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Precise $^{136}$Xe Double Beta Decay Measurement in PandaX-4T with Implications on the Nuclear Matrix Elements and Majorons
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Zhe Yuan,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Chen Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Manna Deng,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Xuanye Fu,
Zhixing Gao,
Yujie Ge,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang
, et al. (89 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
The continuous spectrum of double beta decay ($ββ$) provides a sensitive probe to test the predictions of the standard model and to search for signatures of new physics beyond it. We present a comprehensive analysis of the $^{136}$Xe $ββ$ spectrum utilizing $39.1 \pm 0.7~\textrm{kg}\cdot\textrm{yr}$ of $^{136}$Xe exposure from the PandaX-4T experiment. The analysis yields the most precise measurem…
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The continuous spectrum of double beta decay ($ββ$) provides a sensitive probe to test the predictions of the standard model and to search for signatures of new physics beyond it. We present a comprehensive analysis of the $^{136}$Xe $ββ$ spectrum utilizing $39.1 \pm 0.7~\textrm{kg}\cdot\textrm{yr}$ of $^{136}$Xe exposure from the PandaX-4T experiment. The analysis yields the most precise measurement to date of the $^{136}$Xe two-neutrino double beta decay ($2νββ$) half-life, $(2.14 \pm 0.05) \times 10^{21}$ years, the uncertainty of which is reduced by a factor of 2 compared to our previous result. We measure the parameter $ξ_{31}^{2ν}$, defined as the ratio between the subleading and leading components of the $^{136}$Xe $2νββ$ nuclear matrix element, to be $0.59^{+0.41}_{-0.38}$, which is consistent with theoretical predictions. We also search for Majoron-emitting modes of $^{136}$Xe $ββ$, establishing the most stringent limit for the spectral index $n=7$.
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Submitted 9 April, 2026; v1 submitted 4 December, 2025;
originally announced December 2025.
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Tomographic beta-gamma spectroscopy of nuclear beta decay
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Zhe Yuan,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Chen Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Manna Deng,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Xuanye Fu,
Zhixing Gao,
Yujie Ge,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang
, et al. (89 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
Nuclear $β$ decay, a sensitive probe of nuclear structure and weak interactions, has become a precision test bed for physics beyond the Standard Model, driven by recent advances in spectrometric techniques. Here we introduce tomographic $β$-$γ$ spectroscopy (TBGS) of nuclear $β$ decay, a method that detects the energies of $β$, $γ$, and internal conversion electrons while simultaneously reconstruc…
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Nuclear $β$ decay, a sensitive probe of nuclear structure and weak interactions, has become a precision test bed for physics beyond the Standard Model, driven by recent advances in spectrometric techniques. Here we introduce tomographic $β$-$γ$ spectroscopy (TBGS) of nuclear $β$ decay, a method that detects the energies of $β$, $γ$, and internal conversion electrons while simultaneously reconstructing the energy deposition vertices. Using the PandaX-4T detector operated as a TBGS, we obtain a precise and unbiased decay scheme of $^{214}$Pb, a key background isotope in searches for dark matter and Majorana neutrinos. For the first time, transitions of $^{214}$Pb to both the ground and excited states of $^{214}$Bi are measured concurrently, revealing discrepancies in branching ratios of up to 4.7$σ$ relative to previous evaluations. Combined with state-of-the-art theoretical spectral-shape calculations, these results establish a new benchmark for background modelling in rare-event searches and highlight the potential of TBGS as a versatile tool for fundamental physics and nuclear applications.
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Submitted 29 November, 2025; v1 submitted 28 October, 2025;
originally announced October 2025.
