Low-energy threshold demonstration for dark matter searches in TREX-DM with an 37 Ar source produced at CNA HiSPANoS
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: We report on the successful implementation of an 37 Ar calibration source in the TREX-DM detector, a high-pressure time projection chamber designed for low-mass dark matter searches. The 37 Ar source was produced through fast neutron activation of CaO powder at the HiSPANoS facility of Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (CNA) in Spain, yielding O (1) kBq of activity. Using a novel combined GEM-Micromegas readout system, we successfully detected both characteristic emissions from 37 Ar decay (2.82 keV and 270 eV) and achieved unprecedented energy threshold performance in TREX-DM, approaching the single-electron ionization energy of argon.
Authors: Juan Francisco Castel, Susana Cebrián, Theopisti Dafni, David Díez-Ibáñez, Álvaro Ezquerro, Begoña Fernández, Javier Galán, Juan Antonio García, Carlos Guerrero, Igor García Irastorza, Gloria Luzón, Cristina Margalejo, Héctor Mirallas, Luis Obis, Alfonso Ortiz de Solórzano, Óscar Pérez, Jorge Porrón, María Jiménez Puyuelo, Ana Quintana
Language: English
Subfield: Nuclear and High Energy Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4414979712