arXiv subjects

P. -H. Chu

Publications and source records attributed to P. -H. Chu.

62 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2016

Search for exotic spin-dependent interactions with a spin-exchange relaxation-free magnetometer

We propose a novel experimental approach to explore exotic spin-dependent interactions using a spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) magnetometer, the most sensitive non-cryogenic magnetic-field sensor. This approach studies the interactions between optically polarized electron spins located inside a vapor cell of the SERF magnetometer and unpolarized or polarized particles of external solid-state objects. The coupling of spin-dependent interactions to the polarized electron spins of the magnetometer induces the tilt of the electron spins, which can be detected with high sensitivity by a probe laser beam similarly as an external magnetic field. We estimate that by moving unpolarized or polarized objects next to the SERF Rb vapor cell, the experimental limit to the spin-dependent interactions can be significantly improved over existing experiments, and new limits on the coupling strengths can be set in the interaction range below 0.01 m.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2016

The Majorana Demonstrator Radioassay Program

The MAJORANA collaboration is constructing the MAJORANA DEMONSTATOR at the Sanford Underground Research Facility at the Homestake gold mine, in Lead, SD. The apparatus will use Ge detectors, enriched in isotope \nuc{76}{Ge}, to demonstrate the feasibility of a large-scale Ge detector experiment to search for neutrinoless double beta decay. The long half-life of this postulated process requires that the apparatus be extremely low in radioactive isotopes whose decays may produce backgrounds to the search. The radioassay program conducted by the collaboration to ensure that the materials comprising the apparatus are sufficiently pure is described. The resulting measurements of the radioactive-isotope contamination for a number of materials studied for use in the detector are reported.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2016

High voltage testing for the MAJORANA Demonstrator

The MAJORANA Collaboration is constructing the MAJORANA Demonstrator, an ultra-low background, 44-kg modular high-purity Ge (HPGe) detector array to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay in Ge-76. The phenomenon of surface micro-discharge induced by high-voltage has been studied in the context of the MAJORANA Demonstrator. This effect can damage the front-end electronics or mimic detector signals. To ensure the correct performance, every high-voltage cable and feedthrough must be capable of supplying HPGe detector operating voltages as high as 5 kV without exhibiting discharge. R&D measurements were carried out to understand the testing system and determine the optimum design configuration of the high-voltage path, including different improvements of the cable layout and feedthrough flange model selection. Every cable and feedthrough to be used at the MAJORANA Demonstrator was characterized and the micro-discharge effects during the MAJORANA Demonstrator commissioning phase were studied. A stable configuration has been achieved, and the cables and connectors can supply HPGe detector operating voltages without exhibiting discharge.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2015

Status of the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR

The MAJORANA Collaboration is constructing the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR, an ultra-low background, modular, HPGe detector array with a mass of 44-kg (29 kg 76Ge and 15 kg natGe) to search for neutrinoless double beta decay in Ge-76. The next generation of tonne-scale Ge-based neutrinoless double beta decay searches will probe the neutrino mass scale in the inverted-hierarchy region. The MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR is envisioned to demonstrate a path forward to achieve a background rate at or below 1 count/tonne/year in the 4 keV region of interest around the Q-value of 2039 keV. The MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR follows a modular implementation to be easily scalable to the next generation experiment. First, the prototype module was assembled; it has been continuously taking data from July 2014 to June 2015. Second, Module 1 with more than half of the total enriched detectors and some natural detectors has been assembled and it is being commissioned. Finally, the assembly of Module 2, which will complete MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR, is already in progress.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2015

Measurement of the Doubly-Polarized $\vec{{^3}He}(\vecγ,n)pp$ Reaction at 16.5 MeV and Its Implications for the GDH Sum Rule

We report new measurements of the doubly-polarized photodisintegration of $^3$He at an incident photon energy of 16.5 MeV, carried out at the High Intensity $γ$-ray Source (HI$γ$S) facility located at Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory (TUNL). The spin-dependent double-differential cross sections and the contribution from the three--body channel to the Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn (GDH) integrand were extracted and compared with the state-of-the-art three--body calculations. The calculations, which include the Coulomb interaction and are in good agreement with the results of previous measurements at 12.8 and 14.7 MeV, can no longer describe the cross section results at 16.5 MeV. The GDH integrand was found to be about one standard deviation larger than the maximum value predicted by the theories.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2015

Search for exotic short-range interactions using paramagnetic insulators

We describe a proposed experimental search for exotic spin-coupled interactions using a solid-state paramagnetic insulator. The experiment is sensitive to the net magnetization induced by the exotic interaction between the unpaired insulator electrons with a dense, non-magnetic mass in close proximity. An existing experiment has been used to set limits on the electric dipole moment of the electron by probing the magnetization induced in a cryogenic gadolinium gallium garnet sample on application of a strong electric field. With suitable additions, including a movable source mass, this experiment can be used to explore "monopole-dipole" forces on polarized electrons with unique or unprecedented sensitivity. The solid-state, non-magnetic construction, combined with the low-noise conditions and extremely sensitive magnetometry available at cryogenic temperatures could lead to a sensitivity over ten orders of magnitude greater than exiting limits in the range below 1 mm.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2013

A frequency determination method for digitized NMR signals

We present a high precision frequency determination method for digitized NMR FID signals. The method employs high precision numerical integration rather than simple summation as in many other techniques. With no independent knowledge of the other parameters of a NMR FID signal (phase $ϕ$, amplitude $A$, and transverse relaxation time $T_{2}$) this method can determine the signal frequency $f_{0}$ with a precision of $1/(8π^{2}f_{0}^{2}T_{2}^{2})$ if the observation time $T$ is long enough. The method is especially convenient when the detailed shape of the observed FT NMR spectrum is not well defined. When $T_{2}$ is $+\infty$ and the signal becomes pure sinusoidal, the precision of the method is $3/(2π^{2}f_{0}^{2}T^{2})$ which is one order more precise than a typical frequency counter. Analysis of this method shows that the integration reduces the noise by bandwidth narrowing as in a lock-in amplifier, and no extra signal filters are needed. For a pure sinusoidal signal we find from numerical simulations that the noise-induced error in this method reaches the Cramer-Rao Lower Band(CRLB) on frequency determination. For the damped sinusoidal case of most interest, the noise-induced error is found to be within a factor of 2 of CRLB when the measurement time $T$ is a few times larger than $T_{2}$.We discuss possible improvements for the precision of this method.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2013

Pressure Dependent Wall Relaxation in Polarized $^3$He Gaseous Cells

Pressure dependence of longitudinal relaxation time (T$_1$) due to the cell wall was observed previously at both room temperature and low temperature in valved Rb-coated refillable $^3$He gaseous cells in \cite{Zheng2}. The diffusion of $^3$He from measurement cell through a capillary tube to the valve and the subsequent depolarization on the surface of the valve was proposed to possibly explain such a pressure dependence at room temperature \cite{Saam}. In this paper, we investigate this diffusion effect through measurements of T$_1$ with newly designed Rb-coated Pyrex glass cells at 295 K as well as finite element analysis (FEA) studies. Both the experimental results and FEA studies show that the diffusion effect is insufficient to explain the observed linear pressure-dependent behavior of T$_1$.

physics.atom-ph↗