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Precise Measurement of $^{216}$Po Half-life with Exact Parent-daughter Pairing in PandaX-4T
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Chenxiang Li,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Chen Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Manna Deng,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Xuanye Fu,
Zhixing Gao,
Yujie Ge,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang
, et al. (86 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
We report a precise measurement of $^{216}\rm Po$ half-life using the PandaX-4T liquid xenon time projection chamber (TPC). $^{220}\rm Rn $, emanating from a $^{228}\rm Th $ calibration source, is injected to the detector and undergoes successive $α$ decays, first to $^{216}\rm Po$ and then to $^{212}\rm Pb$. PandaX-4T detector measures the 5-dimensional (5D) information of each decay, including t…
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We report a precise measurement of $^{216}\rm Po$ half-life using the PandaX-4T liquid xenon time projection chamber (TPC). $^{220}\rm Rn $, emanating from a $^{228}\rm Th $ calibration source, is injected to the detector and undergoes successive $α$ decays, first to $^{216}\rm Po$ and then to $^{212}\rm Pb$. PandaX-4T detector measures the 5-dimensional (5D) information of each decay, including time, energy, and 3-dimensional positions. Therefore, we can identify the $^{220}\rm Rn $ and $^{216}\rm Po$ decay events and pair them exactly to extract the lifetime of each $^{216}\rm Po$. With a large data set and high-precision $^{220}\rm $Rn-$^{216}\rm $Po pairing technique, we measure the $^{216}\rm Po$ half-life to be $143.7\pm0.5$ ms, which is the most precise result to date and agrees with previously published values. The leading precision of this measurement demonstrates the power of 5D calorimeter and the potential of exact parent-daughter pairing in the xenon TPC.
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Submitted 17 July, 2025;
originally announced July 2025.
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Search for Double Beta Decay of $^{136}$Xe to the $0^+_1$ Excited State of $^{136}$Ba with PandaX-4T
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Lingyin Luo,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Zhaokan Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingji Fang,
Deqing Fang,
Zhixing Gao,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Di Huang,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang,
Ruquan Hou,
Yu Hou
, et al. (76 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
We perform a search of double beta decay of $^{136}$Xe to the excited state, $0^+_1$, of $^{136}$Ba (2$νββ$-0$_1^+$), using the dual-phase xenon detector of PandaX-4T with the first 94.9-day commissioning data. The multi-site events are reconstructed up to the MeV energy scale, which helps to improve the background model significantly. The background contribution from the stainless steel platform…
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We perform a search of double beta decay of $^{136}$Xe to the excited state, $0^+_1$, of $^{136}$Ba (2$νββ$-0$_1^+$), using the dual-phase xenon detector of PandaX-4T with the first 94.9-day commissioning data. The multi-site events are reconstructed up to the MeV energy scale, which helps to improve the background model significantly. The background contribution from the stainless steel platform outside PandaX-4T cryostat is evaluated for the first time. No significant evidence for 2$νββ$-$0_1^+$ is observed, resulting in a lower limit on half-life of $7.5 \times 10^{22}$ yr at the 90% confidence level. This is the first experimental limit on such a rare decay in a natural xenon-based detector.
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Submitted 7 March, 2025; v1 submitted 5 February, 2025;
originally announced February 2025.
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Searching for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay of $^{136}$Xe with PandaX-4T
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Shu Zhang,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Zhaokan Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Zhixing Gao,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Di Huang,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang,
Ruquan Hou,
Yu Hou
, et al. (77 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
We report the search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of $^{136}$Xe from the PandaX-4T experiment with a 3.7-tonne natural xenon target. The data reconstruction and the background modeling are optimized in the MeV energy region. A blind analysis is performed with data from the commissioning run and the first science run. No significant excess of signal over the background is observed. A lower li…
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We report the search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of $^{136}$Xe from the PandaX-4T experiment with a 3.7-tonne natural xenon target. The data reconstruction and the background modeling are optimized in the MeV energy region. A blind analysis is performed with data from the commissioning run and the first science run. No significant excess of signal over the background is observed. A lower limit on the half-life of $^{136}$Xe neutrinoless double-beta decay is established to be $2.1 \times 10^{24}$~yr at the 90\% confidence level, with a $^{136}$Xe exposure of 44.6~kg$\cdot$year. Our result represents the most stringent constraint from a natural xenon detector to date.
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Submitted 18 December, 2024;
originally announced December 2024.
