Speaker
Description
Liquid xenon (LXe) detectors rely on sensing vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) scintillation light to reconstruct particle interactions with high energy and spatial resolution. Photodetectors for these applications require high gain, high photon detection efficiency (PDE) at VUV wavelengths, low operating voltage, and low dark count rate (DCR). For rare event searches, in particular the search for neutrinoless double beta decay, low intrinsic low intrinsic radioactivity is a critical requirement. Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) offer an approach to meeting these requirements due to their potential for large-area, low-radioactivity VUV detection. We developed a prototype SiPM module comprising of 96 VUV-sensitive SiPMs each with a photosensitive area of 1 cm². As a building block of a complete photodetection system, this module must be characterized under conditions representative of those in an LXe experiment, including cryogenic temperatures and VUV illumination.
We present the experimental setup developed to characterize a complete SiPM module in vacuum at both room and LXe temperatures, using VUV illumination and dark measurements. We also present the planned measurement program for characterizing the module’s performance, extending SiPM characterization from individual sensors to large-area photodetection systems.