VUV Transmission of PTFE for Xenon-based Particle Detectors

TL;DR

This study measures the VUV light transmission of PTFE of various thicknesses to optimize the design of xenon-based particle detectors, ensuring high scintillation light collection and low background signals.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed VUV transmission measurements of PTFE at 178 nm for different thicknesses relevant to detector design, using models like Kubelka-Munk and Beer-Lambert.

Findings

Transmission coefficient of PTFE at 178 nm is approximately 0.89 mm.

PTFE thickness of 3 mm was chosen for the XENONnT detector.

Measurements inform optimal PTFE thickness for detector performance.

Abstract

Liquid xenon (LXe) based detectors for rare event searches in particle and astroparticle physics are optimized for high xenon scintillation light collection and low background rate from detector materials. Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE, Teflon) is commonly used to encapsulate the active LXe volume due to its high reflectance for VUV LXe scintillation light with peak emission at 178 nm. Reflectance, transmission and number of background signals arising from PTFE depend on the thickness of the PTFE detector walls. In this work, we present VUV transmission measurements for PTFE of various thicknesses often considered in the design phase of LXe detectors. PTFE samples are measured in an apparatus previously used for reflectance measurements in LXe using collimated light at a wavelength of 178 nm. Measurements in vacuum as well as gaseous xenon are described by the Kubelka and Munk model, as well as by Beer-Lambert's law for samples of $\geq 0.7\,\mathrm{mm}$ thickness, yielding a transmission coefficient of $\lambda_\text{BL} = (0.89 \pm 0.05)\,\mathrm{mm}$. The PTFE wall thickness of the XENONnT dark matter experiment was optimized by these measurements and selected as $\geq 3\,\mathrm{mm}$.