Distribution of ${}^{7}$Li Implants in Nb Films for a Sterile Neutrino Search
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arXiv
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| _version_ | 1866912277252276224 |
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| author | Hadenfeldt, Hendrik Arlt, Jonas Meyer, Tobias Junge, Felix Friedrich, Stephan Volkert, Cynthia A. |
| author_facet | Hadenfeldt, Hendrik Arlt, Jonas Meyer, Tobias Junge, Felix Friedrich, Stephan Volkert, Cynthia A. |
| contents | The BeEST experiment is measuring the ${}^{7}$Li recoil spectrum from the decay of ${}^{7}$Be implanted into Ta-based sensors to provide the most stringent limits on the existence of sterile neutrinos in the sub-MeV mass range. Its sensitivity is limited by spectral broadening due to interactions between the atomic shell of the ${}^{7}$Be/${}^{7}$Li and the Ta sensor film. This study is investigating the suitability of Nb as an alternative sensor material by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and atom probe tomography (APT) of ${}^{7}$Li-implanted Nb films. STEM does not detect any change in the microstructure of polycrystalline Nb due to ${}^{7}$Li implantation. APT reveals some segregation of ${}^{7}$Li at grain boundaries in Nb. While this may slightly alter the ${}^{7}$Li binding energies, the effect on the recoil spectrum is not expected to be strong enough to preclude using Nb-based detectors in future phases of the BeEST experiment. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2503_12444 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Distribution of ${}^{7}$Li Implants in Nb Films for a Sterile Neutrino Search Hadenfeldt, Hendrik Arlt, Jonas Meyer, Tobias Junge, Felix Friedrich, Stephan Volkert, Cynthia A. Instrumentation and Detectors Materials Science The BeEST experiment is measuring the ${}^{7}$Li recoil spectrum from the decay of ${}^{7}$Be implanted into Ta-based sensors to provide the most stringent limits on the existence of sterile neutrinos in the sub-MeV mass range. Its sensitivity is limited by spectral broadening due to interactions between the atomic shell of the ${}^{7}$Be/${}^{7}$Li and the Ta sensor film. This study is investigating the suitability of Nb as an alternative sensor material by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and atom probe tomography (APT) of ${}^{7}$Li-implanted Nb films. STEM does not detect any change in the microstructure of polycrystalline Nb due to ${}^{7}$Li implantation. APT reveals some segregation of ${}^{7}$Li at grain boundaries in Nb. While this may slightly alter the ${}^{7}$Li binding energies, the effect on the recoil spectrum is not expected to be strong enough to preclude using Nb-based detectors in future phases of the BeEST experiment. |
| title | Distribution of ${}^{7}$Li Implants in Nb Films for a Sterile Neutrino Search |
| topic | Instrumentation and Detectors Materials Science |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.12444 |