| 1. |
- Abdelhameed, A. H., et al.
(author)
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First results on sub-GeV spin-dependent dark matter interactions with Li-7
- 2019
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In: European Physical Journal C. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1434-6044 .- 1434-6052. ; 79:7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this work, we want to highlight the potential of lithium as a target for spin-dependent dark matter search in cryogenic experiments, with a special focus on the low-mass region of the parameter space. We operated a prototype detector module based on a Li2MoO4 target crystal in an above-ground laboratory. Despite the high background environment, the detector sets a competitive limit on spin-dependent interactions of dark matter particles with protons and neutrons for masses between 1.5 GeV/c(2).
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| 2. |
- Saracino, S., et al.
(author)
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A closer look at the binary content of NGC 1850
- 2023
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In: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 526:1, s. 299-322
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Studies of young clusters have shown that a large fraction of O-/early B-type stars are in binary systems, where the binary fraction increases with mass. These massive stars are present in clusters of a few Myr, but gradually disappear for older clusters. The lack of detailed studies of intermediate-age clusters has meant that almost no information is available on the multiplicity properties of stars with M < 4M⊙. In this study we present the first characterization of the binary content of NGC 1850, a 100 Myr-old massive star cluster in the Large Magellanic Cloud, relying on a VLT/MUSE multi-epoch spectroscopic campaign. By sampling stars down to M = 2.5 M⊙, we derive a close binary fraction of 24 ± 5 per cent in NGC 1850, in good agreement with the multiplicity frequency predicted for stars of this mass range. We also find a trend with stellar mass (magnitude), with higher mass (brighter) stars having higher binary fractions. We modelled the radial velocity curves of individual binaries using THE JOKER and constrained the orbital properties of 27 systems, ∼17 per cent of all binaries with reliable radial velocities in NGC 1850. This study has brought to light a number of interesting objects, such as four binaries showing mass functions f(M) > 1.25 M⊙. One of these, star #47, has a peculiar spectrum, explainable with the presence of two discs in the system, around the visible star and the dark companion, which is a black hole candidate. These results confirm the importance and urgency of studying the binary content of clusters of any age.
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| 3. |
- Abdelhameed, A. H., et al.
(author)
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Cryogenic characterization of a LiAlO2 crystal and new results on spin-dependent dark matter interactions with ordinary matter: CRESST Collaboration
- 2020
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In: European Physical Journal C. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1434-6044 .- 1434-6052. ; 80:9
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this work, a first cryogenic characterization of a scintillating LiAlO2 single crystal is presented. The results achieved show that this material holds great potential as a target for direct dark matter search experiments. Three different detector modules obtained from one crystal grown at the Leibniz-Institut fur Kristallzuchtung (IKZ) have been tested to study different properties at cryogenic temperatures. Firstly, two 2.8 g twin crystals were used to build different detector modules which were operated in an above-ground laboratory at the Max Planck Institute for Physics (MPP) in Munich, Germany. The first detector module was used to study the scintillation properties of LiAlO2 at cryogenic temperatures. The second achieved an energy threshold of (213.02 +/- 1.48) eV which allows setting a competitive limit on the spin-dependent dark matter particle-proton scattering cross section for dark matter particle masses between 350 MeV/c2 and 1.50 GeV/c2. Secondly, a detector module with a 373 g LiAlO2 crystal as the main absorber was tested in an underground facility at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS): from this measurement it was possible to determine the radiopurity of the crystal and study the feasibility of using this material as a neutron flux monitor for low-background experiments.
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| 4. |
- Abdelhameed, A. H., et al.
(author)
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First results from the CRESST-III low-mass dark matter program
- 2019
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In: Physical Review D. - 2470-0010 .- 2470-0029. ; 100:10
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The CRESST experiment is a direct dark matter search which aims to measure interactions of potential dark matter particles in an Earth-bound detector. With the current stage, CRESST-III, we focus on a low energy threshold for increased sensitivity towards light dark matter particles. In this paper we describe the analysis of one detector operated in the first run of CRESST-III (05/2016-02/2018) achieving a nuclear recoil threshold of 30.1 eV. This result was obtained with a 23.6 g CaWO4 crystal operated as a cryogenic scintillating calorimeter in the CRESST setup at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS). Both the primary phonon (heat) signal and the simultaneously emitted scintillation light, which is absorbed in a separate silicon-on-sapphire light absorber, are measured with highly sensitive transition edge sensors operated at similar to 15 mK. The unique combination of these sensors with the light element oxygen present in our target yields sensitivity to dark matter particle masses as low as 160 MeV/c(2).
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| 5. |
- Abdelhameed, A. H., et al.
(author)
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Geant4-based electromagnetic background model for the CRESST dark matter experiment
- 2019
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In: European Physical Journal C. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1434-6044 .- 1434-6052. ; 79:10
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The CRESST (Cryogenic Rare Event Search with Superconducting Thermometers) dark matter search experiment aims for the detection of dark matter particles via elastic scattering off nuclei in CaWO4 crystals. To understand the CRESST electromagnetic background due to the bulk contamination in the employed materials, a model based on Monte Carlo simulations was developed using the Geant4 simulation toolkit. The results of the simulation are applied to the TUM40 detector module of CRESST-II phase 2. We are able to explain up to (68 +/- 16)% of the electromagnetic background in the energy range between 1 and 40 keV.
