Muon-induced signals and isotope production in the GERDA experiment
- INFN Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso, S.S. 17 bis km 18-910, I-67100 Assergi (Italy)
Background induced by the interaction of cosmic ray muons can be important for the new generation of experiments searching for neutrinoless double beta decay. The GERmanium Detector Array (GERDA), located at the Gran Sasso Laboratory, in Italy, uses germanium enriched in 76Ge as source and detector material. It aims at a background level of 10-3 counts/(kg{center_dot}keV{center_dot}y) at the Q{beta}{beta}-value. The prompt background from muon interactions in the setup as well as the delayed background due to the production of radioactive isotopes within the setup have been evaluated by a detailed GEANT4-based Monte Carlo simulation. The results indicate that the background can be reduced to the desired level and that the muon-induced background does not limit the expected GERDA sensitivity.
- OSTI ID:
- 21055014
- Journal Information:
- AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 897, Issue 1; Conference: LRT 2006: Topical workshop on low radioactivity techniques, Aussois (France), 1-4 Oct 2006; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.2722076; (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0094-243X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
GERDA, a GERmanium Detector Array for the search for neutrinoless {beta}{beta} decay in 76Ge
ICP MS selection of radiopure materials for the GERDA experiment