Bolometric calibration of a superfluid 3He detector for Dark Matter search: direct measurement of the scintillated energy fraction for neutron, electron and muon events

Clemens Winkelmann (1) , Johannes Elbs (2) , Yuriy M. Bunkov (2) , Eddy Collin (2) , Henri Godfrin (2) , Matti Krusius (3)

1 NEEL - QuNES - Nano-Electronique Quantique et Spectroscopie
2 NEEL - UBT - Ultra-basses températures
3 Aalto - Aalto university low temperature physics

We report on the calibration of a superfluid 3He bolometer developed for the search of non-baryonic Dark Matter. Precise thermometry is achieved by the direct measurement of thermal excitations using Vibrating Wire Resonators (VWRs). The heating pulses for calibration were produced by the direct quantum process of quasiparticle generation by other VWRs present. The bolometric calibration factor is Author manuscript, published in "Nuclear Instr. and Methods in Physics Research, A 574 (2007) 264" analyzed as a function of temperature and excitation level of the sensing VWR. The calibration is compared to bolometric measurements of the nuclear neutron capture reaction and heat depositions by cosmic muons and low energy electrons. The comparison allows a quantitative estimation of the ultra-violet scintillation rate of irradiated helium, demonstrating the possibility of efficient electron recoil event rejection.

Mots clés: Dark Matter; Scintillation; Superfluid Helium-3; Bolometer

Domaines: Electrons fortement corrélés [cond-mat.str-el]

Clemens Winkelmann, Johannes Elbs, Yuriy M. Bunkov, Eddy Collin, Henri Godfrin, et al.. Bolometric calibration of a superfluid 3He detector for Dark Matter search: direct measurement of the scintillated energy fraction for neutron, electron and muon events. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, 2007, 574 (2), pp.264-271. ⟨10.1016/j.nima.2007.01.180⟩. ⟨hal-00921537⟩