Collaborative Proposal: The XENON Dark Matter Project: Construction and Underground Operation of a 100 kg Detector

Columbia University, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

PROPOSAL NUMBER: 0705337 INSTITUTION: Columbia University PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Aprile, Elena PROPOSAL NUMBER: 0705326 INSTITUTION: William Marsh Rice University PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Oberlack, Uwe NSF PROGRAM: PHY ? UNDERGROUND PHYSICS TITLE: Collaborative Proposal: The XENON Dark Matter Project: Construction and Underground Operation of a 100 kg Detector ABSTRACT The discovery of dark matter is of fundamental importance to cosmology, astrophysics, and particle physics. Despite the extreme challenges, the search for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) believed to constitute the dark matter, continues with accelerator, space and underground based experiments. Ultimately, only astrophysical observations can determine whether WIMPs exist in nature, but the importance of direct detection of WIMP-nucleus scattering in laboratory experiments is well recognized. The US is in a world-leading position in direct detection; however, better-sensitivity experiments with sizeable increase in target mass and sophisticated background rejection schemes are key to future progress and discovery. This award provides support to the Columbia and Rice groups for their continuation of the XENON Dark Matter Program, with the construction of a 100 kg fiducial mass detector (XENON100). The sensitivity goal is 2x10^45 cm^2. This is achieved through background discrimination provided by the simultaneous detection of ionization and scintillation signals in pure liquid xenon. XENON100 is built on the design and technology established with the XENON10 prototype, with a factor of ~10 increase in total Xe mass. XENON100 is an experiment that can be built with minimum risk, giving first physics results by 2009, when the LHC will be searching for Supersymmetric dark matter. Among the Broader Impacts of this work, the XENON science has all the ingredients to captivate the interest and imagination of students and the general public alike. XENON technical-related work can impact society in a number of ways. The liquid xenon imaging detector technology is a prime candidate for applications in several fields outside particle astrophysics, including national security and medical imaging research.