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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Reduction in radioactivity-induced backgrounds using a novel active veto detector for rare event search experiments

The results of a newly developed annular cryogenic phonon-mediated active veto detector are discussed which shows a significant reduction of radioactivity-induced backgrounds in rare event search experiments. The veto detector is made up of germanium weighing ∼500 g with an outer diameter of 76 mm and an inner diameter of 28 mm. The detector can host a 25 mm diameter germanium inner target detector of mass ∼10 g. A GEANT4 simulation with the active veto and inner target detector shows a gamma background reduction of 50 - 80% which is further improved (> 90%) with 4pi veto coverage. Experimental measurements with the detector assembly agree well with the simulation.

Chaudhuri, Mouli↗
DOE OSTI2024

Refinement and Modeling of a Blackbody-Based Calibration Method in the InfraBREAD Detector

The Broadband Reflector Experiment for Axion Detection (BREAD) is an ongoing experiment searching for the conversion of yet undiscovered axion-like dark matter particles to photons in the presence of a magnetic field. InfraBREAD, a sub-experiment of BREAD, uses a superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD), a high-efficiency and low-noise device, to specifically detect infrared-range photons produced by $\mathcal{O}$(eV) axion-like particles. The unique BREAD reflector setup allows for the focusing of all converted signal photons to a 1mm $\times$ 1mm SNSPD. However, when the detector is cooled to cryogenic temperatures during operation, uneven thermal contraction of reflector components may lead to a small shift in the location of the focal spot. A novel calibration method using blackbody radiation is proposed to locate the true focal spot of the detector \textit{in situ}. Through ray tracing simulations done in FRED Optical Engineering Software, this method is demonstrated to locate the focus to within 50 $\mu$m in three dimensions.

Rao, Shardul↗
DOE OSTI2024

Refinement and Modeling of a Blackbody-Based Calibration Method in the InfraBREAD Detector

The Broadband Reflector Experiment for Axion Detection (BREAD) is an ongoing collaboration searching for the conversion of yet undiscovered axion-like dark matter particles to photons in the presence of a magnetic field. InfraBREAD, an experiment of BREAD, uses a superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD), a high-efficiency and low-noise device, to specifically detect infrared-range photons produced by $\mathcal{O}$(eV) axion-like particles. The unique BREAD reflector setup allows for the focusing of converted signal photons to a 1mm $\times$ 1mm SNSPD. However, when the detector is cooled to cryogenic temperatures during operation, uneven thermal contraction of reflector components may lead to a small shift in the location of the focal spot. A novel calibration method using blackbody radiation is proposed to locate the true focal spot of the detector \textit{in situ}. Through ray tracing simulations done in FRED Optical Engineering Software, this method is demonstrated to locate the focus to within $\SI{50}{\micro\metre}$ in the $z$ dimension.

Rao, Shardul↗
DOE OSTI2024

Modeling and Proof-of-Concept of a Blackbody-Based Calibration Method in the InfraBREAD Detector

The Broadband Reflector Experiment for Axion Detection (BREAD) is an ongoing collaboration searching for the conversion of yet undiscovered axion-like dark matter particles to photons in the presence of a magnetic field. InfraBREAD, a pilot experiment realization of BREAD, uses a superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD), a high-efficiency and low-noise device, to specifically detect infrared-range photons produced by $\mathcal{O}$(eV) axion-like particles. The unique BREAD coaxial reflector setup allows for the focusing of converted signal photons to a 1mm $\times$ 1mm SNSPD. However, when the detector is cooled to cryogenic temperatures during operation, uneven thermal contraction of reflector components may lead to a small shift in the location of the focal spot. A novel calibration method using blackbody radiation is proposed to locate the true focal spot of the detector \textit{in situ}. Through ray tracing simulations done in FRED Optical Engineering Software, this method is demonstrated to locate the focus to within $\SI{50}{\micro\metre}$ in the axial dimension. Additionally, it is demonstrated that the blackbody photon source used in this calibration must be at a temperature of at least $\SI{15}{\kelvin}$ to $\SI{40}{\kelvin}$, depending on the sensitivity of the SNSPD.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2023

Dark matter searches and energy accumulation and release in materials

Efforts to identify dark matter by detecting nuclear recoils produced by dark matter particles reveal low-energy backgrounds of unknown origin in different types of detectors. In many cases, energy accumulation and delayed burst-like releases of stored energy could provide an explanation. These dynamics follow Prigogine’s ideas on systems with energy flow and the general Self-Organized Criticality scenario. We compare these models with properties of excess backgrounds in cryogenic solid-state detectors, relaxation processes in glasses and crystals, our observations of delayed luminescence in NaI(Tl), and make predictions for more phenomena present in these systems and in superconducting photon detectors and qubits. Experiments to create accurate phenomenological models are needed.

