An array of sixteen 1 cm^3 CdZnTe semiconductor detectors was operated at the Gran Sasso Underground Laboratory (LNGS) to further investigate the feasibility of double-beta decay searches with such devices. As one of the double-beta decay experiments with the highest granularity the 4 x 4 array accumulated an overall exposure of 18 kg days. The setup and performance of the array is described. Half-life limits for various double-beta decay modes of Cd, Zn and Te isotopes are obtained. No signal has been found, but several limits beyond 10^20 years have been performed. They are an order of magnitude better than those obtained with this technology before and comparable to most other experimental approaches for the isotopes under investigation. An improved limit for the beta^+/EC decay of Te 120 is given.
We present 11 independent measurements of the half-life and spectral shape of the 4-fold forbidden beta decay of 113-Cd using CdZnTe semiconductors with a total combined lifetime of 6.58 kg days. Our overall result gives a half-life of (8.00 +/- 0.11(stat) +/- 0.24(sys)) x 10^15 years and a Q value of 322.2 +/- 0.3(stat) +/- 0.9(sys) keV. For the first time half-lives well beyond 10^10 years have been deduced with a statistically representative sample of independent measurements.
A search for the 4-fold forbidden beta decay of \iso{Cd}{113} has been performed with CdZnTe semiconductors. With 0.86 kg $\cdot$ days of statistics a half-life for the decay of $T_{1/2} = (8.2 \pm 0.2 (stat.) ^{+0.2}_{-1.0} (sys.)) \cdot 10^{15}$yrs has been obtained. This is in good agreement with published values. A comparison of the spectral shape with the one given on the Table of Isotopes Web-page shows a severe deviation.
Events near the cathode and anode surfaces of a coplanar grid CdZnTe detector are identifiable by means of the interaction depth information encoded in the signal amplitudes. However, the amplitudes cannot be used to identify events near the lateral surfaces. In this paper a method is described to identify lateral surface events by means of their pulse shapes. Such identification allows for discrimination of surface alpha particle interactions from more penetrating forms of radiation, which is particularly important for rare event searches. The effectiveness of the presented technique in suppr…
The COBRA collaboration aims to search for neutrinoless double beta-decay of $^{116}$Cd. A demonstrator setup with 64 CdZnTe semiconductor detectors, each with a volume of 1cm$^3$, is currently being operated at the LNGS underground laboratory in Italy. This paper reports on the characterization of a large (2 $\times$ 2 $\times$ 1.5)cm$^3$ CdZnTe detector with a new coplanar-grid design for applications in $γ$-ray spectroscopy and low-background operation. Several studies of electric properties as well as of the spectrometric performance, like energy response and resolution, are conducted. Fur…
The COBRA collaboration searches for neutrinoless double beta-decay ($0νββ$-decay) using CdZnTe semiconductor detectors with a coplanar-grid readout and a surrounding guard-ring structure. The operation of the COBRA demonstrator at the Gran Sasso underground laboratory (LNGS) indicates that alpha-induced lateral surface events are the dominant source of background events. By instrumenting the guard-ring electrode it is possible to suppress this type of background. In laboratory measurements this method achieved a suppression factor of alpha-induced lateral surface events of $5300^{+2660}_{-138…
Four 1cm^3 CdZnTe semiconductor detectors were operated in the Gran Sasso National Laboratory to explore the feasibility of such devices for double beta decay searches as proposed for the COBRA experiment. The research involved background studies accompanied by measurements of energy resolution performed at the surface. Energy resolutions sufficient to reduce the contribution of two-neutrino double beta decay events to a negligible level for a large scale experiment have already been achieved and further improvements are expected. Using activity measurements of contaminants in all construction…
A new approach (called COBRA) for investigating double beta decay using CdTe (CdZnTe) semiconductor detectors is proposed. It follows the idea that source and detector are identical. This will allow simultaneous measurements of 5 $β^-β^-$ - and 4 $β^+β^+$ - emitters at once. Half-life limits for neutrinoless double beta decay of Cd-116 and Te-130 can be improved by more than one order of magnitude with respect to current limits and sensitivities on the effective Majorana neutrino mass of less than 1 eV can be obtained. Furthermore, for the first time a realistic chance of observing double elec…
