Abstract
The goal of the Advanced Mo-based Rare process Experiment (AMoRE) is to search for the neutrinoless double beta decay of 100Mo using low temperature detectors consisting of Mo-based scintillating crystals read out via metallic magnetic calorimeters. Heat and light signals are measured simultaneously at milli kelvin temperatures, which are reached using a cryogen-free dilution refrigerator. The AMoRE-Pilot experiment, using six 100Mo-enriched, 48Ca-depleted calcium molybdate crystals with a total mass of about 1.9 kg, has been running in the 700-m-deep Yangyang underground laboratory as the pilot phase of the AMoRE project. Several setup improvements through different runs allowed us to achieve a high energy resolution and an efficient particle discrimination. This article briefly presents the status of the AMoRE-Pilot experiment, as well as the plans for the next, larger-scale, experimental stages.
Conclusion
AMoRE-Pilot, the pilot experiment of the AMoRE project, has been running since late 2015, with CaMoO4 scintillating crystals and low-temperature heat and light detectors, at the 700-m-deep Y2L facility, at typical operating temperatures of 10 and 20 mK. Four AMoRE-Pilot runs were completed from late 2015 to late 2016 with five CaMoO4 crystals and run-5 is currently in progress with the addition of a sixth crystal in the detector system, a second vibration damping system, as well as a muon veto system to reject muon-induced events in the region of interest. The several setup upgrades throughout the runs significantly improved the overall detector performances in terms of energy resolution and particle discrimination. The preliminary analysis of the ongoing run-5 data shows some promising results. The goal of AMoRE-II is to achieve, with a 5-year exposure, the projected half-life sensitivity of about 1 × 1027 years, that corresponds to an effective Majorana neutrino mass of about 12–22 meV, thus covering the inverted neutrino mass hierarchy region.
Full version of this article is here!