1302.6940 (T. Brunner et al.)

Ba-ion extraction from a high pressure Xe gas for double-beta decay
studies with EXO    [PDF]

T. Brunner, D. Fudenberg, A. Sabourov, V. L. Varentsov, G. Gratta, D. Sinclair, for the EXO collaboration

An experimental setup is being developed to extract Ba ions from a high-pressure Xe gas environment. It aims to transport Ba ions from 10 bar Xe to vacuum conditions. The setup utilizes a converging-diverging nozzle in combination with a radio-frequency (RF) funnel to move Ba ions into vacuum through the pressure drop of several orders of magnitude. This technique is intended to be used in a future multi-ton detector investigating double-beta decay in $^{136}$Xe. Efficient extraction and detection of Ba ions, the decay product of Xe, would allow for a background-free measurement of the $^{136}$Xe double-beta decay.

View original: http://arxiv.org/abs/1302.6940