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Measurement of two-neutrino double electron capture half-life of $^{124}$Xe with PandaX-4T
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Zhaokan Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Zhixing Gao,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Di Huang,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang,
Ruquan Hou,
Yu Hou,
Xiangdong Ji
, et al. (77 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
Detailed studies of two-neutrino double electron capture (2$ν$DEC) is a crucial step towards searching for the neutrino-less mode to explore the Majorana nature of neutrinos. We have measured precisely the half-life of the 2$ν$DEC process in $^{124}$Xe, utilizing a total exposure of 1.73 tonne$\cdot$year from the commissioning run and the first science run of the PandaX-4T experiment. A time-depen…
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Detailed studies of two-neutrino double electron capture (2$ν$DEC) is a crucial step towards searching for the neutrino-less mode to explore the Majorana nature of neutrinos. We have measured precisely the half-life of the 2$ν$DEC process in $^{124}$Xe, utilizing a total exposure of 1.73 tonne$\cdot$year from the commissioning run and the first science run of the PandaX-4T experiment. A time-dependent background model in the $\mathcal{O}$(10 keV) energy is constructed for the first time in PandaX-4T data. With an unbinned maximum likelihood fit, we determine the half-life of the 2$ν$DEC process to be $(1.03\pm0.15_{\rm stat}\pm0.08_{\rm sys})\times 10^{22}$$\,$yr. Furthermore, we have evaluated the branching ratio for both electrons captured from the $K$ shell ($KK$) to be $(65\pm5)\%$, which aligns with the $^{124}$Xe nuclear model calculations within 1.8$\,$$σ$.
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Submitted 16 May, 2025; v1 submitted 21 November, 2024;
originally announced November 2024.
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First Indication of Solar $^8$B Neutrino Flux through Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering in PandaX-4T
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Zhaokan Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Zhixing Gao,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Xunan Guo,
Xuyuan Guo,
Zichao Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Di Huang,
Houqi Huang,
Junting Huang,
Ruquan Hou,
Yu Hou,
Xiangdong Ji
, et al. (77 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
The PandaX-4T liquid xenon detector at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory is used to measure the solar $^8$B neutrino flux by detecting neutrinos through coherent scattering with xenon nuclei. Data samples requiring the coincidence of scintillation and ionization signals (paired), as well as unpaired ionization-only signals (US2), are selected with energy threshold of approximately 1.1 keV (…
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The PandaX-4T liquid xenon detector at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory is used to measure the solar $^8$B neutrino flux by detecting neutrinos through coherent scattering with xenon nuclei. Data samples requiring the coincidence of scintillation and ionization signals (paired), as well as unpaired ionization-only signals (US2), are selected with energy threshold of approximately 1.1 keV (0.33 keV) nuclear recoil energy. Combining the commissioning run and the first science run of PandaX-4T, a total exposure of 1.20 and 1.04 tonne$\cdot$year are collected for the paired and US2, respectively. After unblinding, 3 and 332 events are observed with an expectation of 2.8$\pm$0.5 and 251$\pm$32 background events, for the paired and US2 data, respectively. A combined analysis yields a best-fit $^8$B neutrino signal of 3.5 (75) events from the paired (US2) data sample, with $\sim$37\% uncertainty, and the background-only hypothesis is disfavored at 2.64$σ$ significance. This gives a solar $^8$B neutrino flux of ($8.4\pm3.1$)$\times$10$^6$ cm$^{-2}$s$^{-1}$, consistent with the standard solar model prediction. It is also the first indication of solar $^8$B neutrino ``fog'' in a dark matter direct detection experiment.
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Submitted 13 September, 2024; v1 submitted 15 July, 2024;
originally announced July 2024.
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Searching for Two-Neutrino and Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay of $^{134}$Xe with the PandaX-4T Experiment
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Xiyu Yan,
Zhaokan Cheng,
Abdusalam Abdukerim,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Chen Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Changbo Fu,
Mengting Fu,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Linhui Gu,
Xuyuan Guo,
Chencheng Han,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Di Huang,
Yanlin Huang,
Junting Huang,
Zhou Huang
, et al. (72 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
$^{134}$Xe is a candidate isotope for neutrinoless double beta decay~($0νββ$) search. In addition, the two-neutrino case ($2νββ$) allowed by the Standard Model of particle physics has not yet been observed. Utilizing the 10.4% of $^{134}$Xe in the natural xenon in the PandaX-4T detector and its first 94.9-day exposure, we have established the most stringent constraints on $2νββ$ and $0νββ$ of $^{1…
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$^{134}$Xe is a candidate isotope for neutrinoless double beta decay~($0νββ$) search. In addition, the two-neutrino case ($2νββ$) allowed by the Standard Model of particle physics has not yet been observed. Utilizing the 10.4% of $^{134}$Xe in the natural xenon in the PandaX-4T detector and its first 94.9-day exposure, we have established the most stringent constraints on $2νββ$ and $0νββ$ of $^{134}$Xe half-lives, with limits of $2.8\times10^{22}$ yr and $3.0\times10^{23}$ yr at 90% confidence level, respectively. The $2νββ$ ($0νββ$) limit surpasses the previously reported best result by a factor of 32 (2.7), highlighting the potential of large monolithic natural xenon detectors.