The COBRA demonstrator, a prototype for a large-scale experiment searching for neutrinoless double beta-decay, was built at the underground laboratory Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS) in Italy. It consists of an array of 64 monolithic, calorimetric CdZnTe semiconductor detectors with a coplanar-grid design and a total mass of 380g. It is used to investigate the experimental challenges faced when operating CdZnTe detectors in low-background mode, to identify potential background sources and to show the long-term stability of the detectors. The first data-taking period started in 2011 …
Various double beta decay modes of Cd, Zn and Te isotopes are explored with the help of CdTe and CdZnTe semiconductor detectors. The data set is splitted in an energy range below 1 MeV having a statistics of 134.5 g$\cdot$d and one above 1 MeV resulting in 532 g$\cdot$d. No signals were observed in all channels under investigation. New improved limits for the neutrinoless double beta decay of Zn70 of $T_{1/2} > 1.3 \cdot 10^{16} yrs$ (90% CL), the longest standing limit of all double beta isotopes, and 0$νβ^+$EC of Te120 of $T_{1/2} > 2.2 \cdot 10^{16} yrs$ (90% CL) are given. For the first ti…
The large statistics collected during the operation of a ZnMoO$_4$ array, for a total exposure of 1.3 kg $\cdot$ day of $^{100}$Mo, allowed the first bolometric observation of the two neutrino double beta decay of $^{100}$Mo. The observed spectrum of each crystal was reconstructed taking into account the different background contributions due to environmental radioactivity and internal contamination. The analysis of coincidences between the crystals allowed the assignment of constraints to the intensity of the different background sources, resulting in a reconstruction of the measured spectrum…
In the field of Double Beta Decay (DBD) searches the possibility to have high resolution detectors in which background can be discriminated is very appealing. This very interesting possibility can be largely fulfilled in the case of a scintillating bolometer containing a Double Beta Decay emitter whose transition energy exceeds the one of the natural gamma line of 208Tl. We present the latest results obtained in the development of such a kind of scintillating bolometer. For the first time an array of five CdWO4 (116Cd has a Double Beta Decay transition energy of 2805 keV) crystals is tested. T…
Neutrinoless double-$β$ decay ($0νββ$ decay) is a hypothetical process that can occur if the neutrino is its own antiparticle. The COBRA collaboration operates a demonstrator to search for these decays at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy using CdZnTe semiconductor detectors. The exposure of $234.7\,$kg\,d considered in this analysis was collected between September 2011 and February 2015. The analysis focuses on the decay of the nuclides $^{114}$Cd, $^{128}$Te, $^{70}$Zn, $^{130}$Te and $^{116}$Cd. A Bayesian analysis is performed to estimate the signal strength of $0νββ$ decay.…
It is important to identify and reduce the gamma radiation which can be a significant source of background for any double beta decay experiment. The TIN.TIN detector array, which is under development for the search of Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay in $^{124}$Sn, has the potential to utilize the hit multiplicity information to discriminate the gamma background from the events of interest. Monte Carlo simulations for optimizing the design of a Tin detector module has been performed by varying element sizes with an emphasis on the gamma background reduction capabilities of the detector array.
We describe a beta electron spectrometer for use in an upcoming experiment that will measure the beta-antineutrino correlation coefficient (a-coefficient) in neutron beta decay. Electron energy is measured by a thick plastic scintillator detector. A conical array of plastic scintillator veto detectors is used to suppress events where the electron backscattered. A Monte Carlo simulation of this device in the configuration of the a-coefficient experiment is presented. The design, construction, and testing of a full-scale prototype device is described. We discuss the performance of this spectrome…
The sensitivity of experiments searching for neutrinoless double beta-decay of germanium was so far limited by the background induced by external gamma-radiation. Segmented germanium detectors can be used to identify photons and thus reduce this background component. The GERmanium Detector Array, GERDA, will use highly segmented germanium detectors in its second phase. The identification of photonic events is investigated using a prototype detector. The results are compared with Monte Carlo data.
