Detector development for uncovering mysteries in neutron spectra through next-generation electron-hadron collisions

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K03886
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 15020:Experimental studies related to particle-, nuclear-, cosmic ray and astro-physics
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: Yamazaki Yuji 神戸大学, 理学研究科, 教授 (00311126)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 電子・陽子散乱 / 電子・原子核散乱 / 光検出器 / 中性子生成 / カロリメーター / 放射線耐性

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This research was aiming for developing basic technologies to measure forward neutrons from high-energy electron-proton scattering in two future accelerators, EIC in US and LHeC in Europe. The study is motivated by disagreements among the neutron spectrum measurements in the past. The achievement for the LHeC is a) the confirmation of the location for the ZDC, the zero-degree calorimeter in the very forward direction of the scattering with accelerator designers; b) the conceptual design of the entire LHeC detector and c) sensitivity study to physics of the the two-photon scattering at the LHeC, which is tightly related to the forward scattering. As for the EIC, the expected dose from mid-spped neutron in the ZDC was estimated by simulation and was found that it reaches to 10^14. The detailed design was made to make the ZDC detector at EIC to stand for that. The key component there is compact photo sensors for ZDC. The radiation tolerance of the silicon photomultiplier was studied.

Free Research Field

素粒子実験

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

高エネルギー粒子散乱による中性子の生成量は，それ自体の生成メカニズムの解明といった素粒子・原子核分野の興味のみならず，宇宙から到来する超高エネルギー宇宙線が大気と散乱するときの空気シャワーの理解にも必要である。空気シャワーの粒子数，エネルギー分布が過去の加速器実験をもとにしたシミュレーションと合っておらず，宇宙線の組成の異常か，中性子生成の不定性か決着がついていない。このように中性子生成量は宇宙の成り立ちの解明とも関連する。また，高放射線耐性検出器は，放射線量の高い分野，たとえば放射光による物質測定，加速器の医学応用，原子炉近くでの測定などへの応用が期待できる。