Pereverzev, Sergey↗
DOE OSTI2023

Development of a large-mass, low-threshold detector system with simultaneous measurements of athermal phonons and scintillation light

For this work, we have combined two low-threshold detector technologies to develop a large-mass, low-threshold detector system that simultaneously measures the athermal phonons in a sapphire detector while an adjacent silicon high-voltage detector detects the scintillation light from the sapphire detector. This detector system could provide event-by-event discrimination between electron and nuclear events due to the difference in their scintillation light yield. While such systems with simultaneous phonon and light detection have been demonstrated earlier with smaller detectors, our system is designed to provide a large detector mass with high amplification for the limited scintillation light. Future work will focus on at least an order of magnitude improvement in the light collection efficiency by having a highly reflective detector housing and custom phonon mask design to maximize light collection by the silicon high-voltage detector.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2025

Lifetime study of the ColdADC for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment

ColdADC is a custom ASIC digitizer implemented in 65 nm CMOS technology using specialized techniques for long-term reliability in cryogenic environments. ColdADC was developed for use in the DUNE Far Detector complex, which will consist of four liquid argon time projection chambers. Each contains 17 kilotons liquid argon as the target material in order to measure neutrino oscillations. Approximately 40,000 ColdADC ASICs will be installed for DUNE in the first two large detectors and will be operated at cryogenic temperatures during the experiment without replacement. The lifetime of the ColdADC is a critical parameter affecting the data quality and physics sensitivity of the experiment. A measurement of the lifetime of the ColdADC was carried out, and the results shown in this paper assure orders of magnitude longer lifetime of the ColdADC than the planned operation time of the detectors.

Front-end electronics for detector readout↗
DOE OSTI2021

An automated system to define the optimal operating settings of cryogenic calorimeters

Cryogenic macro-calorimeters instrumented with NTD thermistors have been developed for several decades. The choice of the optimal bias current is crucial for a proper operation of these detectors, both in terms of energy resolution and stability. In this paper we present a set of automatic measurements and analysis procedures for the characterization and optimization of the working configuration of the NTD thermistors. The presented procedures were developed for CUORE, an array of 988 cryogenic macro-calorimeters instrumented with NTD thermistors that has been taking data since 2017. These procedures made it possible to characterize a large number of detectors in a reliable way. They are suitable enough to be used also in other large arrays of cryogenic detectors, such as CUPID.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2024

Deployment of POLARBEAR-2b

POLARBEAR-2b (PB-2b) is the second receiver in the Simons Array, a cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization experiment. The Simons Array uses dichroic polarization sensitive lenslet-coupled sinuous antennas and transition-edge sensor (TES) bolometers made of superconducting films. These bolometers are read out with frequency multiplexing electronics. PB-2b contains ~7500 detectors in two bands at 90 and 150 GHz with arcminute resolution. The polarization of these detectors is modulated by a cryogenic continuously rotating half-wave plate. PB-2b was installed on its telescope in 2022 in the Atacama Desert at an altitude of 5.2 km. This paper will detail initial readout commissioning, test of a new loopgain monitoring method, and focusing the optics. Work is ongoing to commission the remaining ambient temperature readout electronics, measure detector time constants, and observe with the cryogenic half-wave plate spinning.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2022

Development of MKIDs for Measurement of the Cosmic Microwave Background with the South Pole Telescope

We present details of the design, simulation, and initial test results of prototype detectors for the fourth-generation receiver of the South Pole Telescope (SPT). Optimized for the detection of key secondary anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), SPT-3G+ will measure the temperature and polarization of the mm/sub-mm sky at 220, 285, and 345 GHz, beyond the peak of the CMB blackbody spectrum. The SPT-3G+ focal plane will be populated with microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs), allowing for significantly increased detector density with reduced cryogenic complexity. We present simulation-backed designs for single-color dual-polarization MKID pixels at each SPT-3G+ observation frequency. We further describe design choices made to promote resonator quality and uniformity, enabling us to maximize the available readout bandwidth. We also discuss aspects of the fabrication process that enable rapid production of these devices and present an initial dark characterization of a series of prototype devices.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2026

Detectors and beam monitors based on wide bandgap semiconductors at cryogenic temperatures

Wide-bandgap semiconductors, such as single-crystal diamond and sapphire, can be used to measure the flux of passing particles through a particle-induced conductivity effect. We recently demonstrated a diamond-based, electrodeless electron beam halo monitor. This monitor utilized a thin diamond blade placed within an open, high-quality microwave resonator. The blade partially intercepted the beam and changes in the RF properties of the resonator were used to infer beam parameters. To enhance the sensitivity of our semiconductor sensors, we propose two new techniques: (1) biasing the semiconductor sensor to support avalanche multiplication of free carriers, and (2) operating at cryogenic temperatures to reduce intrinsic semiconductor losses and increase the mobility of induced carriers. These techniques are applicable not only to particle beam diagnostics but also to the detection of various types of ionizing radiation.