With the aid of the Geant4 Monte Carlo simulation package a new detection system has been designed for the focal plane of the recoil separator VASSILISSA situated at the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, JINR, Dubna. GABRIELA (Gamma Alpha Beta Recoil Investigations with the Electromagnetic Analyser VASSILISSA) has been optimised to detect the arrival of reaction products and their subsequent radioactive decays involving the emission of alpha- and beta-particles, fission fragments, gamma- and X-rays, and conversion electrons. The new detector system is described and the results of the fir…
The progress in the development of the new international Gerda (GErmanium Detector Array) experiment is presented. Main purpose of the experiment is to search for the neutrinoless double beta decay of 76Ge. The experimental set up is under construction in the underground laboratory of LNGS. Gerda will operate with bare germanium semiconductor detectors (enriched in 76Ge) situated in liquid argon. In the Phase I the existing enriched detectors from the previous Heidelberg-Moscow and IGEX experiments are employed, in the Phase II the new segmented detectors made from recently produced enriched m…
Understanding the nature of neutrino masses will require physics beyond the long-standing Standard Model of particle physics. Neutrinoless double beta decay experiments like the Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events (CUORE) are uniquely suited for probing the remaining mysteries of neutrino mass, particularly the question of the neutrino's Majorana nature. CUORE will be a next-generation experiment at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy; it will consist of an array of 988 TeO2 detector crystals operated at ~10 mK, following the bolometric technique established by the C…
Neutrinoless double-beta decay searches play a major role in determining the nature of neutrinos, the existence of a lepton violating process, and the effective Majorana neutrino mass. The Majorana Collaboration proposes to assemble an array of HPGe detectors to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay in Ge-76. Our proposed method uses the well-established technique of searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay in high purity Ge-diode radiation detectors that play both roles of source and detector. The technique is augmented with recent improvements in signal processing and detector design…
Cryogenic bolometers, with their excellent energy resolution, flexibility in material, and availability in high purity, are excellent detectors for the search for neutrinoless double beta decay. Kilogram-size single crystals of TeO_2 are utilized in CUORICINO for an array with a total detector mass of 40.7 kg. CUORICINO currently sets the most stringent limit on the halflife of Te-130 of T > 2.4x10^{24} yr (90% C.L.), corresponding to a limit on the effective Majorana neutrino mass in the range of < 0.2-0.9 eV. Based on technology developed for CUORICINO and its predecessors, CUORE is a next-g…
We report on the first detailed measurements of electron backscattering from plastic scintillator targets, extending our previous work on beryllium and silicon targets. The scintillator experiment posed several additional experimental challenges associated with charging of the scintillator target, and those challenges are addressed in detail. In addition, we quantitatively compare the energy and angular distributions of this data, and our previous data, with electron transport simulations based on the Geant4 and Penelope Monte Carlo simulation codes. The Penelope simulation is found globally t…
The Majorana Experiment will use arrays of enriched HPGe detectors to search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay of 76Ge. Such a decay, if found, would show lepton-number violation and confirm the Majorana nature of the neutrino. Searches for such rare events are hindered by obscuring backgrounds which must be understood and mitigated as much as possible. A potentially important background contribution to this and other double-beta decay experiments could come from decays of alpha-emitting isotopes in the 232Th and 238U decay chains on or near the surfaces of the detectors. An alpha particl…
The standard model predicts that, in addition to a proton, an electron, and an antineutrino, a continuous spectrum of photons is emitted in the $β$ decay of the free neutron. We report on the RDK II experiment which measured the photon spectrum using two different detector arrays. An annular array of bismuth germanium oxide scintillators detected photons from 14 to 782~keV. The spectral shape was consistent with theory, and we determined a branching ratio of 0.00335 $\pm$ 0.00005 [stat] $\pm$ 0.00015 [syst]. A second detector array of large area avalanche photodiodes directly detected photons …
We investigate the performances of two ZnMoO4 scintillating crystals operated as bolometers, in view of a next generation experiment to search the neutrinoless double beta decay of Mo-100. We present the results of the alpha vs beta/gamma discrimination, obtained through the scintillation light as well as through the study of the shape of the thermal signal alone. The discrimination capability obtained at the 2615 keV line of Tl-208 is 8 sigma, using the heat-light scatter plot, while it exceeds 20 sigma using the shape of the thermal pulse alone. The achieved FWHM energy resolution ranges fro…
