LUX-ZEPLIN

Abstract:

The latest results on the low-temperature characterisation of scintillation materials selected for rare event search are reviewed. The temperature dependences of the light output and decay time are analysed on the basis of the current understanding of the underlying physical processes that control the emission of light in solids. It is shown that scintillation properties of the materials under study are adequate for the purpose of cryogenic experiments searching for rare events. From the analysis of the performance characteristics it is concluded that currently ZnWO4 is the most suitable scintillation target for dark matter search.

Abstract:

The prospects for the use of molybdates and tungstates in the opto-electronic devises prompted studies of the structure, as well as luminescence and scintillation properties of MgWO4-MgMoO4 system. The powder samples of (1-x)MgMoO4xMgWO4 (x = 0; 0.01; 0.05; 0.1; 0.3; 0.5; 0.7; 0.9, and 1.0) were synthesised by the solid state reaction technique at 900°C. The results of the X-ray structure analysis identified three types of crystal structure in the pseudo-binary MgWO4-MgMoO4 system, i. e. β-MgMoO4, cuprosheelite α-MgMoO4, and wolframite MgWO4. It is shown that a single-phase solid solution MgMo1-xWxO4 with β-MgMoO4 structure is formed at x < 0.10, whereas at higher concentration of tungsten the mixture of different phases is created. The phase composition of the sample determines the luminescence spectra; the maximum of the emission band is observed at 520 nm for β-MgMoO4, 590 nm for α-MgMoO4, and 480 nm for MgWO4. A possible correlation between the emission spectra and peculiarities of crystal structure are discussed in terms of the canonical configuration coordinate model. The emission efficiency of magnesium tungstate is found to be highest within the compounds under investigation. The scintillation light yield of MgWO4 at T = 295 K is found to be 0.90±0.15 of that of ZnWO4 and remains high with the decrease of temperature.

Abstract:

Scintillation properties of PbWO4 and PbMoO4 have been studied as potential cryogenic scintillators for rare event searches. The light output and decay kinetics of PbWO4 and PbMoO4 crystals for excitation with 241Am α particles were examined over the temperature range 7300 K. The α/γ ratio was measured with a PbMoO4 crystal scintillator for 5.3 MeV α particles, and the ability to distinguish between signals induced by α particles and γ quanta by pulse shape discrimination was assessed for the PbMoO4 crystal scintillator at 77 K. The energy dependence of the quenching factor for oxygen, molybdenum, tungsten and lead ions at low energy was calculated using a semi-empirical approach with data from the α particle measurements. The study demonstrates the good potential of these scintillators for cryogenic dark matter search and double beta decay experiments. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.