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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

Neutrino Interactions observed with Large Area Picosecond Photodetectors in ANNIE

The Accelerator Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE) is a 26-ton water-based neutrino detector located at Fermilab, approximately 110 m downstream of the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB). ANNIE utilizes both photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) and advanced photodetectors, specifically Large Area Picosecond Photodetectors (LAPPDs), to detect Cherenkov light emitted by leptons produced in neutrino interactions within ANNIE. LAPPDs are a novel technology designed to detect photons with picosecond-level temporal resolution and sub-millimetre spatial precision. Multiple LAPPDs have been deployed in the ANNIE detector. This is the first use of this technology in a running particle physics experiment and has yielded the first detection of light from neutrino interactions in water with LAPPDs. In this poster, I will showcase the operational performance and functionality of LAPPDs in the ANNIE experiment. Neutrino beam data from the BNB is used to evaluate the timing precision, hit reconstruction performance, and beam response of deployed LAPPDs, demonstrating how this novel picosecond-resolution technology performs in a running neutrino water Cherenkov detector. This work highlights the successful integration of LAPPDs in ANNIE and provides quantitative benchmarks that inform their application in future neutrino experiments requiring high-resolution photon detection.

Aman, Mohammad Adil [Florida State U.] (ORCID:0009↗
DOE OSTI2026

X-ARAPUCA Photon Detectors in SBND

The Short-Baseline Near Detector (SBND) is a liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC) for detecting neutrinos from Fermilab's Booster Neutrino Beam. Located 110 m downstream of the beam target, SBND collects both ionization electrons and scintillation photons from particle interactions within the detector volume. The photon detection system (PDS) consists of both PMTs and X-ARAPUCAs, a novel technology featuring large area cost-effective coverage with single photo-electron resolution at cryogenic temperatures. SBND utilizes two types of X-ARAPUCAs: one sensitive to vacuum ultra-violet (VUV) scintillation light produced and one sensitive to visible light for the light reflected off TPB-coated reflective foils. SBND is the only experiment currently testing the X-ARAPUCA technology in a neutrino beam over a period of several years, and will provide critical information for deployment in future detectors like DUNE. This poster will cover the calibration and early performance of X-ARAPUCAs in SBND.

Dalager, Olivia [Fermilab]↗
DOE OSTI2026

Performance and long-term stability of the ICARUS-T600 scintillation light detection system

The ICARUS-T600 Liquid Argon (LAr) Time Projection Chamber (TPC) is presently used as a far detector of the Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab (USA) to search for a possible LSND-like sterile neutrino signal at $\Delta m^2 \sim 1 eV^2$ with the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB). A light detection system, based on 360 large area Photo-Multiplier Tubes (PMTs), has been realized for ICARUS-T600 to detect VUV photons produced after the passage of ionizing particles in LAr. This system is fundamental for the TPC operation, providing an efficient trigger and contributing to the 3D reconstruction of events. Moreover, since the detector is exposed to a huge flux of cosmic rays due to its shallow depths operations, the light detection system allows for the time reconstruction of events, contributing to the identification and to the selection of neutrino interactions within the BNB spill gate. Long-term behavior of PMT gains and timing resolution, demonstrate the robustness and reliability of the ICARUS scintillation light detection system and provide valuable input for the design and operation of future large-scale liquid argon detectors.

Raselli, Gian Luca [INFN, Perugia] (ORCID:00000002↗
DOE OSTI2026

Performance and Stability Characterization of the ICARUS Light Detection System

The ICARUS detector, a key component of the Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) Program at Fermilab, consists of two identical T300 modules filled with liquid argon. It is equipped with a Light Detection System (LDS) based on 360 8-inch Hamamatsu R5912-MOD photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) arranged behind the wire planes to collect Vacuum Ultraviolet (VUV, $\sim$ 128 nm) scintillation light. Operating under cryogenic conditions ( $\sim$ 87 K), the LDS is essential for determining the event start time (t0) with nanosecond precision for beam spill synchronization, improving longitudinal spatial resolution, and contributing to the event trigger and cosmic-ray mitigation. The performance of the LDS was investigated addressing both hardware and data analysis aspects. Following a progressive degradation in PMT gain observed during operations at FNAL, systematic gain measurements were first carried out from room temperature down to low temperatures. The results show stable performance at room temperature but a significant, irreversible reduction in gain at low temperatures. Based on these findings, a series of mitigation strategies were implemented in the ICARUS detector to preserve PMT performance and ensure reliable cryogenic operation. Currently, ongoing waveform analysis of the PMT signals is being performed to characterize signal shape, charge integration, and timing properties, aiming to refine and improve the agreement between experimental data and Monte Carlo simulations.

