Speaker
Description
Particle detectors with noble element targets have grown increasingly popular in rare event search physics experiments. The use of noble gases as the interaction medium enables high purity, large mass, and multi-channel signal detection in these experiments. When operated underground, noble element detectors have achieved extremely low background levels, and unprecedented sensitivity to rare interactions such as those arising from neutrinos and (as yet hypothetical) dark matter particles. In this presentation, I will review the benefits and challenges of rare event detection with noble elements, and discuss their applications in ongoing and planned experiments. In particular, I will focus on the experiments in which the interactions do not deposit significant energy, and discuss the R&D required to further lower the achievable energy thresholds in these experiments.
This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344.
