Performance study of 4-MU-loaded water for Cherenkov light detection

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that doping ultra-pure water with 4-MU significantly enhances Cherenkov light detection efficiency, increasing photon yield without compromising optical transparency, thereby improving water Cherenkov detector performance.

Contribution

It introduces 4-MU as an effective wavelength shifting additive to boost Cherenkov light detection in water detectors, with experimental validation.

Findings

Detected light yield increased by about three times at 1 ppm 4-MU.

No significant loss of optical transparency at tested concentrations.

4-MU is a promising additive for water Cherenkov detectors.

Abstract

We report on R&D study to improve the photon detection efficiency of water Cherenkov detectors by doping ultra-pure water with 4-methylumbelliferone (4-MU), a wavelength shifting additive. Cherenkov light yields from cosmic-ray muons were measured for various 4-MU concentrations and compared with those from pure water. At a concentration of 1 ppm, the detected light yield increased by approximately a factor of three. This enhancement can be attributed to wavelength shifting and improved photon collection efficiency. No noticeable degradation in optical transparency was observed across the tested concentrations of 0.5 and 1 ppm with different concentration of ethanol. These results suggest that 4-MU is a promising additive for improving the performance of water Cherenkov detectors.