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| 6. |
- Angloher, G., et al.
(author)
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COSINUS: Cryogenic Calorimeters for the Direct Dark Matter Search with NaI Crystals
- 2020
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In: Journal of Low Temperature Physics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0022-2291 .- 1573-7357. ; 200:5-6, s. 428-436
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- COSINUS (Cryogenic Observatory for SIgnatures seen in Next-generation Underground Searches) is an experiment employing cryogenic calorimeters, dedicated to direct dark matter search in underground laboratories. Its goal is to cross-check the annual modulation signal the DAMA collaboration has been detecting for about 20 years (Bernabei et al. in Nucl Part Phys Proc 303-305:74-79, 2018. 10.1016/j.nuclphysbps.2019.03.015) and which has been ruled out by other experiments in certain dark matter scenarios. COSINUS can provide a model-independent test by the use of the same target material (NaI), with the additional chance of discriminating beta/gamma events from nuclear recoils on an event-by-event basis, by the application of a well-established temperature sensor technology developed within the CRESST collaboration. Each module is constituted by two detectors: the light detector, that is a silicon beaker equipped with a transition edge sensor (TES), and the phonon detector, a small cubic NaI crystal interfaced with a carrier of a harder material (e.g. CdWO4), also instrumented with a TES. This technology had so far never been applied to NaI crystals because of several well-known obstacles, and COSINUS is the first experiment which succeeded in operating NaI crystals as cryogenic calorimeters. Here, we present the COSINUS project, describe the achievements and the challenges of the COSINUS prototype development and discuss the status and the perspectives of this NaI-based cryogenic frontier.
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| 7. |
- Angloher, G., et al.
(author)
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Limits on dark matter effective field theory parameters with CRESST-II
- 2019
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In: European Physical Journal C. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1434-6044 .- 1434-6052. ; 79:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- CRESST is a direct dark matter search experiment, aiming for an observation of nuclear recoils induced by the interaction of dark matter particles with cryogenic scintillating calcium tungstate crystals. Instead of confining ourselves to standard spin-independent and spin-dependent searches, we re-analyze data from CRESST-II using a more general effective field theory (EFT) framework. On many of the EFT coupling constants, improved exclusion limits in the low-mass region (< 3–4 GeV/c2) are presented.
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| 8. |
- Bertoldo, E., et al.
(author)
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Lithium-Containing Crystals for Light Dark Matter Search Experiments
- 2020
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In: Journal of Low Temperature Physics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0022-2291 .- 1573-7357. ; 199:1-2, s. 510-518
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In the current direct dark matter search landscape, the leading experiments in the sub-GeV mass region mostly rely on cryogenic techniques which employ crystalline targets. One attractive type of crystals for these experiments is those containing lithium, due to the fact that 7Li is an ideal candidate to study spin-dependent dark matter interactions in the low mass region. Furthermore, 6Li can absorb neutrons, a challenging background for dark matter experiments, through a distinctive signature which allows the monitoring of the neutron flux directly on site. In this work, we show the results obtained with three different detectors based on LiAlO 2, a target crystal never used before in cryogenic experiments.
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| 9. |
- Filipponi, A., et al.
(author)
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Local lattice relaxation around Tl substitutional impurities in a NaI(Tl) scintillator crystal
- 2020
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In: Radiation Physics and Chemistry. - : Elsevier BV. - 1879-0895 .- 0969-806X. ; 177
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A Thallium (Tl) L3-edge x-ray absorption experiment was performed on a NaI(Tl) scintillation crystal at room temperature using fluorescence detection. The data analysis provides clear evidence for a ≃5 % average bond length expansion of the first shell I atoms surrounding the Tl impurities with respect to the Na-I crystallographic bond-length. Possible evidence for a slight expansion of the second and third shells is obtained. The data are compatible with a previous experiment performed at liquid nitrogen temperature considering thermal expansion. A critical review of existing theoretical predictions and density functional theory supercell calculations support present findings and suggest the opportunity to perform a high quality temperature dependent experiment.
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| 10. |
- Kluck, H., et al.
(author)
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Latest results of CRESST-III's search for sub-GeV/c(2) dark matter
- 2020
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In: Journal of Physics: Conference Series. - : IOP Publishing. - 1742-6596 .- 1742-6588. ; 1468:1
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The CRESST-III experiment searches for direct interactions of dark matter with ordinary matter. The main event signature would be a nuclear recoil inside one of the scintillating CaWO4 crystals. Operating the crystals as cryogenic calorimeters provides a phonon signal as measure of the deposited energy. The simultaneous readout of both signals is used to actively discriminate backgrounds. CRESST-III focuses on the sub-GeV/c(2) mass region where the sensitivity is driven by the threshold. In the first data taking campaign of CRESST-III from 2016-2018 an unprecedented low threshold of 30.1 eV for nuclear recoils was obtained. In this contribution, we will report the status of the experiment and the latest results. [GRAPHICS]
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