Saia, Clara [U. Catania (main); INAF, Catania; Cat↗
DOE OSTI2021

The Event Detection System in the NEXT-White Detector

This article describes the event detection system of the NEXT-White detector, a 5 kg high pressure xenon TPC with electroluminescent amplification, located in the Laboratorio Subterráneo de Canfranc (LSC), Spain. The detector is based on a plane of photomultipliers (PMTs) for energy measurements and a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) tracking plane for offline topological event filtering. The event detection system, based on the SRS-ATCA data acquisition system developed in the framework of the CERN RD51 collaboration, has been designed to detect multiple events based on online PMT signal energy measurements and a coincidence-detection algorithm. Implemented on FPGA, the system has been successfully running and evolving during NEXT-White operation. The event detection system brings some relevant and new functionalities in the field. A distributed double event processor has been implemented to detect simultaneously two different types of events thus allowing simultaneous calibration and physics runs. This special feature provides constant monitoring of the detector conditions, being especially relevant to the lifetime and geometrical map computations which are needed to correct high-energy physics events. Other features, like primary scintillation event rejection, or a double buffer associated with the type of event being searched, help reduce the unnecessary data throughput thus minimizing dead time and improving trigger efficiency.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Final Report for Grant

This is the final report for this project. The major objectives were to develop full models and standard cells of CMOS silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) for neutron detection applications. Specifically, the research seeks to replace photomultiplier tubes, used in neutron detection applications, with SiPMs containing integrated readout electronics fabricated in standard CMOS processes. The detectors improve on the detection efficiency, readout speed, resolution (sensitivity), and spatial resolution of current systems. In particular, this work involved collaboration with the instrument and detector group at ORNL who build detectors based on discrete commercially available PMTs and SiPMs. The SiPM detectors developed in this work are based on Perimeter Gated Single Photon Avalanche Diodes (PGSPAD). These devices have tunable breakdown voltage which affects other performance characteristics of the detectors. The ability of the detectors to have integrated readout and tune the noise floor and dynamic range in addition to offering a method for non-uniformity compensation in a compact form significantly impacts the imaging research field and includes the nuclear sciences field, circuits and systems field in addition to varied fields such as geography and biology/medicine.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Studies on the scintillation light detection in the ProtoDUNE Dual Phase liquid-argon TPC and its capability for the supernova trigger in DUNE

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment that aims at addressing key questions in neutrino physics in the next decades. Its scientific program includes the detection of the neutrino flux from a core-collapse supernova. The DUNE far detector will have four 17-kt mass liquid-argon (LAr) time-projection chamber (TPC) modules. ProtoDUNE Dual Phase (DP), a dual-phase LAr TPC with 300 t of active mass and 6 m of drift distance, was operated with cosmic muons in 2019-2020 as part of an R&D program at the CERN Neutrino Platform to demonstrate the feasibility of the technology at such a large scale. In a LAr TPC, the photon detection system (PDS) provides fun- damental timing information and trigger capabilities. The PDS of ProtoDUNE-DP, which consisted of 36 photomultiplier tubes (PMTs), counted on a dedicated light calibration system (LCS) to monitor the PMT response. In this dissertation, the characterization and validation of the ProtoDUNE-DP PDS and LCS components before their installation will be reviewed, highlighting the results of general interest for experiments that use liquid noble gasses as target medium. The results from the stable performance of both systems in the detector during 15 months will be presented next as well as the studies on the scintillation light detection in ProtoDUNE-DP, where the collection of light produced in LAr at 7 m from the photosensors has been achieved for the first time. It is worth pointing out that the excellent LAr purity and the large size of the detector have enabled to develop a unique data-driven investigation on aspects that are critical for LAr- based experiments but that are not completely understood. The analyses cover the characterization of the low-energy background detected by the PDS, the quantification of the electric field impact on the light yield, the evaluation of the Rayleigh scattering affecting the light propagation, and the analysis of the PMT detection efficiency. The effect of the VUV reflectivity of the detector materials will be also discussed. In addition, the estimation of the cosmic muon flux crossing the TPC and the study of the observed light yield by the PDS will be reported. Finally, the results from the simulation-based study of the supernova burst trigger capability with the PDS of a 12.1-kt active mass dual-phase LAr TPC as the one proposed for DUNE will be summarized. Several configurations of reflective foils installed in the TPC to enhance the light collection will be compared

