Exploratory growth in the Li2MoO4-MoO3 system for the next crystal generation of heat-scintillation cryogenic bolometers

In this work, we report on the Czochralski growth of Li2MoO4 crystals up to 230 g for heat-scintillation cryogenic bolometers likely to be used in astroparticle physics and neutron spectroscopy. Their transmission properties, radiopurity levels and detector behavior characterizations were carried out in order to validate the crystal growth process. The melting characteristics, the partition coefficients of a broad range of impurities, the thermal expansion (lattice parameters and dilatometry) and specific heat properties of the crystals were measured, over a broad temperature range for the last two, providing new data likely to be used in crystal growth process numerical simulations. We also investigated the crystal growth of Li4Mo5O17 and determined its melting behavior and specific heat. The physical properties directly relevant to heat-scintillation cryogenic bolometers of Li2MoO4 and Li4Mo5O17 are discussed in the context of the current materials developed for such applications. (C) 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.