Speaker
Description
The HOLMES experiment aims to determine neutrino mass with a calorimetric approach measuring the atomic de-excitation spectrum following the electron capture process in $^{163}$Ho ($\tau_\frac{1}{2} \sim 4570$ y). To achieve the best possible experimental sensitivity, an array of $\mathcal O$(1000) fast, 3 $\mu$s time resolution, transition edge sensors (TESs) of an $\mathcal O$(1 eV) @ 1 keV energy resolution with an efficient high-bandwidth multiplexed read-out is being developed. The source isotope will be extracted from an ion source where the ions of interest are created by an argon plasma sputtering a target containing the isotope. The ion source is integrated in a specially developed implanter setup which will allow to separate the $^{163}$Ho from other elements, especially from $^{166m}$Ho which can fake the signal in the region of interest, and to embed it within Au absorber of the TESs with $\mathcal O$(300 Bq/det). The characterization of detector prototypes and the read-out system was done and implanter apparatus was commissioned and now various sputter targets are tested to find the optimal technique to implant Ho. We will report about the TES and implantation development status.
| Collaboration | HOLMES |
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