LUX Operations at the Sanford Underground Research Facility

桑福德地下研究设施的 LUX 运营

• 批准号: 1505868
• 负责人: Daniel McKinsey
• 金额: $ 15.22万
• 依托单位: Yale University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-07-01 至 2016-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1505868&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: LUX; Operations; Sanford; Underground; Research

Observations indicate that 80% of the matter in the Universe is not made of normal atoms, but must be otherwise undetected elementary "dark matter" particles that do not emit or absorb light. Remarkably, particle physics theories proposed for other reasons predict the existence of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) with just the right properties to be this dark matter. If WIMPs are the dark matter, they may be detectable when they scatter in Earth-based detectors. Direct detection of WIMP dark matter would solve a fundamental mystery in particle physics and cosmology, providing a unique window to learning about the primary matter constituent of the Universe and of physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. The Large Underground Xenon experiment (LUX) is a two-phase (liquid/gas) xenon (LXe) experiment designed for the search for dark matter interactions with ordinary matter.Development of technology related to LXe will find use in the increasing number of experiments worldwide using noble liquids as detection materials. These projects will also result in technical training in radiation detection, cryogenics, and gas purification for graduate and undergraduate students. LXe has practical applications to gamma ray imaging for astrophysics, Homeland Security, and medical imaging. There are frequent tours of the facility and presentations on the underground experiments for the region's schools and college classes, and they maintain strong outreach efforts to the region's American Indian Colleges and Tribal Councils.Located in the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, South Dakota, LUX has a fiducial mass of about 100 kg and promises substantially improved sensitivity to the WIMP model. From its operations to date, LUX has the most sensitive limit in the world for spin-independent dark matter interactions for WIMP masses above 6 GeV. This award provides support for continued LUX operations, followed by decommissioning, over the period of March 2015 through December 2016. Continued LUX operation through mid-2016 is expected to result in considerably improved sensitivity, reaching a factor of five in improvement over existing limits at high WIMP masses.

观测表明，宇宙中 80% 的物质不是由正常原子组成，而一定是未被检测到的基本“暗物质”粒子，它们不发射或吸收光。值得注意的是，出于其他原因提出的粒子物理理论预测了弱相互作用大质量粒子（WIMP）的存在，其属性恰好是这种暗物质。如果 WIMP 是暗物质，那么当它们在地球探测器中散射时就可能被探测到。直接探测 WIMP 暗物质将解决粒子物理学和宇宙学中的一个基本谜团，为了解宇宙的主要物质成分和粒子物理学标准模型之外的物理学提供了一个独特的窗口。大型地下氙气实验 (LUX) 是一项两相（液/气）氙 (LXe) 实验，旨在寻找暗物质与普通物质的相互作用。LXe 相关技术的发展将在全球范围内越来越多使用惰性液体作为检测材料的实验中得到应用。这些项目还将为研究生和本科生提供辐射探测、低温学和气体净化方面的技术培训。 LXe 在天体物理学、国土安全和医学成像的伽马射线成像中具有实际应用。该地区的学校和大学班级经常参观该设施并进行有关地下实验的演示，并且对该地区的美洲印第安人学院和部落理事会保持着强有力的外展工作。LUX 位于南达科他州利德市的桑福德地下研究设施 (SURF)，其基准质量约为 100 公斤，有望大幅提高对 WIMP 模型的灵敏度。从迄今为止的运行来看，LUX 对于质量超过 6 GeV 的 WIMP 质量的自旋无关暗物质相互作用具有世界上最敏感的限制。该奖项为 2015 年 3 月至 2016 年 12 月期间 LUX 的持续运行提供支持，随后退役。预计到 2016 年中期，LUX 的持续运行将显着提高灵敏度，比高 WIMP 质量的现有限制提高五倍。