DAMIC at SNOLAB

ALVARO E. CHAVARRIA; JAVIER TIFFENBERG; ALEXIS AGUILAR-AREVALO; DAN AMIDEI; XAVIER BERTOU; GUSTAVO CANCELO; JUAN CARLOS DOLIVO; JUAN ESTRADA; GUILLERMO FERNANDEZ MORONI; FEDERICO IZRAELEVITCH; BEN KILMINSTER; YASHMANTH LANGISETTY; JUNHUI LIAO; JORGE MOLINA; PAOLO PRIVITERA; CAROLINA SALAZAR; YOUSSEF SARKIS; VIC SCARPINE; TOM SCHWARZ; MIGUEL SOFO HARO; FREDERIC TRILLAUD; JING ZHOU

Physics Procedia

ELSEVIER

Año: 2015 vol. 61 p. 21 - 33

1875-3892

We introduce the fully-depleted charge-coupled device (CCD) as a particle detector. We demonstrate its low energy threshold operation, capable of detecting ionizing energy depositions in a single pixel down to 50 eVee. We present results of energy calibrations from 0.3 keVee to 60 keVee, showing that the CCD is a fully active detector with uniform energy response throughout the silicon target, good resolution (Fano ∼0.16), and remarkable linear response to electron energy depositions. We show the capability of the CCD to localize the depth of particle interactions within the silicon target. We discuss the mode of operation and unique imaging capabilities of the CCD, and how they may be exploited to characterize and suppress backgrounds. We present the first results from the deployment of 250 μm thick CCDs in SNOLAB, a prototype for the upcoming DAMIC100. DAMIC100 will have a target mass of 0.1 kg and should be able to directly test the CDMS-Si signal within a year of operation.