The GERDA Experiment: Another Milestone in the Search for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay

The results on the search for the neutrinoless double-beta (0νββ) decay of 76Ge in the GERDA (GERmanium Detector Array) experiment have been published in the recent issue of Physical Review Letters. Moreover, the paper has been selected to be a PRL Editors' Suggestion. No signal has been observed, but all goals of the final phase of the experiment have been achieved.

The European Physical Journal C Highlighted the Paper of the Borexino Collaboration with the Cover Illustration

In the November issue of the European physical journal  EPJ C, a paper of the Borexino collaboration was published about detector sensitivity to CNO neutrinos with respect to the strategy which sets limits on two main backgrounds in measurements—neutrinos from the pp chain and bismuth-210 decay events in scintillator. Considering a neutrino flux predicted by one of the standard models of the Sun, Borexino was sensitive to CNO neutrinos during the 1000-day exposure at the level of above 3σ. With the same considerations, the precision of the CNO-neutrino flux measurement is 23% with a restriction on the rate of bismuth-210 event counting at the level of 1.5 events a day for 100 t of scintillator. For upcoming experiments with a higher precision of the CNO-neutrino flux measurement, the probability was evaluated to identify a more reliable model of the Sun, of high or low metallicity. This article complements the one recently published in Nature.

RIA Novosti’s Choice—Detection of Solar Neutrinos from the CNO Cycle by the Borexino Collaboration Was Ranked as One of the Main Achievements of Russian Science in 2020

The most significant achievements of Russian science in 2020 were listed on RIA Novosti’s website. The selected top of this publishing house includes the experimental proof of the CNO cycle in the Sun, the finding of the Borexino collaboration and DLNP researchers involved.

"Physics World" announces its Breakthrough of the Year finalists for 2020

One of the highlights in the Physics World calendar is the announcement of their Breakthrough of the Year. Today ten finalists for 2020 have been revealed, from which the Breakthrough of the Year will be picked on Thursday 17 December. This year’s Top 10 Breakthroughs were selected by a crack team of five Physics World editors, who have sifted through hundreds of research updates published on the website this year. In addition to having been reported in Physics World in 2020, the selections must meet the following criteria: • Significant advance in knowledge or understanding. • Importance of the work for scientific progress and/or development of real-world applications. • Of general interest to Physics World readers.

Shutdown of the Detector of the Daya Bay Reactor Antineutrino Experiment

On Saturday, 12 December 2020, a special ceremony of the shutdown of the facility of the Daya Bay international neutrino experiment will take place. Scientists will proceed with final data analysis.

Preparation for the JUNO Experiment Reaches Its Final Stage

The main goal of the international JUNO experiment, in which DLNP scientists and engineers are actively involved, is to determine the neutrino mass hierarchy. This is currently one of the crucial problems in neutrino physics. The preparation for the JUNO experiment is in its final stage.

Congratulations to Sergey Nikolaevich Dolya and Viktor Ivanovich Smirnov on Receiving a Patent!

The JINR Department of Licensing and Intellectual Property announces that on 26 October 2020 the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research got a patent for the invention “Resonant capacitor charger”. The authors are Sergey Nikolaevich Dolya and Viktor Ivanovich Smirnov.

"Beer for Trade Union Members Only!"

This quote from “The Twelve Chairs” has long become a meme. It reflected the reality of the late 1920s— trade union members enjoyed not only beer but also other benefits. Benefit distribution was the trade union domain for all long decades of the USSR existence. Since every employee of the country was a trade union member starting with a student, so benefits could be enjoyed by everyone.

First Experimental Proof of Theorized Nuclear Fusion Processes in Massive Stars

The international Borexino Collaboration has announced the first observation of neutrinos from the CNO process in the Sun, which experimentally confirms the second mechanism for energy generation in stars. Earlier, only neutrinos from the proton–proton cycle were observed. This discovery is highly important for astrophysics since in stars more massive than the Sun energy is mainly produced through the CNO cycle. The results of the investigation are published in Nature.

A New Method for Measurement of Low Neutron Fluxes using Iodine-Containing Scintillators

One of the most important objectives pursued in low-background experiments on the search for rare events is the study and continuous monitoring of neutron fluxes in the vicinity of the detection setup. The problem is that neutron fluxes in low-background experiments are thousands of times lower than on the ground. The gold standard for neutron flux measurement is the 3He-based counter due to a large cross section for thermal neutron capture (5333 b) and extremely low sensitivity of these counters to the gamma background. Unfortunately, there are no commercial 3He sources: its content in natural helium is only 0.000137%. All the available amount of 3He is produced at nuclear reactors, and its cost is more than $2000 per litre.

Adjustment and Preparation for Commissioning of the Electron Linear Accelerator LINAC-200

At DLNP, the adjustment and commissioning work is well under way at LINAC-200, the first stage of the electron linear accelerator LINAC-800. The accelerator is intended for carrying out methodological investigations of detectors developed at JINR, solving applied problems with the use of electron beams, and implementing educational programmes of the JINR University Centre. The accelerator will produce electron beams with energies of 10 MeV to 200 MeV in a wide intensity range.

Eighth Lecture by Igor Ivanov “Zeptoseconds and yoctoseconds” from the Series “Time Scales: Travelling Deep into the Second with Historical Sketches”

Nuclear time scale. Lifetime of isotopes. Crystal blocking technique. Collision of relativistic nuclei.