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Submitted 28 April, 2024; v1 submitted 25 December, 2023;
originally announced December 2023.
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Measurement of Double Beta Decay Half-life of $^{136}$Xe with the PandaX-4T Detector
Authors:
PandaX Collaboration,
Lin Si,
Zhaokan Cheng,
Abdusalam Abdukerim,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Chen Cheng,
Yunshan Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Changbo Fu,
Mengting Fu,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Linhui Gu,
Xuyuan Guo,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Jinrong He,
Di Huang,
Yanlin Huang,
Zhou Huang
, et al. (63 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
Precise measurement of two-neutrino double beta decay (DBD) half-life is an important step for the searches of Majorana neutrinos with neutrinoless double beta decay. We report the measurement of DBD half-life of $^{136}$Xe using the PandaX-4T dual-phase Time Projection Chamber (TPC) with 3.7-tonne natural xenon and the first 94.9-day physics data release. The background model in the fiducial volu…
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Precise measurement of two-neutrino double beta decay (DBD) half-life is an important step for the searches of Majorana neutrinos with neutrinoless double beta decay. We report the measurement of DBD half-life of $^{136}$Xe using the PandaX-4T dual-phase Time Projection Chamber (TPC) with 3.7-tonne natural xenon and the first 94.9-day physics data release. The background model in the fiducial volume is well constrained in situ by events in the outer active region. With a $^{136}$Xe exposure of 15.5 kg-year, we establish the half-life as $2.27 \pm 0.03 (stat.)\pm 0.10 (syst.)\times 10^{21}$ years. This is the first DBD half-life measurement with natural xenon and demonstrates the physics capability of a large-scale liquid xenon TPC in the field of rare event searches.
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Submitted 12 December, 2022; v1 submitted 25 May, 2022;
originally announced May 2022.
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Nuclear reaction measurements of 80.5 MeV/u 12C beam bombarding on C, W, Cu, Au, Pb targets
Authors:
Zhichao Gao,
Xueying Zhang,
Yongqin Ju,
Liang Chen,
Honglin Ge,
Yanbin Zhang,
Fei Ma,
Hongbin Zhang,
Guozhu Shi,
Zhiqiang Chen,
Rui Han,
Guoyu Tian,
Fudong Shi,
Bingyan Liu,
Xin Zhang
Abstract:
To get the energy spectrum distribution and cross-sections of emitted light charged particles and explore the nuclear reaction, a experiment of 80.5 MeV/u 12C beam bombarding on C, W, Cu, Au, Pb targets has been carried out at Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Science. 30, 60 and 120 degree relative to the incident beam have been detected using three sets of telescope detectors. The…
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To get the energy spectrum distribution and cross-sections of emitted light charged particles and explore the nuclear reaction, a experiment of 80.5 MeV/u 12C beam bombarding on C, W, Cu, Au, Pb targets has been carried out at Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Science. 30, 60 and 120 degree relative to the incident beam have been detected using three sets of telescope detectors. The results indicate that there is a tendency that heavier targets have larger double differential cross-sections and the emitted fragments are more likely to go forward. Besides, the decrease of cross-sections of fragments producing with the increasing emitted angles may follow some kind of pattern.
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Submitted 2 June, 2021;
originally announced June 2021.
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Internal Calibration of the PandaX-II Detector with Radon Gaseous Sources
Authors:
Wenbo Ma,
Abdusalam Abdukerim,
Zihao Bo,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Chen Cheng,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Changbo Fu,
Mengting Fu,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Linhui Gu,
Xuyuan Guo,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Shengming He,
Di Huang,
Yan Huang,
Yanlin Huang,
Zhou Huang,
Xiangdong Ji,
Yonglin Ju
, et al. (43 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
We have developed a low-energy electron recoil (ER) calibration method with $^{220}$Rn for the PandaX-II detector. $^{220}$Rn, emanated from natural thorium compounds, was fed into the detector through the xenon purification system. From 2017 to 2019, we performed three dedicated calibration campaigns with different radon sources. We studied the detector response to $α$, $β$, and $γ$ particles wit…
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We have developed a low-energy electron recoil (ER) calibration method with $^{220}$Rn for the PandaX-II detector. $^{220}$Rn, emanated from natural thorium compounds, was fed into the detector through the xenon purification system. From 2017 to 2019, we performed three dedicated calibration campaigns with different radon sources. We studied the detector response to $α$, $β$, and $γ$ particles with focus on low energy ER events. During the runs in 2017 and 2018, the amount of radioactivity of $^{222}$Rn were on the order of 1\% of that of $^{220}$Rn and thorium particulate contamination was negligible, especially in 2018. We also measured the background contribution from $^{214}$Pb for the first time in PandaX-II with the help from a $^{222}$Rn injection. Calibration strategy with $^{220}$Rn and $^{222}$Rn will be implemented in the upcoming PandaX-4T experiment and can be useful for other xenon-based detectors as well.
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Submitted 4 January, 2021; v1 submitted 16 June, 2020;
originally announced June 2020.
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An Improved Evaluation of the Neutron Background in the PandaX-II Experiment
Authors:
Qiuhong Wang,
Abdusalam Abdukerim,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Changbo Fu,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Franco Giuliani,
Linhui Gu,
Xuyuan Guo,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Di Huang,
Yan Huang,
Yanlin Huang,
Zhou Huang,
Peng Ji,
Xiangdong Ji,
Yonglin Ju,
Yihui Lai,
Kun Liang
, et al. (38 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
In dark matter direct detection experiments, neutron is a serious source of background, which can mimic the dark matter-nucleus scattering signals. In this paper, we present an improved evaluation of the neutron background in the PandaX-II dark matter experiment by a novel approach. Instead of fully relying on the Monte Carlo simulation, the overall neutron background is determined from the neutro…
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In dark matter direct detection experiments, neutron is a serious source of background, which can mimic the dark matter-nucleus scattering signals. In this paper, we present an improved evaluation of the neutron background in the PandaX-II dark matter experiment by a novel approach. Instead of fully relying on the Monte Carlo simulation, the overall neutron background is determined from the neutron-induced high energy signals in the data. In addition, the probability of producing a dark-matter-like background per neutron is evaluated with a complete Monte Carlo generator, where the correlated emission of neutron(s) and $γ$(s) in the ($α$, n) reactions and spontaneous fissions is taken into consideration. With this method, the neutron backgrounds in the Run 9 (26-ton-day) and Run 10 (28-ton-day) data sets of PandaX-II are estimated to be 0.66$\pm$0.24 and 0.47$\pm$0.25 events, respectively.
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Submitted 24 July, 2019; v1 submitted 1 July, 2019;
originally announced July 2019.
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Searching for Neutrino-less Double Beta Decay of $^{136}$Xe with PandaX-II Liquid Xenon Detector
Authors:
Kaixiang Ni,
Yihui Lai,
Abdusalam Abdukerim,
Wei Chen,
Xun Chen,
Yunhua Chen,
Xiangyi Cui,
Yingjie Fan,
Deqing Fang,
Changbo Fu,
Lisheng Geng,
Karl Giboni,
Franco Giuliani,
Linhui Gu,
Xuyuan Guo,
Ke Han,
Changda He,
Di Huang,
Yan Huang,
Yanlin Huang,
Zhou Huang,
Peng Ji,
Xiangdong Ji,
Yonglin Ju,
Kun Liang
, et al. (38 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
We report the Neutrino-less Double Beta Decay (NLDBD) search results from PandaX-II dual-phase liquid xenon time projection chamber. The total live time used in this analysis is 403.1 days from June 2016 to August 2018. With NLDBD-optimized event selection criteria, we obtain a fiducial mass of 219 kg of natural xenon. The accumulated xenon exposure is 242 kg$\cdot$yr, or equivalently 22.2 kg…
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We report the Neutrino-less Double Beta Decay (NLDBD) search results from PandaX-II dual-phase liquid xenon time projection chamber. The total live time used in this analysis is 403.1 days from June 2016 to August 2018. With NLDBD-optimized event selection criteria, we obtain a fiducial mass of 219 kg of natural xenon. The accumulated xenon exposure is 242 kg$\cdot$yr, or equivalently 22.2 kg$\cdot$yr of $^{136}$Xe exposure. At the region around $^{136}$Xe decay Q-value of 2458 keV, the energy resolution of PandaX-II is 4.2%. We find no evidence of NLDBD in PandaX-II and establish a lower limit for decay half-life of 2.4 $ \times 10^{23} $ yr at the 90% confidence level, which corresponds to an effective Majorana neutrino mass $m_{ββ} < (1.3 - 3.5)$ eV. This is the first NLDBD result reported from a dual-phase xenon experiment.
