Cosmogenic activation in double beta decay experiments

Abstract

Double beta decay is a very rare nuclear process and, therefore, experiments intended to detect it must be operated deep underground and in ultra-low background conditions. Long-lived radioisotopes produced by the previous exposure of materials to cosmic rays on the Earth's surface or even underground can become problematic for the required sensitivity. Here, the studies developed to quantify and reduce the activation yields in detectors and materials used in the set-up of these experiments will be reviewed, considering target materials like germanium, tellurium and xenon together with other ones commonly used like copper, lead, stainless steel or argon. Calculations following very different approaches and measurements from irradiation experiments using beams or directly cosmic rays will be considered for relevant radioisotopes. The effect of cosmogenic activation in present and future double beta decay projects based on different types of detectors will be analyzed too.

arXiv commentTable 3 revised

References in corpus (127)

• Dark Matter Search Results from a One Tonne$\times$Year Exposure of XENON1T
• Double Beta Decay, Majorana Neutrinos, and Neutrino Mass
• Search for Majorana Neutrinos near the Inverted Mass Hierarchy Region with KamLAND-Zen
• Dark Matter Results From 54-Ton-Day Exposure of PandaX-II Experiment
• Results from a Search for Light-Mass Dark Matter with a P-type Point Contact Germanium Detector
• Latest Results from the Heidelberg-Moscow Double Beta Decay Experiment
• Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay: Status and Prospects
• Theory of neutrinoless double beta decay
• Results on neutrinoless double beta decay of 76Ge from GERDA Phase I
• Double Beta Decay
• Search for Majorana neutrinos with the first two years of EXO-200 data
• Neutrinoless double beta decay: 2015 review
• Final Results of GERDA on the Search for Neutrinoless Double-$\beta$ Decay
• DARWIN: towards the ultimate dark matter detector
• The DAMA/LIBRA apparatus
• The Igex 76ge Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay Experiment: Prospects for Next Generation Experiments
• Double Beta Decay
• Limits on the Majorana neutrino mass in the 0.1 eV range
• First Results from CUORE: A Search for Lepton Number Violation via $0\nu \beta \beta$ Decay of ${}^{130}$Te
• Large-Mass Ultra-Low Noise Germanium Detectors: Performance and Applications in Neutrino and Astroparticle Physics
• Search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay with the Complete EXO-200 Dataset
• Background free search for neutrinoless double beta decay with GERDA Phase II
• Results from a search for the $0\nu \beta \beta$-decay of ${}^{130}Te$
• Probing New Physics Models of Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay with SuperNEMO
• The LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Experiment
• Search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay of ${}^{130}$Te with CUORE-0
• Improved Limit on Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay in ${}^{130}$Te with CUORE
• Production of Radioactive Isotopes through Cosmic Muon Spallation in KamLAND
• Results from the first use of low radioactivity argon in a dark matter search
• Sensitivity and discovery potential of the proposed nEXO experiment to neutrinoless double beta decay
• An improved measurement of the 2νββ half-life of Xe-136 with EXO-200
• Probing Majorana neutrinos with double-$\beta$ decay
• The projected background for the CUORE experiment
• Development of ${}^{100}$Mo-containing scintillating bolometers for a high-sensitivity neutrinoless double-beta decay search
• Measurement of the specific activity of Ar-39 in natural argon
• Search for Low-Mass Dark Matter with CDMSlite Using a Profile Likelihood Fit
• Masses of 130Te, 130Xe and double-beta-decay Q-value of 130Te
• First Results from the AMoRE-Pilot neutrinoless double beta decay experiment
• A Search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay in ${}^{76}$Ge with 26 kg-yr of Exposure from the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR
• The CUPID-Mo experiment for neutrinoless double-beta decay: performance and prospects
• Measurement of the Two-Neutrino Double Beta Decay Half-life of ${}^{130}$Te with the CUORE-0 Experiment
