386 research outputs found
Cryogenic silicon detectors with implanted contacts for the detection of visible photons using the Neganov-Luke Effect
There is a common need in astroparticle experiments such as direct dark
matter detection, 0{\nu}\b{eta}\b{eta} (double beta decay without emission of
neutrinos) and Coherent Neutrino Nucleus Scattering experiments for light
detectors with a very low energy threshold. By employing the Neganov-Luke
Effect, the thermal signal of particle interactions in a semiconductor absorber
operated at cryogenic temperatures, can be amplified by drifting the
photogenerated electrons and holes in an electric field. This technology is not
used in current experiments, in particular because of a reduction of the signal
amplitude with time which is due to trapping of the charges within the
absorber. We present here the first results of a novel type of Neganov-Luke
Effect detector with an electric field configuration designed to improve the
charge collection within the semiconductor.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Journal of Low Temperature Physic
A photometric mode identification method, including an improved non-adiabatic treatment of the atmosphere
We present an improved version of the method of photometric mode
identification of Heynderickx et al. (1994). Our new version is based on the
inclusion of precise non-adiabatic eigenfunctions determined in the outer
stellar atmosphere according to the formalism recently proposed by Dupret et
al.(2002). Our improved photometric mode identification technique is therefore
no longer dependent on ad hoc parameters for the non-adiabatic effects. It
contains the complete physical conditions of the outer atmosphere of the star,
provided that rotation does not play a key role. We apply our improved method
to the two slowly pulsating B stars HD 74560 and HD 138764 and to the beta
Cephei star EN (16) Lac. Besides identifying the degree l of the pulsating
stars, our method is also a tool for improving the knowledge of stellar
interiors and atmospheres, by imposing constraints on parameters such as the
metallicity and the mixing-length parameter alpha (a procedure we label
non-adiabatic asteroseismology).Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures Accepted for publication in Astronomy and
Astrophysic
First Results of the EDELWEISS WIMP Search using a 320 g Heat-and-Ionization Ge Detector
The EDELWEISS collaboration has performed a direct search for WIMP dark
matter using a 320 g heat-and-ionization cryogenic Ge detector operated in a
low-background environment in the Laboratoire Souterrain de Modane. No nuclear
recoils are observed in the fiducial volume in the 30-200 keV energy range
during an effective exposure of 4.53 kg.days. Limits for the cross-section for
the spin-independent interaction of WIMPs and nucleons are set in the framework
of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). The central value of the
signal reported by the experiment DAMA is excluded at 90% CL.Comment: 14 pages, Latex, 4 figures. Submitted to Phys. Lett.
Measurement of the response of heat-and-ionization germanium detectors to nuclear recoils
The heat quenching factor Q' (the ratio of the heat signals produced by
nuclear and electron recoils of equal energy) of the heat-and-ionization
germanium bolometers used by the EDELWEISS collaboration has been measured. It
is explained how this factor affects the energy scale and the effective
quenching factor observed in calibrations with neutron sources. This effective
quenching effect is found to be equal to Q/Q', where Q is the quenching factor
of the ionization yield. To measure Q', a precise EDELWEISS measurement of Q/Q'
is combined with values of Q obtained from a review of all available
measurements of this quantity in tagged neutron beam experiments. The
systematic uncertainties associated with this method to evaluate Q' are
discussed in detail. For recoil energies between 20 and 100 keV, the resulting
heat quenching factor is Q' = 0.91+-0.03+-0.04, where the two errors are the
contributions from the Q and Q/Q' measurements, respectively. The present
compilation of Q values and evaluation of Q' represent one of the most precise
determinations of the absolute energy scale for any detector used in direct
searches for dark matter.Comment: 28 pages, 7 figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev.
Tidally induced radial-velocity variations in close binaries
A theoretical framework for the determination of tidally induced
radial-velocity variations in a component of a close binary is presented. Both
the free and the forced oscillations of the component are treated as linear,
isentropic perturbations of a spherically symmetric star. Resonances between
dynamic tides and free oscillation modes are taken into account by means of the
formalism developed by Smeyers et al. (1998). The amplitude of the tidally
induced radial-velocity variations seen by the observer depends on the orbital
eccentricity and on the orbital inclination. The amplitude increases with
increasing orbital eccentricity and is most sensitive to the value of the
orbital inclination when 20 < i < 70. In the case of a 5 solar mass ZAMS star
with a 1.4 solar mass compact companion, it is shown that resonant dynamic
tides can lead to radial-velocity variations with amplitudes large enough to be
detected in observations. The shape of the tidally induced radial-velocity
curves varies from very irregular for orbital periods away from any resonances
with free oscillation modes to sinusoidal for orbital periods close to a
resonance with a free oscillation mode. Our investigation is concluded with an
application to the slowly pulsating B star HD 177863 showing the possibility of
resonant excitation of a high-order second-degree g-mode in this star.Comment: 11 pages, Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic
The EDELWEISS Experiment : Status and Outlook
The EDELWEISS Dark Matter search uses low-temperature Ge detectors with heat
and ionisation read- out to identify nuclear recoils induced by elastic
collisions with WIMPs from the galactic halo. Results from the operation of 70
g and 320 g Ge detectors in the low-background environment of the Modane
Underground Laboratory (LSM) are presented.Comment: International Conference on Dark Matter in Astro and Particle Physics
(Dark 2000), Heidelberg, Germany, 10-16 Jul 2000, v3 minor revision
SICANE: a Detector Array for the Measurement of Nuclear Recoil Quenching Factors using Monoenergetic Neutron Beam
SICANE is a neutron scattering multidetector facility for the determination
of the quenching factor (ratio of the response to nuclear recoils and to
electrons) of cryogenic detectors used in direct WIMP searches. Well collimated
monoenergetic neutron beams are obtained with inverse (p,n) reactions. The
facility is described, and results obtained for the quenching factors of
scintillation in NaI(Tl) and of heat and ionization in Ge are presented.Comment: 30 pages, Latex, 11 figures. Submitted to NIM
Dark Matter Search in the Edelweiss Experiment
Preliminary results obtained with 320g bolometers with simultaneous
ionization and heat measurements are described. After a few weeks of data
taking, data accumulated with one of these detectors are beginning to exclude
the upper part of the DAMA region. Prospects for the present run and the second
stage of the experiment, EDELWEISS-II, using an innovative reversed cryostat
allowing data taking with 100 detectors, are briefly described.Comment: IDM 2000, 3rd International Workshop on the Identification of Dark
Matter, York (GB), 18-22/09/2000, v2.0 minor modification
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