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Submitted 27 June, 2019;
originally announced June 2019.
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Observation of $^{6}$He+$t$ cluster states in $^{9}$Li
Authors:
W. H. Ma,
J. S. Wang,
D. Patel,
Y. Y. Yang,
J. B. Ma,
S. L. Jin,
P. Ma,
Q. Hu,
Z. Bai,
M. R. Huang,
X. Q. Liu,
Y. J. Zhou,
J. Chen,
Z. H. Gao,
Q. Wang,
J. Lubian,
J. X. Li,
T. F. Wang,
S. Mukherjee,
X. Y. Ju,
Y. S. Yu,
T. W. Wu,
C. Ni,
X. D. Jia,
Q. B. Liu
, et al. (3 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
$^{6}$He+$t$ cluster states of exited $^{9}$Li have been measured by 32.7 MeV/nucleon $^{9}$Li beams bombarding on $^{208}$Pb target. Two resonant states are clearly observed with the excitation energies at 9.8 MeV and 12.6 MeV and spin-parity of 3/2$^{-}$ and 7/2$^{-}$ respectively. These two states are considered to be members of K$^π$=1/2$^{-}…
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$^{6}$He+$t$ cluster states of exited $^{9}$Li have been measured by 32.7 MeV/nucleon $^{9}$Li beams bombarding on $^{208}$Pb target. Two resonant states are clearly observed with the excitation energies at 9.8 MeV and 12.6 MeV and spin-parity of 3/2$^{-}$ and 7/2$^{-}$ respectively. These two states are considered to be members of K$^π$=1/2$^{-}$ band. The spin-parity of them are identified by the method of angular correlation analysis and verified by the continuum discretized coupled channels (CDCC) calculation, which agrees with the prediction of the generator coordinate method (GCM). A monopole matrix element about 4 fm$^{2}$ for the 3/2$^{-}$ state is extracted from the distorted wave Born approximation (DWBA) calculation. These results strongly support the feature of clustering structure of two neutron-rich clusters in the neutron-rich nucleus $^{9}$Li for the first time.
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Submitted 5 January, 2018; v1 submitted 7 September, 2017;
originally announced September 2017.
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Study of digital pulse shape discrimination method for n-γ separation of EJ-301 liquid scintillation detector
Authors:
Bo Wan,
Xueying Zhang,
Liang Chen,
Honglin Ge,
Fei Ma,
Hongbin Zhang,
Yongqin Ju,
Yanbin Zhang,
Yanyan Li,
Xiaowei Xu
Abstract:
A digital pulse shape discrimination system based on a programmable module NI-5772 has been established and tested with EJ-301 liquid scintillation detector. The module was operated by means of running programs developed in LabVIEW with the sampling frequency up to 1.6GS/s. Standard gamma sources 22Na, 137Cs and 60Co were used to calibrate the EJ-301 liquid scintillation detector, and the gamma re…
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A digital pulse shape discrimination system based on a programmable module NI-5772 has been established and tested with EJ-301 liquid scintillation detector. The module was operated by means of running programs developed in LabVIEW with the sampling frequency up to 1.6GS/s. Standard gamma sources 22Na, 137Cs and 60Co were used to calibrate the EJ-301 liquid scintillation detector, and the gamma response function has been obtained. Digital algorithms for charge comparison method and zero-crossing method have been developed. The experimental results showed that both digital signal processing (DSP) algorithms could discriminate neutrons from gamma-rays. Moreover, the zero-crossing method shows better n-γ discrimination at 80 keVee and lower, whereas the charge comparison method gives better results at higher thresholds. In addition, the figure-of-merit (FOM) of two different dimension detectors were extracted at 9 energy thresholds, and it was found that the smaller one presented a better n-γ separation property for fission neutrons.
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Submitted 6 February, 2015;
originally announced February 2015.
