Projection of purification performance for the RELICS experiment

TL;DR

This paper develops and validates a detailed impurity migration model for the RELICS liquid xenon detector, predicting purification performance for future neutrino detection experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive impurity evolution model incorporating non-uniform transport mechanisms, validated with prototype data, to project future detector purification capabilities.

Findings

Validated impurity migration model using prototype data

Projected purification performance for RELICS-10 and RELICS-50 detectors

Highlighted importance of impurity control for sub-keV nuclear recoil detection

Abstract

The RELICS (REactor neutrino LIquid xenon Coherent elastic Scattering) experiment employs a dual-phase liquid xenon time projection chamber to search for Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering (CE$\nu$NS) induced by reactor neutrinos. To detect these sub-keV nuclear recoils and minimize signal attenuation, it is critical to maintain a sufficiently low impurity concentration in the detector. This work presents a comprehensive purity evolution model developed to describe impurity migration inside the detector. Utilizing measured material outgassing rates as input parameters, the model incorporates non-uniform transport mechanisms of the impurities, including circulation, vaporization, and condensation. The model is validated using data from a dedicated prototype detector. Based on this validated model, projections for the purification performance of the upcoming RELICS-10 and RELICS-50 detectors are provided.