English

Results of a search for neutrinoless double-beta decay using the COBRA demonstrator

Nuclear Experiment 2016-11-30 v2 Instrumentation and Detectors

Abstract

Neutrinoless double-β\beta decay (0νββ0\nu\beta\beta decay) is a hypothetical process that can occur if the neutrino is its own antiparticle. The COBRA collaboration operates a demonstrator to search for these decays at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy using CdZnTe semiconductor detectors. The exposure of 234.7234.7\,kg\,d considered in this analysis was collected between September 2011 and February 2015. The analysis focuses on the decay of the nuclides 114^{114}Cd, 128^{128}Te, 70^{70}Zn, 130^{130}Te and 116^{116}Cd. A Bayesian analysis is performed to estimate the signal strength of 0νββ0\nu\beta\beta decay. No signal is observed for any of these nuclides. Therefore, the following half-life limits at 90% credibility are set: T1/20ν>1.61021T_{1/2}^{0\nu}>1.6\cdot10^{21}\,yr (114^{114}Cd), T1/20ν>1.91021T_{1/2}^{0\nu}>1.9\cdot10^{21}\,yr (128Te^{128}Te), T1/20ν>6.81018T_{1/2}^{0\nu}>6.8\cdot10^{18}\,yr (70^{70}Zn), T1/20ν>6.11021T_{1/2}^{0\nu}>6.1\cdot10^{21}\,yr (130^{130}Te), and T1/20ν>1.11021T_{1/2}^{0\nu}>1.1\cdot10^{21}\,yr (116^{116}Cd).

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1509.04113,
  title  = {Results of a search for neutrinoless double-beta decay using the COBRA demonstrator},
  author = {Joachim Ebert and Matthew Fritts and Daniel Gehre and Claus Goessling and Caren Hagner and Nadine Heidrich and Reiner Klingenberg and Kevin Kroeninger and Christian Nitsch and Christian Oldorf and Thomas Quante and Silke Rajek and Henning Rebber and Katja Rohatsch and Jan Tebruegge and Robert Temminghoff and Robert Theinert and Jan Timm and Bjoern Wonsak and Stefan Zatschler and Kai Zuber},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1509.04113},
  year   = {2016}
}

Comments

7 pages, 8 figures and 3 tables, accepted by Phys. Rev. C