Search

CRESST is a leading direct detection sub-$\mathrm{GeVc}^{-2}$ dark matter experiment. During its second phase, cryogenic bolometers were used to detect nuclear recoils off the $\mathrm{CaWO}_4$ target crystal nuclei. The previously established electromagnetic background model relies on secular equilibrium (SE) assumptions. In this work, a validation of SE is attempted by comparing two likelihood-based normalisation results using a recently developed spectral template normalisation method based on Bayesian likelihood. We find deviations from SE; further investigations are necessary to determine their origin., Part of special issue: ICRM-LLRMT22 8th International Conference on Radionuclide Metrology - Low Level Radioactivity Measurement and Techniques, 6 pages, 3 figures

International audience; NUCLEUS is an experiment conceived for the detection of thecoherent elastic neutrino nucleus scattering. The experiment will be carried out in the nuclear power plant of Chooz-B in France that provides an intense flux of anti-neutrinos.The aim of NUCLEUS is to perform a very precise measurement of the coherent elastic scattering below 100 eV by employing extremely sensitive cryogenic detectors based on CaWO$_4$ and Al$_2$O$_3$ target crystals.At present, the NUCLEUS apparatus is in commissioning phaseat the Underground Laboratory of the Technical University Munich, where - after its installation and the first measurement phase - the experiment will be fully tested. Thereafter the entire apparatus will be moved to the reactor site at Chooz.

Low-temperature calorimeters based on a readout via Transition Edge Sensors (TESs) and operated below $100$ mK are well suited for rare event searches with outstanding resolution and low thresholds. We present first experimental results from two detector prototypes using a novel design of the thermometer coupling denoted remoTES, which further extends the applicability of the TES technology by including a wider class of potential absorber materials. In particular, this design facilitates the use of materials whose physical and chemical properties, as e.g. hygroscopicity, low hardness and low melting point, prevent the direct fabrication of the TES onto their surface. This is especially relevant in the context of the COSINUS experiment (Cryogenic Observatory for SIgnals seen in Next-Generation Underground Searches), where sodium iodide (NaI) is used as absorber material. With two remoTES prototype detectors operated in an above-ground R&D facility, we achieve energy resolutions of $\sigma=87.8$ eV for a $2.33$ g silicon absorber and $\sigma = 193.5$ eV for a $2.27$ g $\alpha$-TeO$_{2}$ absorber, respectively. RemoTES calorimeters offer - besides the wider choice of absorber materials - a simpler production process combined with a higher reproducibility for large detector arrays and an enhanced radiopurity standard.

Despite the multiple and convincing evidence of the existence of dark matter (DM) in our Universe, its detection is one of the most pressing questions in particle physics. As of today, there is no unambiguous hint which could clarify the particle nature of DM. For these reasons, a huge experimental effort is ongoing, trying to realize experiments which can probe the particle properties of DM. In particular, direct search experiments are trying to cover the largest possible mass range, from a few MeVs up to TeVs. Particularly suited for the sub-GeV mass region are detectors containing light nuclei, which are sensitive to the scattering of light DM candidates. Among them, we investigate a carbon-based absorber to explore DM masses down to the MeV region. Thanks to their cryogenic properties (high Debye temperature and long-lived phonon modes), carbon-based materials operated as low temperature calorimeters could reach an energy threshold in the eV range and would allow for the exploration of new parameters of the DM–nucleus cross section. Despite several proposals, the possibility of operating a carbon-based cryogenic detector is yet to be demonstrated. In this contribution, the preliminary results obtained with a diamond absorber operated with a TES temperature sensor will be reported. The potential of such a detector in the current landscape of DM searches will also be illustrated.

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 $$\beta /\gamma$$ β / γ 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. $$\hbox {CdWO}_4$$ CdWO 4 ), 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.

To cope with the foreseen demand for tungsten-based TESs in the current and future phases of the CRESST experiment, we investigated the possibility to implement a reliable, simple and reproducible fabrication method using sputtering. In this contribution, we present the method under development for tungsten deposition using conventional magnetron sputtering with xenon as sputtering gas. TESs with transition temperatures ($$T_c$$Tc) down to 15 mK have been obtained with transition widths smaller than 1 mK. We also give a first assessment on the reproducibility of the process and present the potential for tuning of the $$T_c$$Tc.

