LUX-ZEPLIN

Abstract:

Abstract The DarkSide-20k dark matter direct detection experiment will employ a $${21}\,\hbox {m}^{2}$$ 21 m 2 silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array, instrumenting a dual-phase 50 tonnes liquid argon Time Projection Chamber (TPC). SiPMs are arranged into modular photosensors called Tiles , each integrating 24 SiPMs onto a printed circuit board (PCB) that provides signal amplification, power distribution, and a single-ended output for simplified readout. $$16$$ 16 Tiles are further grouped into Photo-Detector Units (PDUs). This paper details the production of the Tiles and the Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA-QC) protocol established to ensure their performance and uniformity. The production and QA-QC of the Tiles are carried out at Nuova Officina Assergi (NOA), an ISO-6 clean room facility at LNGS. This process includes wafer-level cryogenic characterisation, precision die attaching, wire bonding, and extensive electrical and optical validation of each Tile. The overall production yield exceeds 83.5%, matching the requirements of the DarkSide-20k production plan. These results validate the robustness of the Tile design and its suitability for operation in a cryogenic environment.

Abstract:

The current generation of cryogenic solid state detectors used in direct dark matter and CEνNS searches typically reach energy thresholds of O(10) eV for nuclear recoils. For a reliable calibration in this energy regime a method has been proposed, providing monoenergetic nuclear recoils at low energies ∼100 eV–1 keV. In this work we report on the observation of a peak at (1113.6-6.5+6.5) eV in the data of an Al2O3 crystal in CRESST-III, which was irradiated with neutrons from an AmBe calibration source. We attribute this monoenergetic peak to the radiative capture of thermal neutrons on Al27 and the subsequent deexcitation via single γ emission. We compare the measured results with the outcome of Geant4 simulations and investigate the possibility to make use of this effect for the energy calibration of Al2O3 detectors at low energies. We further investigate the possibility of a shift in the expected energy scale of this effect caused by the creation of defects in the target crystal.

Abstract:

We report results of a search for nuclear recoils induced by weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) dark matter using the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) two-phase xenon time projection chamber. This analysis uses a total exposure of $4.2\pm 0.1$ tonne-years from 280 live days of LZ operation, of which $3.3\pm 0.1$ tonne-years and 220 live days are new. A technique to actively tag background electronic recoils from ${}^{214}\mathrm{Pb}$ $\beta$ decays is featured for the first time. Enhanced electron-ion recombination is observed in two-neutrino double electron capture decays of ${}^{124}\mathrm{Xe}$ , representing a noteworthy new background. After removal of artificial signal-like events injected into the dataset to mitigate analyzer bias, we find no evidence for an excess over expected backgrounds. World-leading constraints are placed on spin-independent (SI) and spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon cross sections for masses $\ge 9\mathrm{GeV}/c^2$ . The strongest SI exclusion set is $2.2\times {10}^{-48}{\mathrm{cm}}^2$ at the 90% confidence level and the best SI median sensitivity achieved is $5.1\times {10}^{-48}{\mathrm{cm}}^2$ , both for a mass of $40\mathrm{GeV}/c^2$ . Published by the American Physical Society 2025

Abstract:

Electron-capture decays of ${}^{125}\mathrm{Xe}$ and ${}^{127}\mathrm{Xe}$ , and double-electron-capture decays of ${}^{124}\mathrm{Xe}$ , are backgrounds in searches for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) conducted by dual-phase xenon time projection chambers such as LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ). These decays produce signals with more light and less charge than equivalent-energy $\beta$ decays and correspondingly overlap more with WIMP signals. We measure three electron-capture charge yields in LZ: the 1.1 keV M-shell, 5.2 keV L-shell, and 33.2 keV K-shell at drift fields of 193 and $96.5\mathrm{V}/\mathrm{cm}$ . The LL double-electron-capture decay of ${}^{124}\mathrm{Xe}$ exhibits even more pronounced shifts in charge and light. We provide a first model of double-electron-capture charge yields using the link between ionization density and electron-ion recombination, and identify a need for more accurate calculations. Finally, we discuss the implications of the reduced charge yield of these decays and other interactions creating inner-shell vacancies for future dark matter searches.