Design and performance of a xenon-based cryogenic heat pump demonstrator for future LXe observatories

2025/11/07 by Schulte, P., Wenz, D., Althueser, L. +7
#FOS: Physical sciences #Instrumentation and Detectors (physics.ins-det)

paper · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2511.05172

Abstract

This manuscript details the development and characterization of a small-scale cryogenic heat pump demonstrator, a technology designed to enable high-flow xenon distillation systems for the removal of ²²²Rn in future liquid xenon observatories like the XLZD experiment. The heat pump demonstrator operates on a left-turning Clausius-Rankine cycle, utilizing xenon as phase-changing working medium. Two demonstration tests conducted at a nominal pressure of 3.3 bar and 4.3 bar showed stable operation through out the test. In both measurements the demonstrator achieved its designed cooling and heating power of (124±8) Watt and (126±8) Watt respectively, while consuming (386±1) Watt electrical power.

Citations

• WIMP Dark Matter Search using a 3.1 Tonne-Year Exposure of the XENONnT Experiment
• Radon Removal in XENONnT down to the Solar Neutrino Level
• The neutron veto of the XENONnT experiment: Results with demineralized water
• The XLZD Design Book: Towards the Next-Generation Liquid Xenon Observatory for Dark Matter and Neutrino Physics
• Dark Matter Search Results from 4.2 Tonne-Years of Exposure of the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Experiment
• First Indication of Solar ⁸B Neutrinos via Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering with XENONnT
• First Indication of Solar ⁸B Neutrino Flux through Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering in PandaX-4T
• LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Conceptual Design Report
• PandaX: A Liquid Xenon Dark Matter Experiment at CJPL

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• The throttling refrigeration system for the large cooling power recovery of the PandaX-xT cryogenic distillation system for radon removal
• Design and Operation of the PandaX-4T High Speed Ultra-high Purity Xenon Recuperation System