First transmission of electrons and ions through the KATRIN beamline

Abstract

The Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino (KATRIN) experiment is a large-scale effort to probe the absolute neutrino mass scale with a sensitivity of 0.2 eV (90% confidence level), via a precise measurement of the endpoint spectrum of tritium beta decay. This work documents several KATRIN commissioning milestones: the complete assembly of the experimental beamline, the successful transmission of electrons from three sources through the beamline to the primary detector, and tests of ion transport and retention. In the First Light commissioning campaign of Autumn 2016, photoelectrons were generated at the rear wall and ions were created by a dedicated ion source attached to the rear section; in July 2017, gaseous Kr-83m was injected into the KATRIN source section, and a condensed Kr-83m source was deployed in the transport section. In this paper we describe the technical details of the apparatus and the configuration for each measurement, and give first results on source and system performance. We have successfully achieved transmission from all four sources, established system stability, and characterized many aspects of the apparatus.

arXiv commentMinor updates; as published in JINST

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Cited by in corpus (20)

• An improved upper limit on the neutrino mass from a direct kinematic method by KATRIN
• Sterile Neutrino Dark Matter
• Grand Unified Neutrino Spectrum at Earth: Sources and Spectral Components
• The Design, Construction, and Commissioning of the KATRIN Experiment
• Analysis methods for the first KATRIN neutrino-mass measurement
• $\beta$-Decay Spectrum, Response Function and Statistical Model for Neutrino Mass Measurements with the KATRIN Experiment
• Bound on 3+1 active-sterile neutrino mixing from the first four-week science run of KATRIN
• KATRIN: Status and Prospects for the Neutrino Mass and Beyond
• First operation of the KATRIN experiment with tritium
• The KATRIN Superconducting Magnets: Overview and First Performance Results
• Neutral tritium gas reduction in the KATRIN differential pumping sections
• High-resolution spectroscopy of gaseous ${}^{83m}$Kr conversion electrons with the KATRIN experiment
• Modelling of gas dynamical properties of the KATRIN tritium source and implications for the neutrino mass measurement
• A comparative study of $0\nu \beta \beta$ decay in symmetric and asymmetric left-right model
• Shining Light on the Mass Scale and Nature of Neutrinos with $e\gamma \to e\nu \overline{\nu }$
• Wideband precision stabilization of the -18.6 kV retarding voltage for the KATRIN spectrometer
• Forward Beam Monitor for the KATRIN experiment
• Operation Modes of the KATRIN Experiment Tritium Loop System using ${}^{83\mathrm{m}}$Kr
• A method for determining the transition energies of ${}^{83m}$Kr at the KATRIN experiment
• New Constraint on the Local Relic Neutrino Background Overdensity with the First KATRIN Data Runs