The Majorana Demonstrator is a neutrinoless double-beta decay search consisting of a low-background modular array of high-purity germanium detectors, $\sim2/3$ of which are enriched to 88\% in $^{76}$Ge. The experiment is also searching for double-beta decay of $^{76}$Ge to excited states (e.s.) in $^{76}$Se. $^{76}$Ge can decay into three daughter states of $^{76}$Se, with clear event signatures consisting of a $ββ$-decay followed by the prompt emission of one or two $γ$-rays. This results with high probability in multi-detector coincidences. The granularity of the Demonstrator detector array…
The MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR is searching for double-beta decay of $^{76}$Ge to excited states (E.S.) in $^{76}$Se using a modular array of high purity Germanium detectors. $^{76}$Ge can decay into three E.S.s of $^{76}$Se. The E.S. decays have a clear event signature consisting of a $ββ$-decay with the prompt emission of one or two $γ$-rays, resulting in with high probability in a multi-site event. The granularity of the DEMONSTRATOR detector array enables powerful discrimination of this event signature from backgrounds. Using 21.3 kg-y of isotopic exposure, the DEMONSTRATOR has set world leadin…
The MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR will search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay of the 76Ge isotope with a mixed array of enriched and natural germanium detectors. The observation of this rare decay would indicate the neutrino is its own anti-particle, demonstrate that lepton number is not conserved, and provide information on the absolute mass-scale of the neutrino. The DEMONSTRATOR is being assembled at the 4850 foot level of the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota. The array will be contained in a low-background environment and surrounded by passive and active shielding…
In an experiment performed at the SPIRAL1 facility of GANIL, the beta decay of 32Ar has been studied by means of the "Silicon Cube" device associated with germanium clover detectors from the EXOGAM array. Beta-delayed protons and gamma rays have been observed and allowed the determination of all relevant decay branches. The Gamow-Teller strength distribution is compared to shell-model calculations and excellent agreement is found. The Fermi strength is inline with expectations. A quasi-complete decay scheme of 32Ar is established.
The GERmanium Detector Array, GERDA, is designed for the search for ``neutrinoless double beta decay'' (0-nu-2-beta) with germanium detectors enriched in Ge76. An 18-fold segmented prototype detector for GERDA Phase II was exposed to an AmBe neutron source to improve the understanding of neutron induced backgrounds. Neutron interactions with the germanium isotopes themselves and in the surrounding materials were studied. Segment information is used to identify neutron induced peaks in the recorded energy spectra. The Geant4 based simulation package MaGe is used to simulate the experiment. Thou…
The CUORICINO experiment was an array of 62 TeO$_{2}$ single-crystal bolometers with a total $^{130}$Te mass of $11.3\,$kg. The experiment finished in 2008 after more than 3 years of active operating time. Searches for both $0ν$ and $2ν$ double-beta decay to the first excited $0^{+}$ state in $^{130}$Xe were performed by studying different coincidence scenarios. The analysis was based on data representing a total exposure of N($^{130}$Te)$\cdot$t=$9.5\times10^{25}\,$y. No evidence for a signal was found. The resulting lower limits on the half lives are $T^{2ν}_{1/2}(^{130} Te\rightarrow^{130} …
We describe an apparatus used to measure the triple-correlation term (\D \hatσ_n\cdot p_e\times p_ν) in the beta-decay of polarized neutrons. The \D-coefficient is sensitive to possible violations of time reversal invariance. The detector has an octagonal symmetry that optimizes electron-proton coincidence rates and reduces systematic effects. A beam of longitudinally polarized cold neutrons passes through the detector chamber, where a small fraction beta-decay. The final-state protons are accelerated and focused onto arrays of cooled semiconductor diodes, while the coincident electrons are de…
The CUORE experiment will search for neutrinoless double beta decay (0nDBD) of 130Te using an array of 988 TeO_2 bolometers operated at 10 mK in the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (Italy). The detector is housed in a large cryogen-free cryostat cooled by pulse tubes and a high-power dilution refrigerator. The TeO_2 bolometers measure the event energies, and a precise and reliable energy calibration is critical for the successful identification of candidate 0nDBD and background events. The detector calibration system under development is based on the insertion of 12 gamma-sources that are …
A new decay-spectroscopy station has been commissioned for experiments with low-energy, fission-fragment radioactive beams from the CARIBU ion source. The new set-up consists of the 'X-array', a highly-efficient array of HPGe clover detectors, and 'SATURN' (Scintillator And Tape Using Radioactive Nuclei), a plastic scintillator detector combined with a tape-transport system for detection of beta particles and removal of long-lived isobaric decay products.
