Research OPPORTUNITIES
“The only source of knowledge is experience.” Albert Einstein
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Research opportunities in the Piro Lab
Research opportunities in the Piro Lab
Graduate research positions
Undergraduate research projects
Postdoctoral positions
Volunteering
In my group, I make sure that all my graduate students will
have at least one publication about their research
have the opportunity to travel for collaboration meetings
present their work at Canadian and international conferences.
I also encourage students in the PHYS 499 Special Projects course to contact me about exciting projects.
Piro Group at CCIS UofA - 2019
Research in the Piro Lab
Research in the Piro Lab
Understanding the nature of dark matter (DM) is the Holy Grail for most particle physicists. It is a crucial element that is still missing in our knowledge of the universe and provides a unique chance to discover physics beyond the standard model.
In the Piro lab, we are conducting research by developing new cutting-edge technologies to address the common challenges of DM experiments and for pushing the limits of detector performance including:
Directional channel: The coherent scattering of solar neutrinos (CEvNS) will be the limiting irreducible background creating a “neutrino floor” for all DM experiments. Currently, there is no way to distinguish between DM and CEvNS. Methods to discriminate between the neutrino background and potential DM candidates will be necessary, such as ascertaining the directionality of detected events. The Piro Lab is currently developing advanced technologies for directional channel capabilities.
Detector response, simulation, and analysis: In order to extract the signal of interest, it is essential to understand the behavior of the detectors. The Piro Lab performs dedicated calibrations and analysis for extracting important parameters for modeling detector response and performance. In addition, simulations play a pivotal role in efficiency calculations and understanding detector characteristics. One of the main research strengths of the Piro Lab is investigating "mystery events" in the detector response using specialized analysis tools.
Radon mitigation: Since DM interacts very weakly with normal matter, experiments that aim to detect DM directly utilize detectors in extremely low background environments. In order to reach unprecedented detection sensitivities, detectors need to be highly pure. The most common impurity is radon. The Piro Lab has extensive expertise in radon mitigation, crucial for all DM experiments.
Radon mitigation in dark matter detectors
Radon mitigation in dark matter detectors
Radon trap setup for NEWS-G Experiment with Patrick O'Brien and Freyja Wang
In the Piro Lab, we are conducting research to mitigate radon in DM detectors by developing new purification techniques with direct application for rare event searches and experiments.
Currently, two methods are being tested for different types of detectors:
Distillation column and stripping column
Radon traps using different materials and techniques
Students will have the opportunity to test, develop, and assess different techniques for radon mitigation in DM search experiments.
NEWS-G dark matter experiment
NEWS-G dark matter experiment
The NEWS-G experiment is a spherical chamber filled with a mixture of gases: neon (90%) and methane (10%). In order to get a proper calibration in energy of the detector, it is crucial to know exactly the amount of different gas species in the total volume. A new technique used for greenhouse gas sensing that uses laser absorption spectroscopy is currently being explored.
Students will have the opportunity to work on the setup and will have the chance to investigate methane gas concentration. Research is being conducted to extend this spectroscopic technique for other types of gas detection.
In parallel, simulations are being conducted in order to better understand the behavior of the detector. For example, understanding how the electrons diffuse depending on applied voltage and gas mixture is critical.
NEWS-G setup with radon trap system
Scintillation and Bubbles
Scintillation and Bubbles
The great advantage of bubble chambers for DM searches is their exceptional discrimination power between alpha-particles and nuclear recoils and their intrinsic insensitivity to electron recoil (ER) backgrounds. With increased interest for low mass DM detection, the operational threshold of such technology must be lowered but will increase activity from ERs as it is for all the other DM experiments.
The novel idea is to use a scintillating material as the superheated target to exploit the advantage of noble liquids versus molecular fluids (such as freon). The addition of the scintillating channel in bubble chamber technology significantly improves ER discrimination since the superheated target consists of a material that emits light as background particles pass through it.
In the Piro Lab, a Mini Scintillating Bubble Chamber (MSBC) detector prototype is currently being built to perform dedicated calibrations and to understand the bubble growth process. The physics behind scintillation, sound generation, and the thermodynamics of the bubble nucleation process will be extensively studied.
Superheated liquids for discovering dark matter
Superheated liquids for discovering dark matter
Geyser setup: New Bubble Chamber technology
Superheated liquid detectors have taken a leading role in fields and are one of the best technologies to directly detect DM. If a particle deposits enough energy into the liquid, it will create a phase transition between the liquid and gas phase. The phase transition creates an acoustic signal detected by piezoelectric sensors, and cameras track the bubble's nucleation.
In the Piro Lab, we are conducting research to better understand the nucleation phenomena for different types of particles by taking data at different conditions of temperature and pressure with a unique bubble chamber. The current theory is not compatible with the data observed in the current bubble chamber and by using molecular dynamics, we aim to understand better the bubble growth.
Students will learn the principle of detection with superheated liquids for discovering dark matter. They will also have the opportunity to compare the different theoretical models and data published within the current detectors.
The directional channel for dark matter detectors
The directional channel for dark matter detectors
Bubble chamber detector. A recent model using molecular dynamics simulations of nucleated bubbles, reveals direction dependence of the particle interacting within the active liquid from the first stage of growth at nanosecond time scales, and in acoustic emission at GHz frequencies. The Piro Lab is working on instrumenting the detector with technologies able to reach these extreme conditions by developing ultrasonic sensors and fast camera imaging systems. The development of these new technologies is also greatly needed in other fields requiring the observation and detection of dynamics in this time range.
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NEWS-G detector. The measurement of the direction of nuclear recoils could allow for the confirmation of a WIMP signal. Using a multi-channel ACHINOS (sea urchin in greek) sensor with individual readouts for each electrode and applying low pressure to the detector is a promising technique for the directional measurement of nuclear recoils. The Piro Lab is exploring techniques for nuclear recoil directional measurements using the multi-channel readout on ACHINOS.
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SBC detector. A Mini Scintillating Bubble Chamber (MSBC) is currently being built in the Piro Lab to include the directional channel in liquid argon. The novel idea is to apply an electric field to the bubble chamber to get a directional dependence signal in the nuclear recoils. The project is funded by the Canadian Foundation of Innovation: CFI-JELF (PI: Piro). Adding the directionality channel in argon will be critical in discriminating between DM and CEvNS at low DM masses. This research will be important in the development of future ton-scale liquid argon detectors.
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NEW PROJECTS
NEW PROJECTS
New dark matter detector technology
Calibration tools for low-energy detectors
Directionality channel for nuclear recoils
Beryllium and Helium anomalies
Super-solid state of dark matter
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