Enriched Crystal Scintillators for 2β Experiments

The investigation of 2 beta decay is an important issue in modern physics, allowing the test of the Standard Model of elementary particles and the study of the nature and properties of neutrinos. The crystal scintillators, especially made of isotopically-enriched materials, are powerful detectors for 2 beta decay experiments thanks to the high radiopurity level and the possibility to realize the calorimetric source = detector approach with a high detection efficiency. For the moment, the 2 nu 2 beta processes have been observed at the level of 10(19)-10(24) years with enriched crystals; the sensitivity to the 0 nu mode have reached the level of 10(24)-10(26) years in some decay channels for different nuclides allowing one to calculate the upper limits on the effective mass of the Majorana neutrino at the level of 0.1-0.6 eV. The paper is intended to be a review on the latest results to investigate 2 beta processes with crystal scintillators enriched in Ca-48, Cd-106, and Cd-116.

Automated summary

The investigation of 2 beta decay is crucial in modern physics to test the Standard Model and study neutrinos. Crystal scintillators, enriched in isotopes, are powerful detectors for these experiments. Observations of 2 beta decay have been made, with sensitivity to the effective mass of the Majorana neutrino reaching certain levels.