Speaker
Dr
Andrew Hime
(Los Alamos National Laboratory)
Description
The MiniCLEAN dark matter experiment exploits a single-phase liquid argon (LAr) detector, instrumented with photomultiplier tubes submerged in the cryogen with nearly 4pi coverage of a 500 kg (150 kg) target (fiducial) mass. The high light yield and unique properties of the scintillation time-profile in LAr provide effective defense against radioactive backgrounds through pulse-shape discrimination and event position-reconstruction. The detector is also designed for a liquid neon target which, in the event of a positive signal in LAr, will enable an independent verification of backgrounds and provide a unique test of the expected A^2 dependence of the WIMP interaction rate. The conceptually simple design can be scaled to target masses in excess of 10 tons in a relatively straightforward and economic manner. The experimental technique and current status of MiniCLEAN will be summarized.
Primary author
Dr
Andrew Hime
(Los Alamos National Laboratory)
