V. Belov

Search for Majorana neutrinos with the first two years of EXO-200 data

Many extensions of the standard model of particle physics suggest that neutrinos should be Majorana-type fermions—that is, that neutrinos are their own anti-particles—but this assumption is difficult to confirm. Observation of neutrinoless double-β decay (0νββ), a spontaneous transition that may occur in several candidate nuclei, would verify the Majorana nature of the neutrino and constrain the absolute scale of the neutrino mass spectrum. Recent searches carried out with 76Ge (the GERDA experiment) and 136Xe (the KamLAND-Zen and EXO (Enriched Xenon Observatory)-200 experiments) have established the lifetime of this decay to be longer than 1025 years, corresponding to a limit on the neutrino mass of 0.2–0.4 electronvolts. Here we report new results from EXO-200 based on a large 136Xe exposure that represents an almost fourfold increase from our earlier published data sets. We have improved the detector resolution and revised the data analysis. The half-life sensitivity we obtain is 1.9 × 1025 years, an improvement by a factor of 2.7 on previous EXO-200 results. We find no statistically significant evidence for 0νββ decay and set a half-life limit of 1.1 × 1025 years at the 90 per cent confidence level. The high sensitivity holds promise for further running of the EXO-200 detector and future 0νββ decay searches with an improved Xe-based experiment, nEXO.

Search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay in 136 Xe with EXO-200

We report on a search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of 136Xe with EXO-200. No signal is observed for an exposure of 32.5 kg yr, with a background of ∼1.5×10(-3)  kg(-1) yr(-1)  keV(-1) in the ±1σ region of interest. This sets a lower limit on the half-life of the neutrinoless double-beta decay T(1/2)(0νββ)(136Xe)>1.6×10(25)  yr (90% C.L.), corresponding to effective Majorana masses of less than 140-380 meV, depending on the matrix element calculation.

Search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay in 136Xe with EXO-200

We report on a search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of 136Xe with EXO-200. No signal is observed for an exposure of 32.5 kg yr, with a background of ∼1.5×10(-3)  kg(-1) yr(-1)  keV(-1) in the ±1σ region of interest. This sets a lower limit on the half-life of the neutrinoless double-beta decay T(1/2)(0νββ)(136Xe)>1.6×10(25)  yr (90% C.L.), corresponding to effective Majorana masses of less than 140-380 meV, depending on the matrix element calculation.

Observation of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering

A 14.6-kilogram sodium-doped CsI scintillator is used to detect a neutrino scattering process with a 6.7σ confidence level. Nailing down an elusive process Detecting neutrinos—elementary particles that barely interact with other matter—usually requires detectors of enormous size. A particular interaction of neutrinos with atomic nuclei, called the coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEνNS), is predicted to occur with relatively high probability, and it could be used to drastically reduce the size of neutrino detectors. However, observing this interaction requires a source of low-energy neutrinos and detectors that contain nuclei of optimal mass. Akimov et al. observed CEνNS with a 6.7σ confidence by using a comparatively tiny, 14.6-kg sodium-doped CsI scintillator exposed to neutrinos from a spallation neutron facility (see the Perspective by Link). The discovery places tighter bounds on exotic, beyond-the-standard-model interactions involving neutrinos. Science, this issue p. 1123; see also p. 1098 The coherent elastic scattering of neutrinos off nuclei has eluded detection for four decades, even though its predicted cross section is by far the largest of all low-energy neutrino couplings. This mode of interaction offers new opportunities to study neutrino properties and leads to a miniaturization of detector size, with potential technological applications. We observed this process at a 6.7σ confidence level, using a low-background, 14.6-kilogram CsI[Na] scintillator exposed to the neutrino emissions from the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Characteristic signatures in energy and time, predicted by the standard model for this process, were observed in high signal-to-background conditions. Improved constraints on nonstandard neutrino interactions with quarks are derived from this initial data set.

An improved measurement of the 2\nu \beta \beta\ half-life of Xe-136 with EXO-200

We report on an improved measurement of the 2\nu \beta \beta\ half-life of Xe-136 performed by EXO-200. The use of a large and homogeneous time projection chamber allows for the precise estimate of the fiducial mass used for the measurement, resulting in a small systematic uncertainty. We also discuss in detail the data analysis methods used for double-beta decay searches with EXO-200, while emphasizing those directly related to the present measurement. The Xe-136 2\nu \beta \beta\ half-life is found to be 2.165 +- 0.016 (stat) +- 0.059 (sys) x 10^21 years. This is the most precisely measured half-life of any 2\nu \beta \beta\ decay to date.

A magnetically driven piston pump for ultra-clean applications

A magnetically driven piston pump for xenon gas recirculation is presented. The pump is designed to satisfy extreme purity and containment requirements, as is appropriate for the recirculation of isotopically enriched xenon through the purification system and large liquid xenon time projection chamber of EXO-200. The pump, using sprung polymer gaskets, is capable of pumping more than 16 standard liters per minute of xenon gas with 750 Torr differential pressure.

Cosmogenic backgrounds to 0νββ in EXO-200

As neutrinoless double-beta decay experiments become more sensitive and intrinsic radioactivity in detector materials is reduced, previously minor contributions to the background must be understood and eliminated. With this in mind, cosmogenic backgrounds have been studied with the EXO-200 experiment. Using the EXO-200 TPC, the muon flux (through a flat horizontal surface) underground at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) has been measured to be {\Phi} = 4.07

Measurements of the ion fraction and mobility of alpha and beta decay products in liquid xenon using EXO-200

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Measurement of the Drift Velocity and Transverse Diffusion of Electrons in Liquid Xenon with the EXO-200 Detector

0.14 (sys)

First Search for Lorentz and CPT Violation in Double Beta Decay with EXO-200

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