting massive particle)-nucleon elastic cross sections from LUX data acquired in 2013. LUX is a dual-phase xenon time projection chamber operating at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (Lead, South Dakota), which is designed to observe the recoil signature of galactic WIMPs scattering from xenon nuclei. A profile likelihood ratio analysis of 1.4×104 kg day of fiducial exposure allows 90% C.L. upper limits to be set on the WIMP-neutron (WIMP-proton) cross section of σn=9.4×10−41 cm2 (σp=2.9×10−39 cm2) at 33 GeV/c2. The spin-dependent WIMP-neutron limit is the most sensitive constraint to date.
Akerib DS, Araujo HM, Bai X, et al., 2016, Improved limits on scattering of weakly interacting massive particles from reanalysis of 2013 LUX data, Physical Review Letters, Vol: 116, Pages: 1-7, ISSN: 1079-7114
We present constraints on weakly interacting massive particles (WIMP)-nucleus scattering from the 2013 data of the Large Underground Xenon dark matter experiment, including 1.4×104 kg day of search exposure. This new analysis incorporates several advances: single-photon calibration at the scintillation wavelength, improved event-reconstruction algorithms, a revised background model including events originating on the detector walls in an enlarged fiducial volume, and new calibrations from decays of an injected tritium β source and from kinematically constrained nuclear recoils down to 1.1 keV. Sensitivity, especially to low-mass WIMPs, is enhanced compared to our previous results which modeled the signal only above a 3 keV minimum energy. Under standard dark matter halo assumptions and in the mass range above 4 GeV c−2, these new results give the most stringent direct limits on the spin-independent WIMP-nucleon cross section. The 90% C.L. upper limit has a minimum of 0.6 zb at 33 GeV c−2 WIMP mass.
Akerib DS, Araujo HM, Bai X, et al., 2016, Tritium calibration of the LUX dark matter experiment, Physical Review D, Vol: 93, ISSN: 1550-7998
We present measurements of the electron-recoil (ER) response of the LUX dark matter detector based upon 170 000 highly pure and spatially uniform tritium decays. We reconstruct the tritium energy spectrum using the combined energy model and find good agreement with expectations. We report the average charge and light yields of ER events in liquid xenon at 180 and 105 V/cm and compare the results to the NEST model. We also measure the mean charge recombination fraction and its fluctuations, and we investigate the location and width of the LUX ER band. These results provide input to a reanalysis of the LUX run 3 weakly interacting massive particle search.
Akerib DS, Araujo HM, Bai X, et al., 2016, FPGA-based trigger system for the LUX dark matter experiment, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors, and Associated Equipment, Vol: 818, Pages: 57-67, ISSN: 1872-9576
LUX is a two-phase (liquid/gas) xenon time projection chamber designed to detect nuclear recoils resulting from interactions with dark matter particles. Signals from the detector are processed with an FPGA-based digital trigger system that analyzes the incoming data in real-time, with just a few microsecond latency. The system enables first pass selection of events of interest based on their pulse shape characteristics and 3D localization of the interactions. It has been shown to be >99% efficient in triggering on S2 signals induced by only few extracted liquid electrons. It is continuously and reliably operating since its full underground deployment in early 2013. This document is an overview of the systems capabilities, its inner workings, and its performance.
Collaboration TLZ, Akerib DS, Akerlof CW, et al., 2015, LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Conceptual Design Report
The design and performance of the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) detector is described as ofMarch 2015 in this Conceptual Design Report. LZ is a second-generationdark-matter detector with the potential for unprecedented sensitivity to weaklyinteracting massive particles (WIMPs) of masses from a few GeV/c2 to hundredsof TeV/c2. With total liquid xenon mass of about 10 tonnes, LZ will be the mostsensitive experiment for WIMPs in this mass region by the end of the decade.This report describes in detail the design of the LZ technical systems.Expected backgrounds are quantified and the performance of the experiment ispresented. The LZ detector will be located at the Sanford Underground ResearchFacility in South Dakota. The organization of the LZ Project and a summary ofthe expected cost and current schedule are given.
Malik SA, McCabe C, Araujo H, et al., 2015, Interplay and characterization of Dark Matter searches at colliders and in direct detection experiments, Physics of the Dark Universe, Vol: 9-10, Pages: 51-58, ISSN: 2212-6864
In this White Paper we present and discuss a concrete proposal for the consistent interpretation of Dark Matter searches at colliders and in direct detection experiments. Based on a specific implementation of simplified models of vector and axial-vector mediator exchanges, this proposal demonstrates how the two search strategies can be compared on an equal footing.
Abdallah J, Araujo H, Arbey A, et al., 2015, Simplified models for dark matter searches at the LHC, Physics of the Dark Universe, Vol: 9-10, Pages: 8-23, ISSN: 2212-6864
This document a outlines a set of simplified models for dark matter and its interactions with Standard Model particles. It is intended to summarize the main characteristics that these simplified models have when applied to dark matter searches at the LHC, and to provide a number of useful expressions for reference. The list of models includes both s-channel and t-channel scenarios. For s-channel, spin-0 and spin-1 mediations are discussed, and also realizations where the Higgs particle provides a portal between the dark and visible sectors. The guiding principles underpinning the proposed simplified models are spelled out, and some suggestions for implementation are presented.
Akerib DS, Araujo HM, Bai X, et al., 2015, Radiogenic and muon-induced backgrounds in the LUX dark matter detector, ASTROPARTICLE PHYSICS, Vol: 62, Pages: 33-46, ISSN: 0927-6505
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Akerib DS, Araujo HM, Bai X, et al., 2015, The LUX Experiment, 13th International Conference on Topics in Astroparticle and Underground Physics (TAUP), Publisher: ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV, Pages: 74-76, ISSN: 1875-3892
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