\textsc{MaGe} - a {\sc Geant4}-based Monte Carlo Application Framework for Low-background Germanium Experiments

Abstract

We describe a physics simulation software framework, MAGE, that is based on the GEANT4 simulation toolkit. MAGE is used to simulate the response of ultra-low radioactive background radiation detectors to ionizing radiation, specifically the MAJORANA and GERDA neutrinoless double-beta decay experiments. MAJORANA and GERDA use high-purity germanium detectors to search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay of 76Ge, and MAGE is jointly developed between these two collaborations. The MAGE framework contains the geometry models of common objects, prototypes, test stands, and the actual experiments. It also implements customized event generators, GEANT4 physics lists, and output formats. All of these features are available as class libraries that are typically compiled into a single executable. The user selects the particular experimental setup implementation at run-time via macros. The combination of all these common classes into one framework reduces duplication of efforts, eases comparison between simulated data and experiment, and simplifies the addition of new detectors to be simulated. This paper focuses on the software framework, custom event generators, and physics lists.

12 pages, 6 figures

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Cited by in corpus (88)

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• Characterization of a broad energy germanium detector and application to neutrinoless double beta decay search in Ge-76
• Characterization of 30 ${}^{76}$Ge enriched Broad Energy Ge detectors for GERDA Phase II
• Mitigation of ${}^{42}$Ar/${}^{42}$K background for the GERDA Phase II experiment
• Performance of Geant4 in simulating semiconductor particle detector response in the energy range below 1 MeV
• The Performance of the Muon Veto of the GERDA Experiment
• Double beta decay searches of Xe-134, Xe-126 and Xe-124 with large scale Xe detectors
• Final Results of GERDA on the Two-Neutrino Double-$\beta$ Decay Half-Life of ${}^{76}$Ge
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• The Majorana Demonstrator calibration system
• Pulse shape analysis in GERDA Phase II
• Cosmogenic Activation of Germanium Used for Tonne-Scale Rare Event Search Experiments
• $2\nu \beta \beta$ decay of ${}^{76}$Ge into excited states with GERDA Phase I
• Strongest atomic physics bounds on Non-Commutative Quantum Gravity Models
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• A new investigation of half-lives for the decay modes of ${}^{50}$V
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• Limits on uranium and thorium bulk content in GERDA Phase I detectors
• The Majorana Demonstrator's Search for Double-Beta Decay of ${}^{76}$Ge to Excited States of ${}^{76}$Se
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• Charge-carrier collective motion in germanium detectors for ββ-decay searches
• Signal recognition efficiencies of artificial neural-network pulse-shape discrimination in HPGe $0\nu \beta \beta$-decay searches
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• Monte Carlo Studies and Optimization for the Calibration System of the GERDA Experiment
• Double electron capture searches in ${}^{74}$Se
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• The Muon-Induced Neutron Indirect Detection EXperiment, MINIDEX
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• An improved half-life limit of the double beta decay of ${}^{94}$Zr into the excited state of ${}^{94}$Mo
• Results of the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR's Search for Double-Beta Decay of ${}^{76}$Ge to Excited States of ${}^{76}$Se
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