Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering and low-mass dark matter detectors rely crucially on the understanding of their response to nuclear recoils. We report the first observation of a nuclear recoil peak at around 112 eV induced by neutron capture. The measurement was performed with a CaWO4 cryogenic detector from the NUCLEUS experiment exposed to a Cf252 source placed in a compact moderator. We identify the expected peak structure from the single-γ de-excitation of W183 with 3σ and its origin by neutron capture with 6σ significance. This result demonstrates a new method for precise, in situ, and nonintrusive calibration of low-threshold experiments.

Abele, H., Angloher, G., Bento, A., Canonica, L., Cappella, F., Cardani, L., et al. (2023). Observation of a Nuclear Recoil Peak at the 100 eV Scale Induced by Neutron Capture. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, 130(21) [10.1103/PhysRevLett.130.211802].

Observation of a Nuclear Recoil Peak at the 100 eV Scale Induced by Neutron Capture

Canonica L.;Pattavina L.;
2023

Abstract

Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering and low-mass dark matter detectors rely crucially on the understanding of their response to nuclear recoils. We report the first observation of a nuclear recoil peak at around 112 eV induced by neutron capture. The measurement was performed with a CaWO4 cryogenic detector from the NUCLEUS experiment exposed to a Cf252 source placed in a compact moderator. We identify the expected peak structure from the single-γ de-excitation of W183 with 3σ and its origin by neutron capture with 6σ significance. This result demonstrates a new method for precise, in situ, and nonintrusive calibration of low-threshold experiments.
Articolo in rivista - Articolo scientifico
Calibration, cryogenic detector
English
2023
130
21
211802
open
Abele, H., Angloher, G., Bento, A., Canonica, L., Cappella, F., Cardani, L., et al. (2023). Observation of a Nuclear Recoil Peak at the 100 eV Scale Induced by Neutron Capture. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, 130(21) [10.1103/PhysRevLett.130.211802].
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