Kit (Illinois Math and Science Academy)
Sohaila (Waubonsie Valley High School)
Mentor: Fritz DeJongh
The SCENE detector is a liquid argon scintillation detector designed to act as a calibration tool for a larger dark matter direct detector. With such a purpose in mind, SCENE's components (including the photomultiplier tubes ultimately intended to capture scintillation from particle interactions in the liquid argon) must be carefully and exactly measured and understood. Before using the SCENE photomultiplier tube (PMT), practice characterization must be done using lower quality PMTs. An electromagnetic calibration was performed by measuring both the photon and gamma ray gain of specific PMTs. Photon gain was calculated by identifying single photoelectron events and, by extension, the single photoelectron peak position. This calculated gain (in electrons per photon) was then related to high voltage. Gamma ray gain was calculated by performing a spectroscopy experiment with cobalt-60 as the radioactive source and using the collected spectrum to identify photopeaks. Data were collected using a PMT optically coupled to a thallium-doped sodium iodide crystal. Additional investigations were pursued regarding detector-relevant engineering projects, such as the construction of a signal splitter and seven-way switchbox.