Invited Article: miniTimeCube

Abstract

We present the development of the miniTimeCube (mTC), a novel compact neutrino detector. The mTC is a multipurpose detector, aiming to detect not only neutrinos but also fast/thermal neutrons. Potential applications include the counterproliferation of nuclear materials and the investigation of antineutrino short-baseline effects. The mTC is a plastic 0.2% ${}^{10}$B - doped scintillator (13 cm)${}^3$ cube surrounded by 24 Micro-Channel Plate (MCP) photon detectors, each with an $8\times 8$ anode totaling 1536 individual channels/pixels viewing the scintillator. It uses custom-made electronics modules which mount on top of the MCPs, making our detector compact and able to both distinguish different types of events and reject noise in real time. The detector is currently deployed and being tested at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Center for Neutron Research (NCNR) nuclear reactor (20 MW${}_{\mathrm{th}}$) in Gaithersburg, MD. A shield for further tests is being constructed, and calibration and upgrades are ongoing. The mTC's improved spatiotemporal resolution will allow for determination of incident particle directions beyond previous capabilities.

arXiv comment19 pages, 29 figures, AIP Review of Scientific Instruments (2016)

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Cited by in corpus (6)

• Antineutrino monitoring of spent nuclear fuel
• A prototype for SANDD: A highly-segmented pulse-shape-sensitive plastic scintillator detector incorporating silicon photomultiplier arrays
• Design and Calibration of an Optically Segmented Single Volume Scatter Camera for Neutron Imaging
• mini-TimeCube as a Neutron Scatter Camera
• Studies of MCP-PMTs in the miniTimeCube neutrino detector
• Initial Assessment of Second Generation of Large-Area Picosecond Photodetectors with Multi-Channel Systems-on-a-Chip Readout