ASTAROTH: A Novel Detector for Dark Matter Direct Detection Using Cryogenic SiPMs
Authors
Edoardo Martinenghi
Valerio Toso
Fabrizio Bruno Armani
Andrea Castoldi
Giuseppe Di Carlo
Luca Frontini
Niccolò Gallice
Chiara Guazzoni
Valentino Liberali
Lorenzo Rutigliani
Alberto Stabile
Krzysztof Szczepaniec
Valeria Trabattoni
Andrea Zani
Davide D'Angelo
Abstract
The DAMA experiment's long-standing claim of dark matter detection remains a key open issue in astroparticle physics. Independent verification requires NaI(Tl)-based detectors with enhanced low-energy sensitivity. Current detectors rely on photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) which features limited detection efficiency, intrinsic radioactivity, and high noise at keV energies. ASTAROTH is an R&D project that developed a proof of concept NaI(Tl) detector where siliconphotomultipliers (SiPMs) have been used instead of PMTs, offering higher photon detection efficiency, negligible radioactivity, and, most of all, a reduction of two orders of magnitude in the dark noise. The setup includes a custom cryostat operating at approximately 80 K. We report the first characterization of an approximately 360 g NaI(Tl) crystal coupled to a 5 x 5 cm SiPM matrix, yielding 4.5 photoelectrons\keV after crosstalk correction. This promising result demonstrates the feasibility of SiPM-based readout for NaI(Tl) and paves the way for future large-scale dark matter experiments.
