The First Tests of a Large-Area Light Detector Equipped with Metallic Magnetic Calorimeters for Scintillating Bolometers for the LUMINEU Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay Search

Future rare-event searches using scintillating crystals need very low background levels for high sensitivity; however, unresolved pile-up can limit this. We present the design and fabrication of large-area photon detectors based on metallic magnetic calorimeters (MMCs), optimized for fast rise times to resolve close pile-up. The first prototypes have been characterized using Fe-55 X-rays and ZnMoO crystal scintillation light. A fast intrinsic rise time of 25-30 s has been measured and has been compared to the 250 s scintillation light pulse rise time constant. The difference indicates that the scintillation process limits the light pulse rise time. The fast rise time allows for a reduction of background due to close pile-up events as well as the study of the inherent crystal scintillation process. MMC-based photon detectors are shown to be a promising tool for scintillating crystal based rare event searches.