The observation of neutrinoless double-beta decay would determine whether the neutrino is a Majorana particle and provide information on the absolute scale of neutrino mass. The MAJORANA Collaboration is constructing the DEMONSTRATOR, an array of germanium detectors, to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of 76-Ge. The DEMONSTRATOR will contain 40 kg of germanium; up to 30 kg will be enriched to 86% in 76-Ge. The DEMONSTRATOR will be deployed deep underground in an ultra-low-background shielded environment. Operation of the DEMONSTRATOR aims to determine whether a future tonne-scale germ…
Background: Measurements of $β$ decay provide important nuclear structure information that can be used to probe isospin asymmetries and inform nuclear astrophysics studies. Purpose: To measure the $β$-delayed $γ$ decay of $^{26}$P and compare the results with previous experimental results and shell-model calculations. Method: A $^{26}$P fast beam produced using nuclear fragmentation was implanted into a planar germanium detector. Its $β$-delayed $γ$-ray emission was measured with an array of 16 high-purity germanium detectors. Positrons emitted in the decay were detected in coincidence to redu…
We present a search for beta plus/EC double beta decay of 120Te performed with the CUORICINO experiment, an array of TeO2 cryogenic bolometers. After collecting 0.0573 kg y of 120Te, we see no evidence of a signal and therefore set the following limits on the half-life: T1/2 (0nu) > 1.9 10^{21} y at 90% C.L. for the 0 neutrino mode and T1/2 (2nu) > 7.6 10^{19} y at 90% C.L. for the two neutrino mode. These results improve the existing limits by almost three orders of magnitude (four in the case of 0 neutrino mode).
The LUCIFER project aims at deploying the first array of enriched scintillating bolometers for the investigation of neutrinoless double-beta decay of $^{82}$Se. The matrix which embeds the source is an array of ZnSe crystals, where enriched $^{82}$Se is used as decay isotope. The radiopurity of the initial components employed for manufacturing crystals, that can be operated as bolometers, is crucial for achieving a null background level in the region of interest for double-beta decay investigations. In this work, we evaluated the radioactive content in 2.5 kg of 96.3\% enriched $^{82}$Se metal…
The ground-state properties of neutron-rich 106Nb and its beta decay into 106Mo have been studied using the CARIBU radioactive-ion-beam facility at Argonne National Laboratory. Niobium-106 ions were extracted from a 252Cf fission source and mass separated before being delivered as low-energy beams to the Canadian Penning Trap, as well as the X-Array and SATURN beta-decay-spectroscopy station. The measured 106Nb ground-state mass excess of -66202.0(13) keV is consistent with a recent measurement but has three times better precision; this work also rules out the existence of a second long-lived,…
We consider the role of precision measurements of beta decays and light meson semi-leptonic decays in probing physics beyond the Standard Model in the LHC era. We describe all low-energy charged-current processes within and beyond the Standard Model using an effective field theory framework. We first discuss the theoretical hadronic input which in these precision tests plays a crucial role in setting the baseline for new physics searches. We then review the current and upcoming constraints on the various non-standard operators from the study of decay rates, spectra, and correlations in a broad…
Beta-delayed-neutron ($β$n) spectroscopy was performed using the Beta-decay Paul Trap and an array of radiation detectors. The $β$n branching ratios and energy spectra for $^{135,136}$Sb and $^{140}$I were obtained by measuring the time of flight of recoil ions emerging from the trapped ion cloud. These nuclei are located at the edge of an isotopic region identified as having $β$n branching ratios that impact the r-process abundance pattern around the A~130 peak. For $^{135,136}$Sb and $^{140}$I, $β$n branching ratios of 14.6(11)%, 17.6(28)%, and 7.6(28)% were determined, respectively. The $β$…
Of the many extensions to the standard model that could possibly generate neutrino mass, most necessitate the neutrino being a Majorana fermion. If this is the case, the rare process of neutrinoless double beta decay is predicted with half lives greater than about $10^{25}$ years. Many current and future experiments look for this decay by identifying a summed double beta energy at the Q value of the decay, but adding energy and angular measurements of the individual betas allows the underlying decay mechanism to be probed. A novel nano-tracking detector based on a clever combination of thin fi…
The {\sc Majorana Demonstrator will search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay of the isotope Ge-76 with a mixed array of enriched and natural germanium detectors. The observation of this rare decay would indicate the neutrino is its own antiparticle, demonstrate that lepton number is not conserved, and provide information on the absolute mass scale of the neutrino. The {\sc Demonstrator} is being assembled at the 4850-foot level of the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota. The array will be situated in a low-background environment and surrounded by passive and active…
