Kavli Affiliate: Giorgio Gratta
| First 5 Authors: Dwaipayan Ray, Robert Collister, Hussain Rasiwala, Lucas Backes, Ali V. Balbuena
| Summary:
Neutrinoless double beta decay {($0nubetabeta$)} provides a way to probe
physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. The upcoming nEXO
experiment will search for $0nubetabeta$ decay in $^{136}$Xe with a
projected half-life sensitivity exceeding $10^{28}$ years at the 90%
confidence level using a liquid xenon (LXe) Time Projection Chamber (TPC)
filled with 5 tonnes of Xe enriched to $sim$90% in the {$beta
beta$}-decaying isotope $^{136}$Xe. In parallel, a potential future upgrade to
nEXO is being investigated with the aim to further suppress radioactive
backgrounds and to confirm $beta beta$-decay events. This technique, known as
Ba-tagging, comprises extracting and identifying the $beta beta$-decay
daughter $^{136}$Ba ion. One tagging approach being pursued involves extracting
a small volume of LXe in the vicinity of a potential $beta beta$-decay using
a capillary tube and facilitating a liquid-to-gas phase transition by heating
the capillary exit. The Ba ion is then separated from the accompanying Xe gas
using a radio-frequency (RF) carpet and RF funnel, conclusively identifying the
ion as $^{136}$Ba via laser-fluorescence spectroscopy and mass spectrometry.
Simultaneously, an accelerator-driven Ba ion source is being developed to
validate and optimize this technique. The motivation for the project, the
development of the different aspects, along with the current status and
results, are discussed here.
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