Gamma-ray background from rock: studies for a next-generation dark matter experiment based on liquid xenon

Abstract

Rare event experiments, such as those targeting dark matter interactions and neutrinoless double beta (0$\nu\beta\beta$) decay, should be shielded from gamma-rays that originated in rock. This paper describes the simulation of gamma-ray transport through the water shielding and assessment of the thickness needed to suppress the background from rock down to a negligible level. This study focuses on a next-generation xenon observatory with a wide range of measurements including the search for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) and 0$\nu\beta\beta$ decay of $^{136}$Xe. Our findings indicate that the gamma-ray background is unlikely to persist through analysis cuts in the WIMP energy range (0 - 20 keV) after 3.5 m of water, complemented by 0.5 m of liquid scintillator. For 0$\nu\beta\beta$ decay, a background below 1 event in 10 years of running can be achieved with a fiducial mass of 39.3 tonnes. Furthermore, for typical radioactivity levels of 1 Bq kg$^{-1}$ of $^{232}$Th and $^{238}$U we have studied the effect of reducing the water shielding by 1 m, resulting in a reduced fiducial mass of 19.1 tonnes for 0$\nu\beta\beta$ decay and still a negligible background for WIMP search. The paper also presents the measurements of radioactivity in rock in the Boulby mine, which hosted several dark matter experiments in the past and is also a potential site for a future dual-phase xenon experiment. The measurements are used to normalise simulation results and assess the required shielding at Boulby.