Gallego-Ros, Ana↗
DOE OSTI2024

Implementation of a Time-domain Cosmic-ray-muon Tagger for the NEXUS Low-background Cryogenic Facility

Quantifying the effects of radiation on the operation of qubits both as quantum information systems as well as particle detectors has emerged as a pressing issue in quantum science in recent years. We present an overview of the design, operation, and deployment of a 90-$\mathrm{in}^2$ three-panel muon detector for use in the NEXUS experimental facility at Fermilab to temporally isolate correlated errors in qubits and determine if they possess an astrophysical origin. Constructed with three scintillator-attached PMTs read out with NIM modules in a triply-coincident logic scheme, we measure a surface-level muon luminosity of 9.7425 muons per second---consistent with an average surface-level cosmic-ray flux of approximately one muon per square centimeter per minute. Integrating the NIM modules with an MCC 128 DAQ HAT and Raspberry Pi, a Python script records exactly when a muon struck the detector and writes a timestamp to a log file for follow-up cross referencing. This experiment will broadly contribute to further studies aimed at understanding the source and mitigation of information loss in qubits.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2025

Calibration and Timing Performance of the Light Detection System in the ICARUS Detector

ICARUS is the largest Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) in operation and serves as the Far Detector of the Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab. It aims to investigate the possible existence of sterile neutrinos with $\Delta m^2 \approx 1 \,\mathrm{eV^2}$ using the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) and explore physics beyond the Standard Model with the Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam. The ICARUS light detection system, comprising 360 TPB-coated large-area Photo-Multiplier Tubes (PMTs), is crucial for triggering and event reconstruction. Due to its shallow installation, the detector is exposed to a high flux of cosmic rays, necessitating precise timing to reject background events and align neutrino interactions with the beam time profile. This talk will detail the timing inter-calibration procedures for the ICARUS light detection system, which achieve sub-nanosecond resolution. Additionally, the performance of the system in reconstructing the timing of neutrino interactions from the BNB and NuMI beams will be discussed. The results highlight the effectiveness of the ICARUS light detection system in enhancing the detector's capability for precise and reliable neutrino selection.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Studies on the scintillation light detection in the ProtoDUNE Dual Phase liquid-argon TPC and its capability for the supernova trigger in DUNE

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment that aims at addressing key questions in neutrino physics in the next decades. Its scientific program includes the detection of the neutrino flux from a core-collapse supernova. The DUNE far detector will have four 17-kt mass liquid-argon (LAr) time-projection chamber (TPC) modules. ProtoDUNE Dual Phase (DP), a dual-phase LAr TPC with 300 t of active mass and 6 m of drift distance, was operated with cosmic muons in 2019-2020 as part of an R&D program at the CERN Neutrino Platform to demonstrate the feasibility of the technology at such a large scale. In a LAr TPC, the photon detection system (PDS) provides fundamental timing information and trigger capabilities. The PDS of ProtoDUNE-DP, which consisted of 36 photomultiplier tubes (PMTs), counted on a dedicated light calibration system (LCS) to monitor the PMT response. In this dissertation, the characterization and validation of the ProtoDUNE-DP PDS and LCS components before their installation will be reviewed, highlighting the results of general interest for experiments that use liquid noble gasses as target medium. The results from the stable performance of both systems in the detector during 15 months will be presented next as well as the studies on the scintillation light detection in ProtoDUNE-DP, where the collection of light produced in LAr at 7 m from the photosensors has been achieved for the first time. It is worth pointing out that the excellent LAr purity and the large size of the detector have enabled to develop a unique data-driven investigation on aspects that are critical for LAr-based experiments but that are not completely understood. The analyses cover the characterization of the low-energy background detected by the PDS, the quantification of the electric field impact on the light yield, the evaluation of the Rayleigh scattering affecting the light propagation, and the analysis of the PMT detection efficiency. The effect of the VUV reflectivity of the detector materials will be also discussed. In addition, the estimation of the cosmic muon flux crossing the TPC and the study of the observed light yield by the PDS will be reported. Finally, the results from the simulation-based study of the supernova burst trigger capability with the PDS of a 12.1-kt active mass dual-phase LAr TPC as the one proposed for DUNE will be summarized. Several configurations of reflective foils installed in the TPC to enhance the light collection will be compared.