Coherent elastic neutrino–nucleus scattering ($$\hbox {CE}\nu \hbox {NS}$$ CEνNS ) offers a unique way to study neutrino properties and to search for new physics beyond the Standard Model. Nuclear reactors are promising sources to explore this process at low energies since they deliver large fluxes of anti-neutrinos with typical energies of a few MeV. In this paper, a new-generation experiment to study $$\hbox {CE}\nu \hbox {NS}$$ CEνNS is described. The NUCLEUS experiment will use cryogenic detectors which feature an unprecedentedly low-energy threshold and a time response fast enough to be operated under above-ground conditions. Both sensitivity to low-energy nuclear recoils and a high event rate tolerance are stringent requirements to measuring $$\hbox {CE}\nu \hbox {NS}$$ CEνNS of reactor anti-neutrinos. A new experimental site, the Very-Near-Site (VNS), at the Chooz nuclear power plant in France is described. The VNS is located between the two 4.25 $$\hbox {GW}_{\mathrm {th}}$$ GWth reactor cores and matches the requirements of NUCLEUS. First results of on-site measurements of neutron and muon backgrounds, the expected dominant background contributions, are given. In this paper a preliminary experimental set-up with dedicated active and passive background reduction techniques and first background estimations are presented. Furthermore, the feasibility to operate the detectors in coincidence with an active muon veto at shallow overburden is studied. The paper concludes with a sensitivity study pointing out the physics potential of NUCLEUS at the Chooz nuclear power plant.

Cryogenic Rare Event Search with Superconducting Thermometers (CRESST) is a long-standing direct dark matter detection experiment with cryogenic detectors located at the underground facility Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy. CRESST-III, the third generation of CRESST, was specifically designed to have a world-leading sensitivity for low-mass dark matter (DM) (less than 2 GeV/$$\hbox {c}^{2}$$c2) to probe the spin-independent DM-nucleus cross section. At present, a large part of the parameter space for spin-independent scattering off nuclei remains untested for dark matter particles with masses below few GeV/$$\hbox {c}^{2}$$c2 although many motivated theoretical models having been proposed. The CRESST-III experiment employs scintillating $$\hbox {CaWO}_{{4}}$$CaWO4 crystals of $$\sim$$∼ 25 g as target material for dark matter interactions operated as cryogenic scintillating calorimeters at $$\sim$$∼ 10 mK. CRESST-III first data taking was successfully completed in 2018, achieving an unprecedented energy threshold for nuclear recoils. This result extended the present sensitivity to DM particles as light as $$\sim$$∼ 160 MeV/$$\hbox {c}^{2}$$c2. In this paper, an overview of the CRESST-III detectors and results will be presented.

The CRESST experiment (Cryogenic Rare Even Search with Superconducting Thermometers), located at Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy, searches for dark matter particles via their elastic scattering off nuclei in a target material. The CRESST target consists of scintillating CaWO4 crystals, which are operated as cryogenic calorimeters at millikelvin temperatures. Each interaction in the CaWO4 target crystal produces a phonon signal and a light signal that is measured by a second cryogenic calorimeter. Since the CRESST-II result in 2015, the experiment is leading the field of direct dark matter search for dark matter masses below 1.7 GeV/c 2, extending the reach of direct searches to the sub-GeV/c 2 mass region. For CRESST-III, whose Phase 1 started in July 2016, detectors have been optimized to reach the performance required to further probe the low-mass region with unprecedented sensitivity. In this contribution the achievements of the CRESST-III detectors will be discussed together with preliminary results and perspectives of Phase 1.

