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Title: Radon Removal in XENONnT down to the Solar Neutrino Level
The XENONnT experiment has achieved an exceptionally low 222 Rn activity concentration within its inner 5.9 tonne liquid xenon detector of (0.90±0.02 stat±0.07 syst)  μ⁢Bq kg−1, equivalent to about 430 222 Rn atoms per tonne of xenon. This was achieved by active online radon removal via cryogenic distillation after stringent material selection. The achieved 222 Rn activity concentration is 5 times lower than that in other currently operational multitonne liquid xenon detectors engaged in dark matter searches. This breakthrough enables the pursuit of various rare event searches that lie beyond the confines of the standard model of particle physics, with world-leading sensitivity. The ultralow 222 Rn levels have diminished the radon-induced background rate in the detector to a point where it is for the first time comparable to the solar neutrino-induced background, which is poised to become the primary irreducible background in liquid xenon-based detectors.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2112802 2514319
PAR ID:
10668745
Author(s) / Creator(s):
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Corporate Creator(s):
Publisher / Repository:
Physical Review Journals
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Physical Review X
Volume:
15
Issue:
3
ISSN:
2160-3308
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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