Accelerator Physics↗
DOE OSTI2022

Effective Field Theory Analysis of CDMSlite Run 2 Data

CDMSlite Run 2 was a search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) with a cryogenic 600 g Ge detector operated in a high-voltage mode to optimize sensitivity to WIMPs of relatively low mass from 2 - 20 GeV/$c^2$. In this article, we present an effective field theory (EFT) analysis of the CDMSlite Run 2 data using an extended energy range and a comprehensive treatment of the expected background. A binned likelihood Bayesian analysis was performed on the recoil energy data, taking into account the parameters of the EFT interactions and optimizing the data selection with respect to the dominant background components. Energy regions within 5$\sigma$ of known activation peaks were removed from the analysis. The Bayesian evidences resulting from the different operator hypotheses show that the CDMSlite Run 2 data are consistent with the background-only models and do not allow for a signal interpretation assuming any additional EFT interaction. Consequently, upper limits on the WIMP mass and coupling-coefficient amplitudes and phases are presented for each EFT operator. These limits improve previous CDMSlite Run 2 bounds for WIMP masses above 5 GeV/$c^2$.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Design and validation of a cold load for characterization of CMB-S4 detectors

We present the design and validation of a variable temperature cryogenic blackbody source, hereinafter called a cold load, that will be used to characterize detectors to be deployed by CMB-S4, the next-generation ground-based cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiment. Although cold loads have been used for detector characterization by previous CMB experiments, this cold load has three novel design features: (1) the ability to operate from the 1 K stage of a dilution refrigerator (DR), (2) a 3He gas-gap heat switch to reduce cooling time, and (3) the ability to couple small external optical signals to measure detector optical time constants under low optical loading. The efficacy of this design was validated using a 150 GHz detector array previously deployed by the Spider experiment. Here, thermal tests showed that the cold load can be heated to temperatures required for characterizing CMB-S4’s detectors without significantly impacting the temperatures of other cryogenic stages when mounted to the DR’s 1 K stage. Additionally, optical tests demonstrated that external signals can be coupled to a detector array through the cold load without imparting a significant optical load on the detectors, which will enable measurements of the CMB-S4 detectors’ optical time constants.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2024

Design and validation of a cold load for characterization of cosmic microwave background stage 4 detectors

We present the design and validation of a variable temperature cryogenic blackbody source, hereinafter called a cold load, that will be used to characterize detectors to be deployed by cosmic microwave background stage 4 (CMB-S4), the next-generation ground-based cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiment. Although cold loads have been used for detector characterization by previous CMB experiments, this cold load has three innovative design features: (1) the ability to operate from the 1-K stage of a dilution refrigerator (DR), (2) a He3 gas-gap heat switch to reduce cooling time, and (3) the ability to couple small external optical signals to measure detector optical time constants under low optical loading. The efficacy of this design was validated using a 150-GHz detector array previously deployed by the Spider experiment. Thermal tests showed that the cold load can be heated to temperatures required for characterizing CMB-S4’s detectors without significantly impacting the temperatures of other cryogenic stages when mounted to the DR’s 1-K stage. In addition, optical tests demonstrated that external signals can be coupled to a detector array through the cold load without imparting a significant optical load on the detectors, which will enable measurements of the CMB-S4 detectors’ optical time constants.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2023

$\gamma$-to-neutron branching ratio for deuterium-tritium fusion determined using high-energy-density plasmas and a fused silica Cherenkov detector

A fused silica Cherenkov detector was used to measure deuterium-tritium (DT) gammas during a set of 52 direct-drive cryogenic experiments performed at OMEGA. The detector was calibrated using the 4.4 MeV$\gamma$ from the first-excited state of carbon, which is produced when 14-MeV DT neutrons impinge upon a carbon puck. An approximate DT $\gamma$ spectrum as well as neutron yields from a standard neutron time-of-flight detector at OMEGA were used to calculate a DT $\gamma$-to-neutron branching ratio of (8.42 ± 2.84 ) x 10 -5 . Assuming an excited-state to ground-state ratio of 2.1:1, the measurement detailed in this work results in an approximate ground state only$\gamma$-to-neutron branching ratio of 2.72 x 10 -5 . So, this value is somewhat lower than accelerator-based measurements of the ground-state DT $\gamma$ only.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Spatial and temporal evaluations of the liquid argon purity in ProtoDUNE-SP

