The experimental detection of the CE
ν
NS allows the investigation of neutrinos and neutrino sources with all-flavor sensitivity. Given its large content in neutrons and stability, Pb is a very ...appealing choice as target element. The presence of the radioisotope
210
Pb (T
1
/
2
∼
22 yrs) makes natural Pb unsuitable for low-background, low-energy event searches. This limitation can be overcome employing Pb of archaeological origin, where several half-lives of
210
Pb have gone by. We present results of a cryogenic measurement of a 15 g PbWO
4
crystal, grown with archaeological Pb (older than
∼
2000 yrs) that achieved a sub-keV nuclear recoil detection threshold. A ton-scale experiment employing such material, with a detection threshold for nuclear recoils of just 1 keV would probe the entire Milky Way for SuperNovae, with equal sensitivity for all neutrino flavors, allowing the study of the core of such exceptional events.
We operated a
PbMoO
4
scintillating cryogenic detector of 570 g, produced with archaeological lead. This compound features excellent low temperature characteristics in terms of light yield, ...12 keV/MeV for
β
/
γ
interactions, and FWHM energy resolution, 11.7 keV at 2.6 MeV. Furthermore, the detector allows for an effective particle identification by means of pulse shape analysis on the heat read-out channel. The implementation of innovative techniques and procedures for the purification of raw materials used for the crystal growth, and the highly-pure archaeological Pb, allowed for the production of large volume high-quality crystal. The overall characteristics of the detector operated at cryogenic temperatures makes
PbMoO
4
an excellent compound for neutrino physics applications, especially neutrinoless double-beta studies.
Rare event physics demands very detailed background control, high-performance detectors, and custom analysis strategies. Cryogenic calorimeters combine all these ingredients very effectively, ...representing a promising tool for next-generation experiments. CUPID-0 is one of the most advanced examples of such a technique, having demonstrated its potential with several results obtained with limited exposure. In this paper, we present a further application. Exploiting the analysis of delayed coincidence, we can identify the signals caused by the 220Rn-216Po decay sequence on an event-by-event basis. The analysis of these events allows us to extract the time differences between the two decays, leading to a new evaluation of 216Po half-life, estimated as (143.3±2.8) ms.
Core-collapse Supernovae (SNe) are one of the most energetic events in the Universe, during which almost all the star’s binding energy is released in the form of neutrinos. These particles are direct ...probes of the processes occurring in the stellar core and provide unique insights into the gravitational collapse. RES-NOVA will revolutionize how we detect neutrinos from astrophysical sources, by deploying the first ton-scale array of cryogenic detectors made from archaeological lead. Pb offers the highest neutrino interaction cross-section via coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEνNS). Such process will enable RES-NOVA to be equally sensitive to all neutrino flavours. For the first time, we propose the use archaeological Pb as sensitive target material in order to achieve an ultra-low background level in the region of interest (O(1 keV)). All these features make possible the deployment of the first cm-scale neutrino telescope for the investigation of astrophysical sources. In this contribution, we will characterize the radiopurity level and the performance of a small-scale proof-of-principle detector of RES-NOVA, consisting in a PbWO4 crystal made from archaeological-Pb operated as cryogenic detector.
•RES-NOVA: first-proposed cryogenic detector made from archaeological lead for background suppression.•Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering: innovative way to detect neutrinos from astrophysical sources.•Radiopurity level measured on kg-scale prototype allows supernovae neutrino detection.
The production of ultra-pure raw material is a crucial step to ensure the required background level in rare event searches. In this work, we establish an innovative technique developed to produce ...high-purity (99.999%) granular zinc. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the refining procedure by measuring the internal contaminations of the purified zinc with a high-purity germanium detector at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso. The total activity of cosmogenic activated nuclides is measured at the level of a few mBq/kg, as well as limits on naturally occurring radionuclides are set to less than mBq/kg. The excellent radiopurity of the zinc sample allows us to search for electron capture with positron emission and neutrinoless double electron capture of
64
Zn, setting the currently most stringent lower limits on their half-lives,
T
1
/
2
ε
β
+
>
2.7
×
10
21
year
(90% CI), and
T
1
/
2
0
ν
2
ε
>
2.6
×
10
21
year
(90% CI), respectively.
Core-collapse Supernovae (SNe) are one of the most energetic events in the Universe, during which almost all the star's binding energy is released in the form of neutrinos. These particles are direct ...probes of the processes occurring in the stellar core and provide unique insights into the gravitational collapse. RES-NOVA will revolutionize how we detect neutrinos from astrophysical sources, by deploying the first ton-scale array of cryogenic detectors made from archaeological lead. Pb offers the highest neutrino interaction cross-section via coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEνNS). Such process will enable RES-NOVA to be equally sensitive to all neutrino flavours. For the first time, we propose the use archaeological Pb as sensitive target material in order to achieve an ultra-low background level in the region of interest (O(1 keV)). All these features make possible the deployment of the first cm-scale neutrino telescope for the investigation of astrophysical sources. In this contribution, we will characterize the radiopurity level and the performance of a small-scale proof-of-principle detector of RES-NOVA, consisting in a PbWO
crystal made from archaeological-Pb operated as cryogenic detector.
In the field of fundamental particle physics, the neutrino has become more and more important in the last few years, since the discovery of its mass. In particular, the ultimate nature of the ...neutrino (if it is a Dirac or a Majorana particle) plays a crucial role not only in neutrino physics, but also in the overall framework of fundamental particle interactions and in cosmology. The only way to disentangle its ultimate nature is to search for the neutrinoless double beta decay. The idea of LUCIFER is to combine the bolometric technique proposed for the CUORE experiment with the bolometric light detection technique used in cryogenic dark matter experiments. The bolometric technique allows an extremely good energy resolution while its combination with the scintillation detection offers an ultimate tool for background rejection. The goal of LUCIFER is not only to build a background-free small-scale experiment but also to directly prove the potentiality of this technique. Preliminary tests on several detectors containing different interesting DBD emitters have clearly demonstrated the excellent background rejection capabilities that arise from the simultaneous, independent, double readout of heat and scintillation light.
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