Development of new ultra-low-background particle detectors based on Micromegas technology for the search of Dark Matter at the low-mass frontier

Abstract

Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) are one of the best motivated candidates to compose the Dark Matter of the Universe. The lack of experimental confirmation by direct detection experiments or collider searches has ruled out canonical WIMP scenarios (masses $\sim$ GeV-TeV), making a case for the largely unexplored sub-GeV frontier. This PhD thesis is focused on the evolution and latest developments of TREX-DM, a gaseous Time Projection Chamber (TPC) designed to detect low-mass WIMPs through their low-energy nuclear recoils. TREX-DM is equipped with microbulk Micromegas readout planes, a technology well-suited for rare event searches due to its intrinsic radiopurity, potential for low energy thresholds and background discrimination capabilities through 3D event reconstruction. A central focus of the thesis is background reduction in TREX-DM: through 222Rn mitigation and surface contamination control, background levels have been reduced from $\sim$ 1000 to 80-100 dru. Surface contamination, primarily from 222Rn progeny, has prompted the development of novel screening tools such as AlphaCAMM, a high-sensitivity surface contamination detector. The most significant result is the implementation of a Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) pre-amplification stage on top of the microbulk Micromegas detectors. This yields extra gain factors up to $\sim$ 100, substantially reducing the energy threshold. A calibration with a 37Ar source (low-energy peaks at 0.27 keV and 2.82 keV) validated this reduction, demonstrating energy thresholds at the level of single-ionisation energies (26 eV in argon). Future improvements target further background reduction through a modified cathode design, enhanced detector stability via a more robust field cage, and gas mixture optimisation to enhance sensitivity to low-energy nuclear recoils.