Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
10721820 | Physics Letters B | 2012 | 6 Pages |
Abstract
The search for neutrinoless double β decay probes lepton number conservation with high sensitivity and investigates the neutrino nature and mass scale. Experiments presently in preparation will cover the quasi-degeneracy region of the neutrino mass pattern. Probing the inverted hierarchy region requires improved sensitivities and next-generation experiments, based either on large expansions of the present searches or on new ideas. We examine here a novel technology relying on ZnMoO4 scintillating bolometers, which can provide an experiment with background close to zero in the ton à year exposure scale. The promising performance of a pilot detector is presented, both in terms of energy resolution and background control. A preliminary study of the sensitivities of future experiments shows that the inverted hierarchy region is within the reach of the technique here proposed. A realistic phased approach program towards a next-generation search is presented and briefly discussed.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Physics and Astronomy
Nuclear and High Energy Physics
Authors
J.W. Beeman, F.A. Danevich, V.Ya. Degoda, E.N. Galashov, A. Giuliani, V.V. Kobychev, M. Mancuso, S. Marnieros, C. Nones, E. Olivieri, G. Pessina, C. Rusconi, V.N. Shlegel, V.I. Tretyak, Ya.V. Vasiliev,