The NUCLEUS experiment aims for the detection of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering at a nuclear power reactor with gram-scale, ultra-low-threshold cryogenic detectors. This technology leads to a miniaturization of neutrino detectors and allows to probe physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. A 0.5 g NUCLEUS prototype detector, operated above ground in 2017, reached an energy threshold for nuclear recoils of below 20 eV. This sensitivity is achieved with tungsten transition edge sensors which are operating at temperatures of 15 mK and are mainly sensitive to non-thermal phonons. These small recoil energies become accessible for the first time with this technology, which allows collecting large-statistics neutrino event samples with a moderate detector mass. A first-phase cryogenic detector array with a total mass of 10 g enables a 5-sigma observation of coherent scattering within several weeks. We identified a suitable experimental site at the Chooz Nuclear Power Plant and performed muon and neutron background measurements there. The operation of a NUCLEUS cryogenic detector array at such a site requires highly efficient background suppression. NUCLEUS plans to use an innovative technique consisting of separate cryogenic anticoincidence detectors against surface backgrounds and penetrating (gamma, neutron) radiation. We present first results from prototypes of these veto detectors and their operation in coincidence with a NUCLEUS target detector.

The current results of direct dark matter searches are controversial. The long-standing dark-matter claim from the DAMA/LIBRA collaboration is excluded by null-results of several other experiments. However, a comparison of the results by experiments with different detector materials introduces model dependencies. The R&D project COSINUS (Cryogenic Observatory for SIgnatures seen in Next-generation Underground Searches) aims to develop cryogenic detectors based on (hygroscopic) sodium iodide (NaI). If successful, such detectors could be used in future experiments to investigate the origin of the annual modulation signal seen by the NaI-based scintillation detectors of the DAMA/LIBRA experiment. COSINUS detectors should be able to simultaneously detect phonons and scintillation light produced by a particle interaction inside the NaI crystal. This technique allows for an active suppression of β/γ backgrounds as well as detailed studies of a large variety of dark-matter models predicting nuclear interactions. For such kind of studies only moderate exposures of ≲100kg-days are needed. In addition to the projected sensitivities of COSINUS detectors, we also show the result of first tests using (only mildly hygroscopic) caesium iodide (CsI) crystals as target material. For this measurement we achieved an energy threshold of ∼4.7 keV for nuclear recoils.

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 $$\hbox {Li}_2\hbox {MoO}_4$$ 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 $$0.8~\hbox {GeV/c}^2$$ and $$1.5~\hbox {GeV/c}^2$$ .

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 $$^7\hbox {Li}$$7Li is an ideal candidate to study spin-dependent dark matter interactions in the low mass region. Furthermore, $$^6\hbox {Li}$$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 $$\hbox {LiAlO}_2$$LiAlO2, a target crystal never used before in cryogenic experiments.

CRESST-II is a direct dark matter experiment that uses scintillating calorimeters to detect WIMP-induced nuclear scatter processes. Heat and light signals are read out with tungsten transition edge sensors (TESs) that are optimized toward their sensitivity to non-thermal phonons. The usage of superconducting thin film structures (e.g., aluminum) serving as phonon collectors to increase the collection area for this signal component is an approach to improve the sensitivity of the TES. The performance of the phonon collectors depends on the material properties and the quality achieved in the production process. We optimized the size of the phonon collectors for the given quality of CRESST-II light detectors. The diffusion lengths measured in this work are $$\mathcal {O}$$ (1 mm) and show a strong correlation to the Residual Resistivity Ratio of the respective films. First tests of CRESST-II light detectors with larger as well as thicker phonon collectors individually show improvements in the measured pulse height of 30 %.

An active discrimination of the dominant $\alpha$-background is the prerequisite for future neutrinoless double-beta decay experiments based on TeO$_{2}$ bolometers. We investigate such $\alpha$-particle rejection in cryogenic TeO$_{2}$ bolometers by the detection of Cherenkov light. For a setup consisting of a massive TeO$_{2}$ crystal (285 g) and a separate cryogenic light detector, both using transition edge sensors as temperature sensors operated at around 10 mK, we obtain an event-by-event identification of e/$\gamma$- and $\alpha$-events. We find in the energy interval ranging from 2400 keV to 2800 keV and covering the Q-value of the neutrinoless double-beta decay of $^{130}$Te a separation of the means of the two populations of 3.7 times their width., Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures

Atmospheric and solar neutrinos scattering coherently off target nuclei will be an important background source for the next generation of direct dark matter searches. In this work we focus on calcium tungstate as target material. For comparison with existing works we calculate the neutrino floor indicating which sensitivities can be reached before the neutrino background appears. In addition, we investigate the sensitivities of future direct dark matter searches using CRESST-II like detectors. Extending previous works we take into account achievable energy resolutions and thresholds as well as beta and gamma backgrounds for this investigation. We show that an exploration of WIMP-nucleon cross sections below the neutrino floor is possible for exposures of $\gtrsim10$ kg-years or higher. In the third part we show that a first detection of coherent neutrino nucleus scattering of atmospheric and solar neutrinos using the same detectors and the backgrounds is feasible for exposures of $\gtrsim50$ kg-years., submitted to Astorparticle Physics

The CRESST-III experiment which is dedicated to low-mass dark matter search uses scintillating CaWO$_4$ crystals operated as cryogenic particle detectors. Background discrimination is achieved by exploiting the scintillating light signal of CaWO$_4$ and by a novel active detector holder presented in this paper. In a test setup above ground, a nuclear-recoil energy threshold of $E_{th}=(190.6\pm5.2)$eV is reached with a 24g prototype detector, which corresponds to an estimated threshold of $\sim$50eV when being operated in the low-noise CRESST cryostat. This is the lowest threshold reported for direct dark matter searches. For CRESST-III phase 1, ten such detector modules were installed in the cryostat which have the potential to improve significantly the sensitivity to scatterings of dark matter particles with masses down to $\sim$0.1GeV/c$^2$., 12 pages, 5 figures

The CRESST-III experiment (Cryogenic Rare Events Search with Superconducting Thermometers), located at the underground facility Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy, uses scintillating CaWO $$_4$$ crystals as cryogenic calorimeters to search for direct dark matter interactions in detectors. A large part of the parameter space for spin-independent scattering off nuclei remains untested for dark matter particles with masses below a few GeV/c $$^2$$ , despite many naturally motivated theoretical models for light dark matter particles. The CRESST-III detectors are designed to achieve the performance required to probe the low-mass region of the parameter space with a sensitivity never reached before. In this paper, new results on the performance and an overview of the CRESST-III detectors will be presented, emphasizing the results about the low-energy threshold for nuclear recoil of CRESST-III Phase 1 which started collecting data in August 2016.

The Cryogenic Observatory for SIgnals seen in Next-generation Underground Searches (COSINUS) project aims to provide a model-independent cross-check of the long-standing DAMA/LIBRA claim on the observation of dark matter by using the same target material, but in a different experimental approach. Operating sodium iodide (NaI) scintillating crystals as low-temperature scintillating calorimeters has the distinct advantage of providing a lower energy threshold for nuclear recoil events as expected from dark matter particle interactions combined with particle discrimination. The dual readout of phonon and light allows us to provide background rejection on an event-by-event basis, a unique feature in comparison with other NaI-based dark matter searches. The manuscript discusses in detail the COSINUS detector concept and presents the results and performance parameters from our second prototype detector.

The CRESST experiment uses cryogenic detectors based on transition-edge sensors to search for dark matter interactions. Each detector module consists of a scintillating CaWO $$_4$$ crystal and a silicon-on-sapphire (SOS) light detector which operate in coincidence (phonon-light technique). The 40-mm-diameter SOS disks (2 g mass) used in the data taking campaign of CRESST-II Phase 2 (2014–2016) reached absolute baseline resolutions of $$\sigma =$$ 4–7 eV. This is the best performance reported for cryogenic light detectors of this size. Newly developed silicon beaker light detectors (4 cm height, 4 cm diameter, 6 g mass), which cover a large fraction of the target crystal surface, have achieved a baseline resolution of $$\sigma = 5.8\,$$ eV. First results of further improved light detectors developed for the ongoing low-threshold CRESST-III experiment are presented.

Identifying the nature and origin of dark matter is one of the major challenges for modern astro and particle physics. Direct dark-matter searches aim at an observation of dark-matter particles interacting within detectors. The focus of several such searches is on interactions with nuclei as provided e.g. by Weakly Interacting Massive Particles. However, there is a variety of dark-matter candidates favoring interactions with electrons rather than with nuclei. One example are dark photons, i.e., long-lived vector particles with a kinetic mixing to standard-model photons. In this work we present constraints on this kinetic mixing based on data from CRESST-II Phase 2 corresponding to an exposure before cuts of 52\,kg-days. These constraints improve the existing ones for dark-photon masses between 0.3 and 0.7\,keV/c$^2$., submitted EPJ C

The energy threshold of a cryogenic calorimeter can be lowered by reducing its size. This is of importance since the resulting increase in signal rate enables new approaches in rare-event searches, including the detection of MeV mass dark matter and coherent scattering of reactor or solar neutrinos. A scaling law for energy threshold vs. detector size is given. We analyze the possibility of lowering the threshold of a gram-scale cryogenic calorimeter to the few eV regime. A prototype 0.5 g Al$_2$O$_3$ device achieved an energy threshold of (${19.7\pm0.1}$) eV, the lowest value reported for a macroscopic calorimeter., 7 pages, 8 figures

The original version of this article unfortunately contains mistakes.

Solid state detectors and low-temperature calorimeters are widely employed in rare event searches, because of their excellent sensitivity and consequent low energy threshold. A common procedure to establish the energy threshold is to define the trigger level at a fixed number of baseline standard deviations (sigmas) above the baseline level, typically 3 σ or 5 σ . This is not an ideal option when the threshold becomes a critical parameter for the detectors, requiring an optimised definition of the trigger. Recorded events with a small amplitude-to-noise ratio likely survive the selection criteria of the analysis chain contributing to the experiment background. We present a method to quantify the lowest trigger threshold achievable as a function of the acceptable amount of noise events triggered for the physics case under investigation. We then apply this novel method to existing experimental and simulated data to validate the model we presented.

Understanding the nature and origin of dark matter is one of the most important challenges for modern particle physics. During the previous decade the sensitivities of direct dark matter searches have improved by several orders of magnitude. These experiments focus their work mainly on the search for dark-matter particles interacting with nuclei (e.g. Weakly Interacting Massive Particles, WIMPs). However, there exists a large variety of different candidates for dark-matter particles. One of these candidates, the so-called dark photon, is a long-lived vector boson with a kinetic mixing to the standard-model photon. In this work we present the preliminary results of our search for dark photons. Using data from the direct dark matter search CRESST-II Phase 2 we can improve the existing constraints for the kinetic mixing for dark-photon masses between 0.3 and 0.5 keV/c2. In addition, we also present projected sensitivities for the next phases of the CRESST-III experiment showing great potential to improve the sensitivity for dark-photon masses below 1 keV.

The CRESST-III experiment, located in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory (LNGS, Italy), aims at the direct detection of dark matter (DM) particles. Scintillating CaWO(4) crystals operated as cryogenic detectors are used as target material for DM-nucleus scattering. The simultaneous measurement of the phonon signal from the CaWO(4) crystal and of the emitted scintillation light in a separate cryogenic light detector is used to discriminate backgrounds from a possible dark matter signal. The experiment aims to significantly improve the sensitivity for low-mass (≲ 5-10 GeV/c(2)) DM particles by using optimized detector modules with a nuclear recoil-energy threshold ≲ 100 eV. The current status of the experiment as well as projections of the sensitivity for spin-independent DM-nucleon scattering will be presented.

The next generation direct dark matter experiment CRESST-III has a high potential to significantly increase the sensitivity to low-mass WIMPs (mx ≲10 GeV/c2). We present the new CRESST detector module: it consists of a 24 g CaWO4 crystal operated as a phonon detector and a 20x20 mm^2 silicon-on-sapphire light detector. The phonon energy threshold is lowered to ~100 eV and a light detector resolution of typically 5 eV is achieved. A fully-scintillating inner detector housing is realised which efficiently rejects events from surface alpha decays. The CaWO4 sticks holding the target crystal are also operated as calorimeters to discriminate all possible artefacts related to the support structure. A projection for the sensitivity to spin-independent WIMP-nucleon scattering is given for the first phase of CRESSTIII which will start beginning of 2016.