Particle detection using superfluid helium

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1991

OSTI ID:5392980

Bandler, S R; Lanou, R E; Maris, H J; More, T; Porter, F S; Seidel, G M; Torii, R

We have observed 5 MeV {alpha} particles stopped in volumes-up to two liters of liquid helium at 70 mK. A fraction of the kinetic energy of an {alpha} particle is converted to elementary excitations (rotons and phonons), which progagate ballistically in isotopically pure {sup 4}He below 0.1 K. Most of these excitations have sufficient energy to evaporate helium atoms on hitting a free surface. The evaporated helium atoms can be detected calorimetrically when adsorbed on a thin silicon wafer ({approximately}1.7 g, 35 cm{sup 2}) suspended above the liquid. Temperature changes of the silicon are measured with a NTD germanium bolometer. For the geometry studied the observed temperature change of the silicon resulting from an {alpha} event in the liquid is approximately 5% of the temperature rise from an {alpha} hitting the silicon directly. The implications of these measurements will be discussed as they relate to the possible construction of a large scale detector of solar neutrinos.

• Research Organization: Brown Univ., Providence, RI (United States). Dept. of Physics
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE; NSF; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States); National Science Foundation, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: FG02-88ER40452
• OSTI ID: 5392980
• Report Number(s): DOE/ER/40452-6; CONF-9109357--1; ON: DE92011603
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

440104* -- Radiation Instrumentation-- High Energy Physics Instrumentation
46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
662320 -- Neutrino Interactions-- (1992-)
72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS
ALPHA PARTICLES
CHARGED PARTICLES
DETECTION
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
FERMIONS
FLUIDS
GASES
HELIUM
LEPTONS
MASSLESS PARTICLES
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
NEUTRINO DETECTION
NEUTRINOS
NONMETALS
RADIATION DETECTION
RADIATION DETECTORS
RADIATIONS
RARE GASES
SEMICONDUCTOR DETECTORS
SHOWER COUNTERS
SI SEMICONDUCTOR DETECTORS
SOLAR NEUTRINOS
SOLAR PARTICLES
SOLAR RADIATION
STELLAR RADIATION
SUPERFLUIDITY
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE