Prototype reactor-antineutrino detector based on <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:msup> <mml:mi/> <mml:mn>6</mml:mn> </mml:msup> <mml:mi>Li</mml:mi> </mml:math> -doped pulse-shape-discriminating plastic
An aboveground 60-kg reactor-antineutrino detector prototype, comprising a two-dimensional array of 36 ${}^{6}\mathrm{Li}$-doped pulse-shape-sensitive plastic scintillator bars, is described. Each bar is 50 cm long with a square cross section of 5.5 cm. Doped with ${}^{6}\mathrm{Li}$ at 0.1% by mass, the detector is capable of identifying correlated energy depositions for the detection of reactor antineutrinos via the inverse-$\ensuremath{\beta}$-decay (IDB) reaction. Each bar is wrapped with a specular reflector that directs photons toward photomultiplier tubes mounted at both ends of the bar. This paper highlights the construction, key features, and main performance characteristics of the system. The system, which relies on multiple observables such as pulse-shape discrimination, energy, position, and timing, is capable of detecting IBD-like neutron-correlated backgrounds, long-lived decay chains, and cosmogenic isotopes.
Authors
- F. Sutanto (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4562-6325)
- H. P. Mumm (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4204-9817)
- Matthew Dunbrack (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6939-1909)
- Andrew Conant (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7766-4321)
- T. Classen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6386-041X)
- J. Wilhelmi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5530-5130)
- R. Carr (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4181-5092)
- N. S. Bowden (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6115-0956)
- M. P. Mendenhall (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5266-9940)
- Anna Erickson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3276-4414)
- C. Roca (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4994-5024)
- S. Dazeley (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7395-8119)
- A.A. Irani
- Alireza Haghighat (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0009-1793)
- E. P. Bernard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2944-5359)
- Viacheslav A. Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0191-4579)
- Patrick Huber (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2622-3953)
- O. Benevides Rodrigues (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9181-6096)
- O. Kyzylova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-1421-5617)
- Caiser A. Bravo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3759-2623)
- J. M. Link (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1514-0650)
- B. R. Littlejohn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6912-9684)
- K. Walkup (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-4550-7203)
- X. Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4731-0754)
- J. Newby (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3571-1067)
- K. M. Heeger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4623-7543)
- F. Machado (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9436-0861)
- S. R. Durham (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0210-6744)
- J. Ross
Institutions
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (US)
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (US)
- Georgia Institute of Technology (US)
- National Institute of Standards and Technology (US)
- Illinois Institute of Technology (US)
- United States Naval Academy (US)
- Yale University (US)
- National Institute of Standards (EG)
- Virginia Tech (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Physical Review Applied
- Published
- 2025-11-07
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1103/6t97-9bpb
- Primary Topic
- Neutrino Physics Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00