Eur. Phys. J. C (2015) 75: 506
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-015-3681-5

Regular Article - Experimental Physics

LArGe: active background suppression using argon scintillation for the Gerda -experiment

¹ Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
² Max-Planck-Institut für Kernphysik, Heidelberg, Germany
³ Università degli Studi di Milano e INFN, Milan, Italy
⁴ Institut for Nuclear Research, Moscow, Russia
⁵ Joint Institut for Nuclear Research, Dubna, Russia
⁶ National Research Center Kurchatov Institut, Moscow, Russia
⁷ Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso, Assergi, Italy
⁸ Jagellonian University, Cracow, Poland

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Received: 22 January 2015
Accepted: 17 September 2015
Published online: 27 October 2015

Abstract

LArGe is a Gerda low-background test facility to study novel background suppression methods in a low-background environment, for future application in the Gerda experiment. Similar to Gerda, LArGe operates bare germanium detectors submersed into liquid argon (1 m, 1.4 tons), which in addition is instrumented with photomultipliers to detect argon scintillation light. The scintillation signals are used in anti-coincidence with the germanium detectors to effectively suppress background events that deposit energy in the liquid argon. The background suppression efficiency was studied in combination with a pulse shape discrimination (PSD) technique using a BEGe detector for various sources, which represent characteristic backgrounds to Gerda. Suppression factors of a few times have been achieved. First background data of LArGe with a coaxial HPGe detector (without PSD) yield a background index of (0.124.6) cts/(keV kg year) (90 % C.L.), which is at the level of Gerda Phase I. Furthermore, for the first time we monitor the natural Ar abundance (parallel to Gerda), and have indication for the -decay in natural germanium. These results show the effectivity of an active liquid argon veto in an ultra-low background environment. As a consequence, the implementation of a liquid argon veto in Gerda Phase II is pursued.