Strong Enhancement of Electromagnetic Shower Development in Oriented Scintillating Crystals and Implications for Particle Detectors

Mattia Soldani; Pietro Monti-Guarnieri; Alessia Selmi; Nicola Argiolas; Luca Bomben; Claudia Brizzolari; Nicola Canale; Stefano Carsi; Nikolaos Charitonidis; Davide De Salvador; Vincenzo Guidi; Viktar Haurylavets; Mikhail Korzhik; Giulia Lezzani; Alexander Lobko; Lorenzo Malagutti; Sofia Mangiacavalli; Valerio Mascagna; Andrea Mazzolari; Vitaly Mechinsky; Matthew Moulson; Riccardo Negrello; Gianfranco Paternò; Leonardo Perna; Christian Petroselli; Michela Prest; Marco Romagnoni; Federico Ronchetti; Giosué Saibene; Francesco Sgarbossa; Alexei Sytov; Viktor Tikhomirov; Erik Vallazza; Laura Bandiera

arXiv · 2404.12016

Strong Enhancement of Electromagnetic Shower Development in Oriented Scintillating Crystals and Implications for Particle Detectors

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Abstract

A particle traversing a crystal aligned with one of its crystallographic axes experiences a strong electromagnetic field that is constant along the direction of motion over macroscopic distances. For $e^\pm$ and $\gamma$-rays with energies above a few $\mathrm{GeV}$, this field is amplified by the Lorentz boost, to the point of exceeding the Schwinger critical field $\mathcal{E}_0 \sim 1.32 \times 10^{16}~\mathrm{V/cm}$. In this regime, nonlinear quantum-electrodynamical effects occur, such as the enhancement of intense electromagnetic radiation emission and pair production, so that the electromagnetic shower development is accelerated and the effective shower length is reduced compared to amorphous materials. We have investigated this phenomenon in lead tungstate (PbWO$_4$), a high-$Z$ scintillator widely used in particle detection. We have observed a substantial increase in scintillation light at small incidence angles with respect to the main lattice axes. Measurements with $120$-$\mathrm{GeV}$ electrons and $\gamma$-rays between $5$ and $100~\mathrm{GeV}$ demonstrate up to a threefold increase in energy deposition in oriented samples. These findings challenge the current models of shower development in crystal scintillators and could guide the development of next-generation accelerator- and space-borne detectors.

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Mattia Soldani, Pietro Monti-Guarnieri, Alessia Selmi, Nicola Argiolas, Luca Bomben, Claudia Brizzolari, Nicola Canale, Stefano Carsi, Nikolaos Charitonidis, Davide De Salvador, Vincenzo Guidi, Viktar Haurylavets, Mikhail Korzhik, Giulia Lezzani, Alexander Lobko, Lorenzo Malagutti, Sofia Mangiacavalli, Valerio Mascagna, Andrea Mazzolari, Vitaly Mechinsky, Matthew Moulson, Riccardo Negrello, Gianfranco Paternò, Leonardo Perna, Christian Petroselli, Michela Prest, Marco Romagnoni, Federico Ronchetti, Giosué Saibene, Francesco Sgarbossa, Alexei Sytov, Viktor Tikhomirov, Erik Vallazza, Laura Bandiera. 2024-04-18. Strong Enhancement of Electromagnetic Shower Development in Oriented Scintillating Crystals and Implications for Particle Detectors. https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.12016

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