A backing detector for order-keV neutrons

TL;DR

This paper presents the design, construction, and testing of a large-area neutron detector optimized for tagging keV-scale neutrons, aiding calibration in dark matter and neutrino detection experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a novel neutron detector prototype with optimized geometry and efficiency for low-energy neutron tagging, validated through experimental testing and simulation.

Findings

Prototype achieves ~25% tagging efficiency at keV energies.

Mean neutron capture time is approximately 17 microseconds.

Experimental results agree with simulations within a few percent.

Abstract

We have designed and tested a large-area (0.15~m$^2$) neutron detector based on neutron capture on \ce{^{6}Li}. The neutron detector design has been optimized for the purpose of tagging the scattering angle of keV-scale neutrons. These neutron detectors would be employed to calibrate the low-energy ($<$100 eV) nuclear recoil in detectors for dark matter and coherent elastic neutrino nucleus scattering (CE$\nu$NS). We describe the design, construction, and characterization of a prototype. The prototype is designed to have a tagging efficiency of $\sim$25\% at the relevant $\mathcal{O}$(keV) neutron energies, and with a mean capture time of $\sim$17$~\mu$s. The prototype was characterized using a \ce{^{252}Cf} neutron source and agreement with the simulation was observed within a few percent level.