2 scientists in clean room garb looking inside CUORE detector.

CUORE & CUPID

Searching for neutrinoless double beta decay, which could answer why we live in a Universe of matter, not antimatter.

Experiment Overview

CUORE is a neutrinoless double-beta decay (0vββ) experiment currently taking data at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS) in Assergi, Italy. The CUORE detector consists of 988 TeO2 bolometers, which act as both the source (130Te) and detector of this decay. The detector is housed in a large, custom-built dilution refrigerator and is operated at ~10 mK. This makes CUORE the coldest cubic meter in the known universe! CUORE has collected and published 1 tonne⋅year of data, and plans to continue taking data to reach 3 tonne⋅years. 

CUPID, The CUORE Upgrade with Particle IDentification, is the proposed next-generation experiment of CUORE. CUPID will build off the infrastructure and expertise of CUORE to be more sensitive to 0vββ. The CUPID detector would consist of 1,596 Li2MoO4 scintillating bolometers, to act as both the source (100Mo) and detector of 0vββ. Using Li2MoO4 scintillating bolometers will provide both a heat and light signal, enabling a better discrimination of signals from backgrounds. Additionally, a muon tagging system will be added to CUPID to identify muon backgrounds and reach the background goals for CUPID. 

Links

Yale Research Activities

The CUORE group at Yale is actively involved in CUORE data analysis and is currently leading efforts in estimating detector efficiencies and working towards identifying and reducing detector noise induced by seismic activity. Our group was responsible for designing, constructing, and commissioning the CUORE Detector Calibration System. 

For CUPID, our group is active in simulations and R&D for its planned upgrades. We are responsible for developing the muon tagger, NTD Ge thermistors, calibrations, acoustic and vibration sensors, and radon control. For more detailed information, see the CUORE at Yale website.

Our group is headed by Professors Karsten Heeger and Reina Maruyama. For a current listing of additional group members, please see our People page.

CUORE & CUPID Publications

INSPIRE HEP

CUORE & CUPID News