Data Analysis
The SMU group plays a strong and leading role in the analysis of data collected by the experiment. Prof. Cooley served as analysis coordinator and she and her colleagues brought to completion the analysis of the final exposure of the CDMS II experiment.
More recently the group has been working on the analysis of the data from SuperCDMS at the Soudan Underground Laboratory.
Background Characterization and Rejection
The only way to detect dark matter is to classify and reject all of the things that can fake it; this is the key to any direct detection search. CDMS has traditionally maintained a near-zero background expectation at each phase of the experiment, which allows our sensitivity to scale directly with the size of our exposure and remain a leader in the field.
The SMU group is playing a leading role in the further study and characterization of radioactive and cosmogenic backgrounds. We strive to develop new techniques for classifying and rejecting backgrounds from neutrons and beta radiation, the leading sources.
Neutrons from the decay of naturally occurring uranium and thorium in the materials surrounding the detectors are a background of great concern for the next generation of our experiment. The SMU group is conducting simulations of possible neutron veto and shielding designed to identify, characterize and reject this potential background.
Materials Assay
Prof. Cooley is a co-leader of the Materials Acquisition and Screening working group in the SuperCDMS collaboration. The SMU group owns and operates an XIA alpha particle counter named Peruna. This instrument is used as part of the SuperCDMS screening program to characterize and study the 222Rn decay induced alpha background rates in materials that will be used to construct the next generation SuperCDMS experiment in SNOLAB.
radiopurity.org
Prof. Cooley is a co-Principle Investigator of the AARM (Assays and Acquisition of Radiopure Materials) collaboration. This collaboration is developing integrative tools to facilitate underground research in the United States. As part of that research, the SMU group is part of an effort to develop a universal database of the radiopurity of materials that have been measured by scientists around the world. This database will be used by the community of researchers who require ultra-low backgrounds in the materials used to construct their experiments.
Latest News
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February 22, 2019:
The BRN workshop report on Needs for Small Scale Dark Matter Projects is out! Details here.. -
November 27, 2018:
Dr. Jodi Cooley is elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). More details here. -
August 27, 2018:
Our paper on eneergy loss due to defect formation in our detectors was chosen as an Editors Pick for APL! Read more here.