SuperCDMS SNOLAB Low-Mass Detectors: Ultra-Sensitive Phonon Calorimeters for a Sub-GeV Dark Matter Search

TL;DR

This paper details the design of ultra-sensitive low-mass detectors for dark matter searches, capable of detecting very low-energy events and resolving individual electron-hole pairs in high-purity germanium and silicon crystals.

Contribution

It introduces technological improvements in phonon sensor design and detector simulation enabling detection of dark matter particles down to 300 MeV/c^2.

Findings

Achieves better than 10 eV phonon energy resolution in Ge detectors

Recoil energy resolution below 1 eV using Luke-Neganov phonon generation

Design enables detection of low-energy scattering events in high-purity crystals

Abstract

We present the technical design for the SuperCDMS high-voltage, low-mass dark matter detectors, designed to be sensitive to dark matter down to 300 MeV/$c^2$ in mass and resolve individual electron-hole pairs from low-energy scattering events in high-purity Ge and Si crystals. In this paper we discuss some of the studies and technological improvements which have allowed us to design such a sensitive detector, including advances in phonon sensor design and detector simulation. With this design we expect to achieve better than 10 eV (5 eV) phonon energy resolution in our Ge (Si) detectors, and recoil energy resolution below 1eV by exploiting Luke-Neganov phonon generation of charges accelerated in high fields.