The GERmanium Detector Array, GERDA, is designed to search for neutrinoless double beta (0$νββ$) decay of $^{76}$Ge and it is installed in the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS) of INFN, Italy. In this review, the detection principle and detector setup of GERDA are described. Also, the main physics results by GERDA Phase I, are discussed. They include the measurement of the half-life of 2$νββ$ decay, the background decomposition of the energy spectrum and the techniques for the discrimination of the background, based on the pulse shape of the signal. In the last part of this paper, the…
The CUPID-Mo experiment at the Laboratoire Souterrain de Modane (France) is a demonstrator for CUPID, the next-generation ton-scale cryogenic $0νββ$ experiment. It consists of a 4.2 kg array of 20 enriched Li$_{2}$$^{100}$MoO$_4$ scintillating bolometers to search for the lepton number violating process of $0νββ$ decay in $^{100}$Mo. With more than one year of operation (2.16 kg$\times$yr of physics data), no event in the region of interest and hence no evidence for $0νββ$ is observed. We report a new limit on the half-life of $0νββ$ decay in $^{100}$Mo of $T_{1/2} > 1.5 \times 10^{24}\,$yr at…
The Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino Experiment (KATRIN) will detect tritium beta- decay electrons that pass through its electromagnetic spectrometer with a highly- segmented monolithic silicon pin-diode focal-plane detector (FPD). This pin-diode array will be on a single piece of 500-μm-thick silicon, with contact between titanium nitride (TiN) coated detector pixels and front-end electronics made by spring-loaded pogo pins. The pogo pins will exert a total force of up to 50N on the detector, deforming it and resulting in mechanical stress up to 50 MPa in the silicon bulk. We have evaluated a proto…
The suppression of spurious events in the region of interest for neutrinoless double beta decay will play a major role in next generation experiments. The background of detectors based on the technology of cryogenic calorimeters is expected to be dominated by α particles, that could be disentangled from double beta decay signals by exploiting the difference in the emission of the scintillation light. CUPID-0, an array of enriched Zn$^{82}$Se scintillating calorimeters, is the first large mass demonstrator of this technology. The detector started data-taking in 2017 at the Laboratori Nazionali …
The CUORE experiment is a large bolometric array searching for the lepton number violating neutrino-less double beta decay ($0νββ$) in the isotope $\mathrm{^{130}Te}$. In this work we present the latest results on two searches for the double beta decay (DBD) of $\mathrm{^{130}Te}$ to the first $0^{+}_2$ excited state of $\mathrm{^{130}Xe}$: the $0νββ$ decay and the Standard Model-allowed two-neutrinos double beta decay ($2νββ$). Both searches are based on a 372.5 kg$\times$yr TeO$_2$ exposure. The de-excitation gamma rays emitted by the excited Xe nucleus in the final state yield a unique sign…
Background: Beta-decay spectroscopy provides valuable nuclear physics input for thermonuclear reaction rates of astrophysical interest and stringent test for shell-model theories far from the stability line. Purpose: The available decay properties of proton drip-line nucleus $^{27}$S is insufficient to constrain the properties of the key resonance in $^{26}$Si$(p,γ)^{27}$P reaction rate and probe the possible isospin asymmetry. The decay scheme of $^{27}$S is complicated and far from being understood, which has motivated but also presented challenges for our experiment. Method: The $^{27}$S io…
The Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events (CUORE) is a ton-scale cryogenic experiment designed to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of $^{130}$Te and other rare events. The CUORE detector consists of 988 TeO$_2$ bolometers operated underground at 10 mK in a dilution refrigerator at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso. Candidate events are identified through a precise measurement of their energy. The absolute energy response of the detectors is established by the regular calibration of each individual bolometer using gamma sources. The close-packed configuration of the C…
The CUPID-Mo experiment, located at Laboratoire Souterrain de Modane (France), was a demonstrator experiment for CUPID. It consisted of an array of 20 Li$_2^{100}$MoO$_4$ (LMO) calorimeters each equipped with a Ge light detector (LD) for particle identification. In this work, we present the result of a search for two-neutrino and neutrinoless double beta decays of $^{100}$Mo to the first 0$^+$ and $2^+$ excited states of $^{100}$Ru using the full CUPID-Mo exposure (2.71 kg$\times$yr of LMO). We measure the half-life of $2νββ$ decay to the $0^{+}_1$ state as $T_{1/2}^{2ν\rightarrow 0_1^+}=7.5\p…
