Pěč, V. and Kudryavtsev, V.A. orcid.org/0000-0002-7018-5827 (2023) Muon-induced background in a next-generation dark matter experiment based on liquid xenon. In: Heise, J. and Schnee, R.W., (eds.) Low Radioactivity Techniques 2022 (LRT 2022): Proceedings of the 8th International Workshop on Low Radioactivity Techniques. Low Radioactivity Techniques 2022: The 8th International Workshop on Low Radioactivity Techniques, 14-17 Jun 2022, South Dakota, USA. AIP Conference Proceedings, 2908 (1). AIP Publishing , 090001.
Abstract
Muon-induced neutrons can lead to potentially irreducible backgrounds in rare event search experiments. We have investigated the implication of laboratory depth on the muon-induced background in a future dark matter experiment capable of reaching the so-called neutrino floor. Our simulation study focuses on a xenon-based detector with 71 tonnes of active mass, sur-rounded by additional veto systems including an instrumented water shield. Two locations at the Boulby Underground Laboratory (UK) served as a case study: an experimental cavern in salt at a depth of 2850 m w. e. (similar to the location of the existing laboratory), and a deeper laboratory located in polyhalite rock at a depth of 3575 m w. e. Our results show that less than one event of cosmogenic background is likely to survive standard analysis cuts for 10 years of operation at either location. The largest background component that we identified comes from delayed neutron emission from 17N which is produced from 19F in the fluoropolymer components of the experiment. Our results confirm that a dark matter search with sensitivity to the neutrino floor is viable (from the point of view of cosmogenic backgrounds) in underground laboratories at these levels of rock overburden. We present details of the performed simulations and of the obtained results.
Metadata
Item Type: | Proceedings Paper |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2023 The Authors. This is an author-produced version of a paper subsequently published in Proceedings of the 8th International Workshop on Low Radioactivity Techniques. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Dark matter; Computer simulation; Neutron emission; Leptons; Neutrinos; Chemical elements; Polymers |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES COUNCIL ST/K001337/1 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES COUNCIL ST/M003469/1 Science and Technology Facilities Council ST/N000277/1 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES COUNCIL ST/S000747/1 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES COUNCIL ST/T002107/1 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES COUNCIL ST/W000547/1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 28 Oct 2024 12:49 |
Last Modified: | 28 Oct 2024 12:49 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | AIP Publishing |
Series Name: | AIP Conference Proceedings |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1063/5.0161829 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:218942 |