• Limits on Majoron-emitting double-beta decays of Xe-136 in the KamLAND-Zen experiment
• Cosmogenic Backgrounds in Borexino at 3800 m water-equivalent depth
• Double-beta decay Q values of 130Te, 128Te, and 120Te
• Sensitivity of NEXT-100 to neutrinoless double beta decay
• Final result of CUPID-0 phase-I in the search for the ${}^{82}$Se Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay
• New limits on Bosonic Dark Matter, Solar Axions, Pauli Exclusion Principle Violation, and Electron Decay from the Majorana Demonstrator
• Radiogenic and Muon-Induced Backgrounds in the LUX Dark Matter Detector
• Results on $\beta \beta$ decay with emission of two neutrinos or Majorons in ${}^{76}$Ge from GERDA Phase I
• The background in the neutrinoless double beta decay experiment GERDA
• Measurement of the double-beta decay half-life and search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay of ${}^{48}\mathrm{Ca}$ with the NEMO-3 detector
• Precision Analysis of the ${}^{136}$Xe Two-Neutrino $\beta \beta$ Spectrum in KamLAND-Zen and Its Impact on the Quenching of Nuclear Matrix Elements
• Upgrade for Phase II of the GERDA Experiment
• Demonstration of Single Barium Ion Sensitivity for Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay using Single Molecule Fluorescence Imaging
• Measurement of the 2$\nu \beta \beta$ decay half-life of ${}^{150}$Nd and a search for 0$\nu \beta \beta$ decay processes with the full exposure from the NEMO-3 detector
• Production, characterization and operation of ${}^{76}$Ge enriched BEGe detectors in GERDA
• Spallation reactions. A successful interplay between modeling and applications
• Background model for the NaI(Tl) crystals in COSINE-100
• Cosmogenic 11C production and sensitivity of organic scintillator detectors to pep and CNO neutrinos
• Material radioassay and selection for the XENON1T dark matter experiment
• Background Model of the CUPID-0 Experiment
• GENIUS-TF: a test facility for the GENIUS project
• ACTIVIA: Calculation of Isotope Production Cross-sections and Yields
• Initial results of NEXT-DEMO, a large-scale prototype of the NEXT-100 experiment
• Search for Light Weakly-Interacting-Massive-Particle Dark Matter by Annual Modulation Analysis with a Point-Contact Germanium Detector at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory
• Analysis of backgrounds for the ANAIS-112 dark matter experiment
• Cosmogenic Production as a Background in Searching for Rare Physics Processes
• Cosmogenic activation of Germanium and its reduction for low background experiments
• Low background techniques in bolometers for double-beta decay search
• Search for Majoron-emitting modes of double-beta decay of ${}^{136}$Xe with EXO-200
• Double-beta decay investigation with highly pure enriched ${}^{82}$Se for the LUCIFER experiment
• Cosmogenic Activation of Materials Used in Rare Event Search Experiments
• First Limit on the Direct Detection of Lightly Ionizing Particles for Electric Charge as Low as $e$/1000 with the \textsc{Majorana Demonstrator}
• Digital Pulseshape Analysis by Neural Networks for the Heidelberg-Moscow-Double-Beta-Decay-Experiment
• Cosmogenic radionuclide production in NaI(Tl) crystals
• Assessment of backgrounds of the ANAIS experiment for dark matter direct detection
• Cosmogenic activation of xenon and copper
• Multi-site event discrimination for the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR
• Projected sensitivity of the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment to the $0\nu \beta \beta$ decay of ${}^{136}$Xe
• First scintillating bolometer tests of a CLYMENE R&D on Li${}_2$MoO${}_4$ scintillators towards a large-scale double-beta decay experiment
• Deep learning based pulse shape discrimination for germanium detectors
• Search for double-beta decay of 136Xe to excited states of 136Ba with the KamLAND-Zen experiment
• The Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay: The Case for Germanium Detectors
• Pulse Shape Discrimination in the IGEX Experiment
• Electromagnetic Backgrounds and Potassium-42 Activity in the DEAP-3600 Dark Matter Detector
• Cosmogenic production of tritium in dark matter detectors
• Two-neutrino double-beta decay of ${}^{150}$Nd to excited final states in ${}^{150}$Sm