Next-generation experiments searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay must be sensitive to a Majorana neutrino mass as low as 10 meV. CUORE, an array of 988 TeO$_2$ bolometers being commissioned at Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy, features an expected sensitivity of 50-130 meV at 90% C.L, that can be improved by removing the background from $α$ radioactivity. This is possible if, in coincidence with the heat release in a bolometer, the Cherenkov light emitted by the $β$ signal is detected. The amount of light detected is so far limited to only 100 eV, requiring low-noise cryoge…
We report the result of the search for neutrinoless double beta decay of $^{82}$Se obtained with CUPID-0, the first large array of scintillating Zn$^{82}$Se cryogenic calorimeters implementing particle identification. We observe no signal in a 1.83 kg yr $^{82}$Se exposure and we set the most stringent lower limit on the \onu $^{82}$Se half-life T$^{0ν}_{1/2}>$ 2.4$\times \mathrm{10}^{24}$ yr (90\% credible interval), which corresponds to an effective Majorana neutrino mass m$_{ββ} <$ (376-770) meV depending on the nuclear matrix element calculations. The heat-light readout provides a powerful…
CUORE, an array of 988 TeO$_2$ bolometers, is about to be one of the most sensitive experiments searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay. Its sensitivity could be further improved by removing the background from $α$ radioactivity. A few years ago it has been pointed out that the signal from $β$s can be tagged by detecting the emitted Cherenkov light, which is not produced by $α$s. In this paper we confirm this possibility. For the first time we measured the Cherenkov light emitted by a CUORE crystal, and found it to be 100 eV at the $Q$-value of the decay. To completely reject the $α$ back…
Neutrinoless double-beta decay is a hypothesized process where in some even-even nuclei it might be possible for two neutrons to simultaneously decay into two protons and two electrons without emitting neutrinos. This is possible only if neutrinos are Majorana particles, i.e. fermions that are their own antiparticles. Neutrinos being Majorana particles would explicitly violate lepton number conservation, and might play a role in the matter-antimatter asymmetry in the universe. The observation of neutrinoless double-beta decay would also provide complementary information related to neutrino mas…
The MAJORANA Collaboration is constructing the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR, an ultra-low background, modular, HPGe detector array with a mass of 44.8-kg (29.7 kg enriched >88% in Ge-76) to search for neutrinoless double beta decay in Ge-76. The next generation of tonnescale Ge-based neutrinoless double beta decay searches will probe the neutrino mass scale in the inverted-hierarchy region. The MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR is envisioned to demonstrate a path forward to achieve a background rate at or below 1 count/tonne/year in the 4 keV region of interest around the Q-value of 2039 keV. The MAJORANA DEMONS…
Recent advances in segmented solid-state detector arrays for rare-event searches have allowed the technology to approach the ton-scale in detector mass and the scale of meters in size. Often focused around searches for neutrinoless double-beta decay or direct dark matter detection, such experiments also have the capability to search for exotic particles that leave track-like signatures across their volume. However, the segmented nature of such detector arrays often sets the spatial resolution and makes the problem of reconstructing track-like paths non-trivial. In this paper, we present an alg…
Neutrinoless double beta decay searches play a major role in determining neutrino properties, in particular the Majorana or Dirac nature of the neutrino and the absolute scale of the neutrino mass. The consequences of these searches go beyond neutrino physics, with implications for Grand Unification and leptogenesis. The \textsc{Majorana} Collaboration is assembling a low-background array of high purity Germanium (HPGe) detectors to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay in $^{76}$Ge. The \textsc{Majorana Demonstrator}, which is currently being constructed and commissioned at the Sanford Un…
We propose a novel charge sensing concept for high-pressure Time Projection Chamber (TPC) to search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay (NLDBD) with ton-scale isotope mass and beyond. A meter-sized plane, tiled with an array of CMOS integrated sensors called Topmetal that directly collect charge without gas avalanche gain, is to be deployed into a high-pressure gaseous TPC with working gases containing suitable NLDBD candidate isotopes such as Xe-136 and Se-82. The Topmetal sensor has an electronic noise <30 e- per pixel, which allows the detector to reach <1% FWHM energy resolution at the NLDB…
