14 research outputs found
Status of the PICASSO Project
The Picasso project is a dark matter search experiment based on the
superheated droplet technique. Preliminary runs performed at the Picasso Lab in
Montreal have showed the suitability of this detection technique to the search
for weakly interacting cold dark matter particles. In July 2002, a new phase of
the project started. A batch of six 1-liter detectors with an active mass of
approximately 40g was installed in a gallery of the SNO observatory in Sudbury,
Ontario, Canada at a depth of 6,800 feet (2,070m). We give a status report on
the new experimental setup, data analysis, and preliminary limits on
spin-dependent neutralino interaction cross section.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures. To appear in the Proceedings of the TAUP 2003
conference, 5-9 September, 2003, University of Washington, Seattle, US
Simulation of Special Bubble Detectors for PICASSO
The PICASSO project is a cold dark matter (CDM) search experiment relying on
the superheated droplet technique. The detectors use superheated freon liquid
droplets (active material) dispersed and trapped in a polymerized gel. This
detection technique is based on the phase transition of superheated droplets at
about room temperature and ambient pressure. The phase transition is induced by
nuclear recoils when an atomic nucleus in the droplets interacts with incoming
subatomic particles. This includes CDM particles candidate as the neutralino (a
yet-to-discover particle predicted in extensions of the Standard Model of
particle physics). Simulations performed to understand the detector response to
neutrons and alpha particles are presented along with corresponding data
obtained at the Montreal Laboratory.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures. To appear in the Proceedings of the 14th
International Conference on Solid State Dosimetry, June 27 - July 2 2004,
Yale University, New Haven, CT, US