Measurements of proportional scintillation and electron multiplication in liquid xenon using thin wires

Abstract

Proportional scintillation in liquid xenon has a promising application in the field of direct dark matter detection, potentially allowing for simpler, more sensitive detectors. However, knowledge of the basic properties of the phenomenon as well as guidelines for its practical use are currently limited. We report here on measurements of proportional scintillation light emitted in liquid xenon around thin wires. The maximum proportional scintillation gain of $287_{-75}^{+97}$ photons per drift electron was obtained using 10 $\mu$m diameter gold plated tungsten wire. The thresholds for electron multiplication and proportional scintillation are measured as $725_{-139}^{+48}$ and $412_{-133}^{+10}$ kV/cm, respectively. The threshold for proportional scintillation is in good agreement with a previously published result, while the electron multiplication threshold represents a novel measurement. A complete set of parameters for the practical use of the electron multiplication and proportional scintillation processes in liquid xenon was also obtained for the first time.

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• Low Energy Electronic Recoils and Single Electron Detection with a Liquid Xenon Proportional Scintillation Counter
• Proposal of a Geiger-type Single-Phase Liquid Xenon Time Projection Chamber as Potential Detector Technique for Dark Matter Direct Search
• Performance of a Radial Time Projection Chamber with Electroluminescence in Liquid Xenon
• Prospects of charge signal analyses in liquid xenon TPCs with proportional scintillation in the liquid phase
• The XeBRA platform for liquid xenon time projection chamber development
• Novel electron and photon recording concepts in noble-liquid detectors
• The Electric Field Dependence of Single Electron Emission in the PIXeY Two-Phase Xenon Detector
• GPU-based optical simulation of the DARWIN detector
• TRANSLATE -- A Monte Carlo Simulation of Electron Transport in Liquid Argon
• On the Electrode Configurations in a Large Single Phase Liquid Xenon Detector for Dark Matter Searches
• First observation of liquid xenon electroluminescence with a Microstrip Plate
• First observation of neutral bremsstrahlung electroluminescence in liquid argon
• Feasibility of Liquid-phase Xenon Proportional Scintillation for Low-energy Physics
• First results on FHM -- a Floating Hole Multiplier
• Neutral bremsstrahlung electroluminescence in noble liquids revisited
• Electron transfer efficiency in liquid xenon across THGEM holes
• Development & Characterization of Electrodes for large-scale Xenon Time Projection Chambers