Gallego Ros, Ana↗
DOE OSTI2022

Characterization and Evaluation of Scintillating Fiber System Components

Idaho National Laboratory is studying long scintillation fibers (SF) in a project called “TRIPWIRE” which aims to verify containment in inaccessible nuclear waste repositories. This system will continuously monitor ionizing radiation, electromagnetic fields, and seismic activity in the vicinity of nuclear waste. Previous experiments have determined a better alternative to long SF is to couple shorter SF to kilometer scale optical fiber (OF) to reach electronics far outside of the repository. Minor signal attenuation from coupling these fibers has been observed using optical spectrometry. This experiment characterized two photomultiplier tubes (PMT) to reduce this loss by matching their spectral response characteristics to the SF’s emission spectrum. The experiment created a comparison between the two PMTs showing results that suggest other characteristics are playing a major role in improving signal attenuation when the SF is coupled to OF.

98 - NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL↗
DOE OSTI2026

Detection of scintillation light in noble gases with wavelength-shifting optical fibers

Wavelength-shifting (WLS) techniques enable particle detectors based on noble gases, whose scintillation light is predominantly emitted in the vacuum-ultraviolet. We investigate WLS fibers coated with tetraphenyl butadiene (TPB) for scintillation light detection in gaseous xenon and argon at pressures up to 8.5 bar, motivated by future high-pressure xenon time-projection chambers of the NEXT program. Two detector configurations are studied: an elongated high-pressure vessel with four PTFE panels equipped with WLS fibers read by temperature-stabilized SiPMs, and a compact box-shaped detector operated at 1 bar Xe with WLS fibers read out by PMTs. Both operate with continuous gas purification. The detector response is characterized using cosmic muons and alpha particles from a $^{241}$Am source. With the SiPM setup, we measure a light collection efficiency (LCE) of ${1.18 \pm 0.01~\mathrm{(sta.)}~^{+0.07}_{-0.09}~\mathrm{(sys.)}~\%}$ for xenon and ${1.07 \pm 0.01~\mathrm{(sta.)}~^{+0.06}_{-0.08}~\mathrm{(sys.)}~\%}$ for argon. With PMT readout, we measure a LCE of ${0.45 \pm 0.01~\mathrm{(sta.)} \pm 0.05~\mathrm{(sys.)}~\%}$ in xenon, in agreement with the SiPM result once photon detection efficiency is accounted for. Average scintillation waveforms in xenon and argon are studied to assess the time structure of the emitted light. Cosmic-muon measurements yield a mean energy required to produce a scintillation photon $45\pm7~\mathrm{(sta.)}~^{+4}_{-5}~\mathrm{(sys.)}~\mathrm{eV}$ at 1.5 bar, in agreement with the literature. The results demonstrate that TPB-coated WLS fiber systems can reliably detect scintillation light in high-pressure gaseous noble detectors, with a LCE representing an upper limit for realistic large-scale TPCs, where additional photon losses from materials and fiber attenuation are expected.

Soleti, S. R. [Donostia Intl. Phys. Ctr., San Seba↗
DOE OSTI2026

Neutrino beam bunch structure reconstruction with precision timing in the ICARUS liquid argon time projection chamber

The ICARUS detector has been operating smoothly since 2021 as the far detector in the Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab, collecting neutrino interactions from both the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) and off-axis from the Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam. Analysis of neutrino interactions in ICARUS requires mitigation of substantial cosmogenic backgrounds. This is achieved by using an external Cosmic Ray Tagger (CRT) and a Photomultiplier Tube (PMT) system embedded in the liquid argon. The intrinsic neutrino beam bunch structure, inherited time structure from the Radio Frequency (RF) system used to accelerate the protons, can be resolved at the ICARUS detector using precise timing information. Located at shallow depth, ICARUS is exposed to a high flux of cosmic rays that can be mistaken for neutrino interactions. To mitigate this background, the CRT and a 3-meter-thick concrete overburden were installed. To better model backgrounds, ICARUS makes use of an overlay technique where simulated neutrino events are superimposed on detector beam-off data. PMTs installed within a Time Projection Chamber detect argon scintillation light emitted by high energy charged particles passing through the chamber and provide the event timing of neutrino interactions. The nanosecond-level beam bunch structure is reconstructed with the PMT system and can be used to further understand backgrounds and enhance neutrino physics capabilities. In this thesis, I will discuss background mitigation techniques using precision timing and present a novel technique to select neutrino events from our unbiased data stream using the beam bunch structure.

