SuperCDMS SNOLAB: Calibration, Commissioning, and Beyond

SuperCDMS SNOLAB：校准、调试及其他

• 批准号: 1708153
• 负责人: Enectali Figueroa-Feliciano
• 金额: $ 11.25万
• 依托单位: Northwestern University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2017-08-01 至 2018-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1708153&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SuperCDMS; SNOLAB; Calibration; Commissioning; Beyond

Multiple astronomical observations have established that about 85% 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. Deciphering the nature of this so-called Dark Matter is of fundamental importance to cosmology, astrophysics, and high-energy particle physics. A leading hypothesis is that it is comprised of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles, or WIMPs, that were produced moments after the Big Bang. If WIMPs are the dark matter, then their presence in our galaxy may be detectable via scattering from atomic nuclei in detectors located deep underground to help reject backgrounds due to cosmic rays. 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. This award will support students and scientists working on the SuperCDMS SNOLAB experiment that aims to achieve world-leading sensitivity for dark matter searches in the 1-10 GeV/c2 mass range.The SuperCDMS SNOLAB experiment will have a broad impact which extends beyond the search for dark matter. The experimental and R&D efforts further advance phonon-mediated detectors and new active veto concepts, which can have applications in cosmology, astronomy and industry. This effort will contribute to the training of undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, continuing the group?s strong involvement in mentoring undergraduates from underrepresented groups by participating in the Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP), which brings undergraduates from across the U.S. to do a summer of research at Northwestern. This award has the following objectives: (1) to measure a dark matter signal or place world-leading limits for the WIMP-nucleon cross section at masses below 10 GeV/c2 by analyzing the electron-recoiling dark matter candidates from the existing SuperCDMS Soudan data; (2) to performance test the first production SuperCDMS SNOLAB detectors at the CUTE test facility in SNOLAB; and (3) to play a central role in the pre-operations and commissioning of the SuperCDMS SNOLAB experiment. This award will focus on the calibration of the nuclear energy scale, which is a measurement which is essential to obtain science from SuperCDMS SNOLAB. The nuclear energy scale will be measured in a dedicated testing campaign using both high resolution ionization yield measurements using small R&D detectors at the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory (TUNL) neutron beam facility, and full-size SuperCDMS SNOLAB detectors at the new NEXUS (Northwestern Experimental Underground Site) at Fermilab.

多项天文观测已证实，宇宙中约 85% 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。破译这种所谓的暗物质的本质对于宇宙学、天体物理学和高能粒子物理学至关重要。一个主要的假设是，它由大爆炸后不久产生的弱相互作用大质量粒子（WIMP）组成。如果 WIMP 是暗物质，那么它们在我们银河系中的存在可以通过位于地下深处的探测器中原子核的散射来探测到，以帮助排除宇宙射线造成的背景。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。该奖项将支持从事 SuperCDMS SNOLAB 实验的学生和科学家，该实验旨在在 1-10 GeV/c2 质量范围内实现世界领先的暗物质搜索灵敏度。SuperCDMS SNOLAB 实验将产生广泛的影响，超出暗物质的搜索范围。实验和研发工作进一步推进了声子介导探测器和新的主动否决概念，可在宇宙学、天文学和工业领域得到应用。这项工作将有助于本科生、研究生和博士后研究人员的培训，并通过参加夏季研究机会计划（SROP），继续大力指导来自代表性不足群体的本科生，该计划吸引来自美国各地的本科生在西北大学进行夏季研究。该奖项有以下目标：(1) 通过分析现有 SuperCDMS Soudan 数据中的电子反冲暗物质候选者，测量暗物质信号或对质量低于 10 GeV/c2 的 WIMP 核子截面设置世界领先的限制； (2) 在 SNOLAB 的 CUTE 测试设施上测试第一批生产的 SuperCDMS SNOLAB 探测器的性能； (3) 在 SuperCDMS SNOLAB 实验的预操作和调试中发挥核心作用。该奖项将重点关注核能标度的校准，这是从 SuperCDMS SNOLAB 获得科学知识所必需的测量。核能规模将在专门的测试活动中进行测量，使用三角大学核实验室 (TUNL) 中子束设施的小型研发探测器的高分辨率电离产额测量，以及费米实验室新 NEXUS（西北实验地下场）的全尺寸 SuperCDMS SNOLAB 探测器。