Münster 2017 – scientific programme

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T: Fachverband Teilchenphysik

T 80: Neutrinophysik 6 (Szintillatorexperimente)

T 80.7: Talk

Wednesday, March 29, 2017, 18:25–18:40, H 2

Borexino Detector Studies with Background Components — •Stefan Weinz for the Borexino collaboration — Universität Mainz

The SOX experiment searches for sterile neutrinos by placing a radioactive ν_e source below the Borexino detector. Oscillations of active to sterile neutrinos are identified by a disappearance pattern of ν_e events within the detection volume. Sensitivity can be increased by enlarging the detection volume as much as possible towards the border of the inner vessel that holds the liquid scintillator. Here, light collection is deteriorating and spill-out effects of γ’s into the passive buffer region distort energy and spatial reconstruction.

This talk presents strategies for characterising this peripheral detector region by employing well-defined background events. For this data-driven approach cosmogenic neutron captures on hydrogen and α decays of ²¹⁰ are used, since both are mono-energetic events which allow for the energy response studies. Futhermore cosmogenic neutrons are useful messengers for detector response studies due to their isotropical distribution.