Bulletin of the American Physical Society
Annual Meeting of the APS Four Corners Section
Volume 62, Number 17
Friday–Saturday, October 20–21, 2017; Fort Collins, CO
Session C5: Particle and Nuclear Physics I |
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Chair: Eric Zimmerman, University of Colorado Boulder Room: Lory Student Center 372 |
Friday, October 20, 2017 10:30AM - 10:54AM |
C5.00001: Recent Results from MicroBooNE Invited Speaker: Michael Mooney MicroBooNE is a large (89-ton active mass) Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) experiment operating near the surface at Fermilab in Batavia, Illinois. The detector observes neutrino interactions from the on-axis Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) at short distance (470 m), enabling an investigation of the MiniBooNE low-energy excess as well as neutrino-argon cross section measurements. Another key purpose of the experiment is to gain experience with the operation and calibration of large LArTPC detectors in preparation for the SBN (Short Baseline Neutrino) program at Fermilab and DUNE (the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment). We discuss the principal physics goals of MicroBooNE and highlight aspects related to operating a large LArTPC near the surface. The MicroBooNE LArTPC calibration program and different neutrino event reconstruction techniques are discussed, and recent results from the experiment are presented. [Preview Abstract] |
Friday, October 20, 2017 10:54AM - 11:06AM |
C5.00002: Neutron Recoils in the DRIFT-IIe Detector Frederick Schuckman Evidence suggests that there exists a halo of dark matter that is distributed throughout our galaxy and extends beyond its luminous bounds. A popular dark matter candidate is the Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP). DRIFT-IIe is an iteration in a series of experiments designed for the direct and directional detection of this WIMP dark matter. The DRIFT-IIe detector employs low-pressure negative-ion gas time projection chamber technology to search for WIMP recoils, with a recoil being identified by the track of ionization it produces. DRIFT-IIe is in development and has not been deployed for WIMP searches. However, one is able to study the properties of nuclear recoils in the detector by exposing it to a neutron source. Work is under way to confirm that the detector is sensitive to the range of a nuclear recoil track in two dimensions and also sensitive to any asymmetry in the amount of ionization deposited in the start versus end of a track. Sensitivity to this asymmetry can allow one to determine the vector sense of the track along one of the principle axes of the detector. Exposing the detector to neutrons will be discussed as will how these exposures may lead to a better understanding of the signatures one may expect to observe with the detector due to the WIMP halo. [Preview Abstract] |
Friday, October 20, 2017 11:06AM - 11:18AM |
C5.00003: Studies of pressure changes during cryoprobe extraction from a liquid xenon chamber. Alec Iverson, Adam Craycraft, David Fairbank, Steve Vecchio, William Fairbank Barium tagging has been proposed as a method to reduce backgrounds for the planned nEXO experiment, a Majorana neutrino search utilizing $^{\mathrm{136}}$Xe. We are working on a proposed Ba tagging method that involves extracting the barium on a probe from the liquid xenon time projection chamber. The thermodynamics of a liquid and gaseous xenon system under expansion and compression during and after probe motion is thus of interest and is being investigated. Pressure changes under these conditions have been measured and a model developed. [Preview Abstract] |
Friday, October 20, 2017 11:18AM - 11:30AM |
C5.00004: Effects of a Realistic Beam Profile on the Extraction of $\gamma\gamma$ Angular Correlations with GRIFFIN Connor Natzke, Kyle Leach, Adam Garnsworthy, Andrew MacLean, Jenna Smith, Carl Svensson The GRIFFIN spectrometer at TRIUMF-ISAC is a powerful device for measuring gamma-gamma angular correlations following the decay of rare isotopes. GEANT4 simulations are essential in understanding the effects of detector shape, finite source and detector size, and source position. In this work, simulations exploring the sensitivity to a finite source radius and an off-centre source position on GRIFFIN's ability to accurately measure gamma-gamma angular correlations have been performed. The off-centre simulations provide insight into the beta decay of radioactive ions implanted onto a moving tape, which can be constantly moved through the chamber to prevent the build-up of long-lived radioactive daughter nuclei. The simulations indicate that a source radius or displacement of less than 1 cm has a minimal effect on the extracted gamma-gamma angular correlations. However, larger radii or offsets introduce significant deviations in the shape of measured angular correlations. The findings of these investigations will be discussed, along with ongoing simulation work of using the GRIFFIN array for Compton polarimetry measurements. [Preview Abstract] |
Friday, October 20, 2017 11:30AM - 11:42AM |
C5.00005: Orbital Electron Capture in Extreme Astrophysical Environments Matthew Martin, Kyle Leach In an attempt to better understand the effects of astrophysical environments on the stability of atoms in our universe, intense thermal ionization can be investigated based on previous experiments under terrestrial conditions. Using all known evaluated atomic and nuclear data from NIST and Brookhaven National Laboratory (NNDC database), these studies can be performed without the need for complex theoretical nuclear structure estimates. By accounting for the changing decay energies and loss of electron capture as an accessible radioactive decay mode, the number of stable isotopes that result in these hot astrophysical environments nearly doubles, thus changing the nuclear reaction paths for heavy element creation in our universe. This work presents the progress of manipulating large amounts of nuclear data to provide precision studies on electroweak decay modes under these extreme environments. [Preview Abstract] |
Friday, October 20, 2017 11:42AM - 11:54AM |
C5.00006: A Method to Measure Real-Time Charged Beam Fluence Above 10$^{\mathrm{16}}$ 1-MeV-neutron equivalent/cm$^{\mathrm{2}}$ using 3D Silicon Diodes Ivan Rajen The Pixel detector in the ATLAS Experiment at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN is exposed to extremely high radiation over the lifetime of its use. Upgrades to the Pixel detector for the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) require components that have demonstrated performance at the relevant radiation levels. New technologies proposed for the upgrades are irradiated by our UNM group at the 800 MeV proton LANSCE facility in Los Alamos National Laboratory to verify their operation and radiation hardness up to HL-LHC fluences. I am developing the hardware and software required to measure the profile and fluence of the charged particle beam in real time. The hardware uses 3D silicon particle sensors because of their proven operation at the fluence levels relevant to the HL-LHC. The instrument I am developing and its operation will be described. [Preview Abstract] |
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