Liquid argon time projection chambers (LArTPCs) rely on highly pure argon to ensure that ionization electrons produced by charged particles reach readout arrays. ProtoDUNE Single-Phase (ProtoDUNE-SP) was an approximately 700-ton liquid argon detector intended to prototype the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) Far Detector Horizontal Drift module. It contains two drift volumes bisected by the cathode plane assembly, which is biased to create an almost uniform electric field in both volumes. The DUNE Far Detector modules must have robust cryogenic systems capable of filtering argon and supplying the TPC with clean liquid. This paper will explore comparisons of the argon purity measured by the purity monitors with those measured using muons in the TPC from October 2018 to November 2018. A new method is introduced to measure the liquid argon purity in the TPC using muons crossing both drift volumes of ProtoDUNE-SP. For extended periods on the timescale of weeks, the drift electron lifetime was measured to be above 30 ms using both systems. A particular focus will be placed on the measured purity of argon as a function of position in the detector.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Improving the performance of cryogenic calorimeters with nonlinear multivariate noise cancellation algorithms

Abstract State-of-the-art physics experiments require high-resolution, low-noise, and low-threshold detectors to achieve competitive scientific results. However, experimental environments invariably introduce sources of noise, such as electrical interference or microphonics. The sources of this environmental noise can often be monitored by adding specially designed “auxiliary devices” (e.g. microphones, accelerometers, seismometers, magnetometers, and antennae). A model can then be constructed to predict the detector noise based on the auxiliary device information, which can then be subtracted from the true detector signal. Here, we present a multivariate noise cancellation algorithm which can be used in a variety of settings to improve the performance of detectors using multiple auxiliary devices. To validate this approach, we apply it to simulated data to remove noise due to electromagnetic interference and microphonic vibrations. We then employ the algorithm to a cryogenic light detector in the laboratory and show an improvement in the detector performance. Finally, we motivate the use of nonlinear terms to better model vibrational contributions to the noise in thermal detectors. We show a further improvement in the performance of a particular channel of the CUORE detector when using the nonlinear algorithm in combination with optimal filtering techniques.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Numerical Investigation of Fluid Flow and Space Charge in Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) Detectors

Overview This project focused on developing a high-fidelity numerical framework to simulate the multiphysics environment within Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) detectors. The primary objective was to characterize the complex interplay between ion transport, background fluid dynamics, and electric field distortions—a critical factor for the calibration and sensitivity of next-generation High Energy Physics experiments, such as DUNE. Technical Achievements The research successfully yielded a hybrid numerical space-charge solver utilizing a Cell-Centered Finite Volume Method (FVM) for ion transport coupled with a Finite Element Method (FEM) for electric potential. Key accomplishments include: • Verification & Validation: The 3-D solver was rigorously verified against 1-D analytical solutions, demonstrating high numerical accuracy in predicting space-charge-induced field deviations. • Field Distortion Analysis: 3D simulations revealed that space charge effects introduce significant non-uniformities in the electric field. Critically, the research identified that background LAr flow velocities, when comparable to ion drift velocities, markedly exacerbate these distortions. • Technology Transfer: The resulting source code and comprehensive user manuals were successfully transferred to collaborators at Fermilab, providing a portable computational tool for the broader scientific community. Challenges and Future Directions While the space-charge solver achieved all performance metrics, the integrated fluid dynamics modeling encountered convergence challenges stemming from the extreme 200-fold disparity in length scales between the detector's 37 mm inlet pipes and the 8-meter global domain. To address this, the project has identified a clear technical pivot toward Hierarchical Geometric Adaptive Mesh Refinement (HG-AMR). By implementing an h-type refinement strategy with hanging nodes, future iterations of this solver will be capable of resolving localized high-gradient inlet flows without the prohibitive computational costs of regular grids. This advancement, combined with data-driven uncertainty quantification based on MicroBooNE-style calibration, will enable the precise modeling of detector responses in large-scale cryogenic environments where direct measurement remains difficult. Impact The computational tools developed under this award provide a foundation for enhancing the energy resolution and spatial reconstruction of noble liquid detectors. By bridging the gap between theoretical fluid dynamics and experimental field calibration, this work supports the DOE’s mission to advance the frontiers of neutrino physics and dark matter detection.

42 ENGINEERING↗