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The study of neutron spectra in water bath from Pb target irradiated by 250MeV/u protons
Authors:
Yanyan Li,
Xueying Zhang,
Yongqin Ju,
Fei Ma,
Hongbin Zhang,
Liang Chen,
Honglin Ge,
Peng Luo,
Bin Zhou,
Yanbin Zhang,
Jianyang Li,
Junkui Xu,
Songlin Wang,
Yongwei Yang,
Lei Yang
Abstract:
The spallation neutrons were produced by the irradiation of Pb with 250 MeV protons. The Pb target was surrounded by water which was used to slow down the emitted neutrons. The moderated neutrons in the water bath were measured by using the resonance detectors of Au, Mn and In with Cd cover. According to the measured activities of the foils, the neutron flux at different resonance energy were dedu…
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The spallation neutrons were produced by the irradiation of Pb with 250 MeV protons. The Pb target was surrounded by water which was used to slow down the emitted neutrons. The moderated neutrons in the water bath were measured by using the resonance detectors of Au, Mn and In with Cd cover. According to the measured activities of the foils, the neutron flux at different resonance energy were deduced and the epithermal neutron spectra were proposed. Corresponding results calculated with the Monte Carlo code MCNPX were compared with the experimental data to check the validity of the code.
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Submitted 4 September, 2014;
originally announced September 2014.
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PandaX: A Liquid Xenon Dark Matter Experiment at CJPL
Authors:
X. G. Cao,
X. Chen,
Y. H. Chen,
X. Y. Cui,
D. Q. Fang,
C. B. Fu,
K. L. Giboni,
H. W. Gong,
G. D. Guo,
M. He,
J. Hu,
X. T. Huang,
X. D. Ji,
Y. L. Ju,
S. L. Li,
Q. Lin,
H. X. Liu,
J. L. Liu,
X. Liu,
W. Lorenzon,
Y. G. Ma,
Y. J. Mao,
K. X. Ni,
K. Pushkin,
X. X. Ren
, et al. (25 additional authors not shown)
Abstract:
PandaX is a large upgradable liquid-xenon detector system that can be used for both direct dark-matter detection and $^{136}$Xe double-beta decay search. It is located in the Jinping Deep-Underground Laboratory in Sichuan, China. The detector operates in dual-phase mode, allowing detection of both prompt scintillation, and ionization charge through proportional scintillation. The central time proj…
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PandaX is a large upgradable liquid-xenon detector system that can be used for both direct dark-matter detection and $^{136}$Xe double-beta decay search. It is located in the Jinping Deep-Underground Laboratory in Sichuan, China. The detector operates in dual-phase mode, allowing detection of both prompt scintillation, and ionization charge through proportional scintillation. The central time projection chamber will be staged, with the first stage accommodating a target mass of about 120\,kg. In stage II, the target mass will be increased to about 0.5\,ton. In the final stage, the detector can be upgraded to a multi-ton target mass. In this paper a detailed description of the stage-I detector design and performance results established during the commissioning phase is presented.
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Submitted 12 May, 2014;
originally announced May 2014.
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The study of neutron activation yields in spallation reaction of 400 MeV/u carbon on a thick lead target
Authors:
F. Ma,
H. L. Ge,
X. Y. Zhang,
H. B. Zhang,
Y. Q. Ju,
L. Chen,
L. Yang,
F. Fu,
Y. L. Zhang,
J. Y. LI,
T. J. Liang,
B. Zhou,
S. L. Wang,
J. Y. Li,
J. K. Xu,
X. G. Leir,
Z. Qin,
L. Gu,
G. M. Jin
Abstract:
The spallation-neutron yield was studied experimentally by bombarding a thick lead target with 400 MeV/u carbon beam. The data were obtained with the activation analysis method using foils of Au, Mn, Al, Fe and In. The yields of produced isotopes were deduced by analyzing the measured γ spectra of irradiated foils. According to the isotopes yields, the spatial and energy distributions of the neutr…
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The spallation-neutron yield was studied experimentally by bombarding a thick lead target with 400 MeV/u carbon beam. The data were obtained with the activation analysis method using foils of Au, Mn, Al, Fe and In. The yields of produced isotopes were deduced by analyzing the measured γ spectra of irradiated foils. According to the isotopes yields, the spatial and energy distributions of the neutron field were discussed. The experimental results were compared with Monte Carlo simulations performed by the GEANT4 + FLUKA code.
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Submitted 2 September, 2013;
originally announced September 2013.