• Identification of Radiopure Titanium for the LZ Dark Matter Experiment and Future Rare Event Searches
• The $0\nu 2\beta$-decay CROSS experiment: preliminary results and prospects
• Complete event-by-event $\alpha$/$\gamma (\beta )$ separation in a full-size TeO${}_2$ CUORE bolometer by Neganov-Luke-magnified light detection
• Cosmogenic activation of materials
• The Processing of Enriched Germanium for the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR and R&D for a Possible Future Ton-Scale Ge-76 Double-Beta Decay Experiment
• Trace radioactive impurities in final construction materials for EXO-200
• Beta/gamma and alpha backgrounds in CRESST-II Phase 2
• Cosmogenic production of ${}^{39}$Ar and ${}^{37}$Ar in argon
• Mitigation of ${}^{42}$Ar/${}^{42}$K background for the GERDA Phase II experiment
• Cosmogenic Backgrounds to 0νββ in EXO-200
• Excitation functions of proton-induced reactions on natural Nd in the 10-30 MeV energy range, and production of radionuclides relevant for double-β decay
• Fast-Neutron Activation of Long-Lived Isotopes in Enriched Ge
• Cosmogenic activation of silicon
• The saga of neutrinoless double beta decay search with TeO2 thermal detectors
• Study of cosmogenic radionuclides in the COSINE-100 NaI(Tl) detectors
• Average and recommended half-life values for two-neutrino double beta decay: upgrade-2019
• Cosmogenic Activation of Germanium Used for Tonne-Scale Rare Event Search Experiments
• High Energy Activation Data Library (HEAD-2009)
• $2\nu \beta \beta$ decay of ${}^{76}$Ge into excited states with GERDA Phase I
• Excitation functions of proton-induced reactions on natural Nd and production of radionuclides relevant for double beta decay: Completing measurement in 5-35 MeV energy range
• Cosmogenic activation of a natural tellurium target
• Double-beta decay of ${}^{130}$Te to the first $0^{+}$ excited state of ${}^{130}$Xe with CUORE-0
• Cosmogenic-neutron activation of TeO2 and implications for neutrinoless double-beta decay experiments
• Topological background discrimination in the PandaX-III neutrinoless double beta decay experiment
• Search for Neutrinoless ${\beta }^{+}EC$ Decay of ${}^{120}$Te with CUORE-0
• Study on cosmogenic activation in germanium detectors for future tonne-scale CDEX experiment
• Searches for Double Beta Decay of ${}^{134}$Xe with EXO-200
• Limit on the Radiative Neutrinoless Double Electron Capture of ${}^{36}$Ar from GERDA Phase I
• Production Rate Measurement of Tritium and Other Cosmogenic Isotopes in Germanium with CDMSlite
• Search for $2\nu \beta \beta$ decay of ${}^{136}$Xe to the 0${}_1^{+}$ excited state of ${}^{136}$Ba with EXO-200
• Search for nucleon decays with EXO-200
• Search for Tri-Nucleon Decay in the Majorana Demonstrator
• Muon-Induced Background Study for an Argon-Based Long Baseline Neutrino Experiment
• Double Beta Decay to the Excited States: Review
• Virtual depth by active background suppression: Revisiting the cosmic muon induced background of GERDA Phase II
• Mitigation of Backgrounds from Cosmogenic ${}^{137}$Xe in Xenon Gas Experiments using ${}^3$He Neutron Capture
• AXEL: High-pressure Xe gas TPC for BG-free $0\nu 2\beta$ decay search
• A background simulation method for cosmogenic nuclides inside HPGe detectors for rare event experiments
• Aluminum as a source of background in low background experiments
• Double Beta Decay Experiments at Canfranc Underground Laboratory

Cited by in corpus (10)

• A Next-Generation Liquid Xenon Observatory for Dark Matter and Neutrino Physics
• Kiloton-scale xenon detectors for neutrinoless double beta decay and other new physics searches
• GeMSE: a Low-Background Facility for Gamma-Spectrometry at Moderate Rock Overburden
• Study of cosmogenic activation above ground for the DarkSide-20k experiment
• The role of small scale experiments in the direct detection of dark matter
• Cosmogenic background study for a 100Mo-based bolometric demonstration experiment at China JinPing underground Laboratory
• Study of cosmogenic activation in ${}^{76}$Ge enriched germanium detectors during fabrication and transportation above ground
• Study of cosmogenic activation above ground of Ar for DarkSide-20k
• Muon Track Reconstruction in a Segmented Bolometric Array Using Multi-Objective Optimization
• Study on cosmogenic activation in copper for rare event search experiments