DUSEL R&D: New WIMP Detector Technique Based on High Pressure Xenon Gas

大量的科学证据表明，宇宙中的大部分物质都是以弱相互作用大质量粒子（wimp）的形式存在的，它们的性质在很大程度上是未知的。由于银河系的光环似乎主要是暗物质，因此通过观察WIMP与正常原子的碰撞，可以在实验室中直接检测到它。该合同将提供资金用于开发、建造和运行一种基于高压气态氙（HPXe）的新型鉴别WIMP探测器，主要目的是确定其在未来大规模DUSEL实验中的可行性。该小组最近的测量以及理论考虑表明，与液相氙相比，HPXe中的核反冲辨别可能更优越。所提出的工作的一个重要组成部分将是确定在实际的探测器中是否存在这种情况。作为“更广泛影响”的一部分，一种检测亚原子粒子相互作用的新仪器的开发将影响与该项目相关的本科生、研究生和博士后的教育。学生将参与设计、制造、装配、数据采集和分析等各个阶段的工作。最终产品也可应用于辐射探测的其他领域。

A large body of scientific evidence suggests that most of the matter in the universe is in the form of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) whose properties are largely unknown. Since the halo of the Milky Way galaxy appears to be mostly dark matter, the possibility of direct detection in the laboratory exists via observation of WIMP collisions with normal atoms. This award will provide funds to develop, construct and operate a new type of discriminating WIMP detector based on high pressure gaseous xenon (HPXe) with the primary aim being to ascertain its viability for a future large-scale DUSEL experiment. Recent measurements by this group along with theoretical considerations suggest that nuclear recoil discrimination may be superior in HPXe compared to liquid phase xenon. An important component of the proposed work will be to determine if this is the case in a practical detector. As part of the Broader Impacts, the development of a new instrument to detect subatomic particle interactions will impact the educations of the undergraduate and graduate students and post-doctoral associates connected with the project. Students will work on all phases including design, fabrication, assembly, data acquisition, and analysis. The final product may also have applications in other fields where radiation detection is employed.