Heggestuen, Anna [Colorado State U.] (ORCID:000000↗
DOE OSTI2024

Batch VUV4 characterization for the SBC-LAr10 scintillating bubble chamber

The Scintillating Bubble Chamber (SBC) collaboration purchased 32 Hamamatsu VUV4 silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) for use in SBC-LAr10, a bubble chamber containing 10 kg of liquid argon. A dark-count characterization technique, which avoids the use of a single-photon source, was used at two temperatures to measure the VUV4 SiPMs breakdown voltage (V BD ), the SiPM gain (g SiPM ), the rate of change of g SiPM with respect to voltage (m), the dark count rate (DCR), and the probability of a correlated avalanche (P CA ) as well as the temperature coefficients of these parameters. A Peltier-based chilled vacuum chamber was developed at Queen's University to cool down the Quads to 233.15 ± 0.2 K and 255.15 ± 0.2 K with average stability of ±20 mK. An analysis framework was developed to estimate V BD to tens of mV precision and DCR close to Poissonian error. The temperature dependence of V BD was found to be 56 ± 2 mV K -1 , and m on average across all Quads was found to be (459 ± 3(stat.)±23(sys.))× 10 3 e- PE -1 V -1 . The average DCR temperature coefficient was estimated to be 0.099 ± 0.008 K -1 corresponding to a reduction factor of 7 for every 20 K drop in temperature. The average temperature dependence of P CA was estimated to be 4000 ± 1000 ppm K -1 . P CA estimated from the average across all SiPMs is a better estimator than the P CA calculated from individual SiPMs, for all of the other parameters, the opposite is true. All the estimated parameters were measured to the precision required for SBC-LAr10, and the Quads will be used in conditions to optimize the signal-to-noise ratio.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2026

A proximity-focusing RICH detector for the ePIC Experiment at the EIC

The Electron-Proton/Ion Collider Experiment (ePIC) will be a large, multi-purpose detector to be installed at the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) being built at Brookhaven National Laboratory. As robust particle identification (PID) capabilities are essential for fully realizing the EIC science program, ePIC contains several PID subsystems spanning different angular ranges. PID capability in the electron-going endcap is provided by a proximity-focusing Ring Imaging Cherenkov detector (pfRICH) designed to deliver at least 3σ separation between pions and kaons for momenta up to 7 GeV/ c . It will also aid with electron-hadron discrimination at low momentum and assist in the determination of the collision time (t 0 ). This contribution will summarize the design of the pfRICH as well as ongoing fabrication and component testing efforts. geant-based performance simulations will also be discussed.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2020

The BDX detector prototype for dark matter searches in a Beam Dump eXperiment at JLAB

The Beam Dump eXperiment (BDX) is an electron-beam thick-target experiment aimed to investigate the existence of light dark matter particles in the MeV-GeV mass range at Jefferson Lab. A small-scale prototype (BDX-Proto) of the BDX detector has been constructed in order to validate the proposed design and to demonstrate with real measurements the capability to efficiently reject the cosmogenic backgrounds. Here we report the peformance of BDX-Proto extracted from a long campaign of cosmic ray measurements performed at INFN, Sez. Catania and INFN, LNS.

calorimeters↗
DOE OSTI2020

A measurement of absolute efficiency of the ARAPUCA photon detector in liquid argon

In the Fall of 2017, two photon detector designs for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) Far Detector were installed and tested in the TallBo liquid argon (LAr) cryostat at the Proton Assembly (PAB) facility, Fermilab. The designs include two light bars developed at Indiana University and a photon detector based on the ARAPUCA light trap engineered by Colorado State University and Fermilab. The performance of these devices is determined by analyzing 8 weeks of cosmic ray data. The current paper focuses solely on the ARAPUCA device as the performance of the light bars will be reported separately. The article briefly describes the ARAPUCA concept, the TallBo setup, and focuses on data analysis and results.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2021

Design, upgrade and characterization of the silicon photomultiplier front-end for the AMIGA detector at the Pierre Auger Observatory

AMIGA (Auger Muons and Infill for the Ground Array) is an upgrade of the Pierre Auger Observatory to complement the study of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECR) by measuring the muon content of extensive air showers (EAS). It consists of an array of 61 water Cherenkov detectors on a denser spacing in combination with underground scintillation detectors used for muon density measurement. Each detector is composed of three scintillation modules, with 10 m 2 detection area per module, buried at 2.3 m depth, resulting in a total detection area of 30 m 2 . Silicon photomultiplier sensors (SiPM) measure the amount of scintillation light generated by charged particles traversing the modules. In this paper, the design of the front-end electronics to process the signals of those SiPMs and test results from the laboratory and from the Pierre Auger Observatory are described. Compared to our previous prototype, the new electronics shows a higher performance, higher efficiency and lower power consumption, and it has a new acquisition system with increased dynamic range that allows measurements closer to the shower core. The new acquisition system is based on the measurement of the total charge signal that the muonic component of the cosmic ray shower generates in the detector.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