2008/02/25 by V. A. Kudryavtsev, L. Pandola, V. Tomasello · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Cosmic ray #Dark Matter and Cosmic Phenomena #Monte Carlo method #Muon #Neutron #Nuclear physics #Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies #Physics #Radiation Detection and Scintillator Technologies #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1140/epja/i2007-10539-6
published as Eur.Phys.J.A36:171-180,2008 · 10 pages, 8 figures. Presented in the IV ILIAS Annual Meeting. Accepted for publication on EPJ A
arxiv created 2008/02/25 · openalex publication_date 2008/04/01 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Background induced by neutrons in deep underground laboratories is a critical issue for all experiments looking for rare events, such as dark matter interactions or neutrinoless 2-beta decay. Neutrons can be produced either by natural radioactivity, via spontaneous fission or (alpha,n) reactions, or by interactions initiated by high-energy cosmic rays. In all underground experiments, Monte Carlo simulations of neutron background play a crucial role for the evaluation of the total background rate and for the optimization of rejection strategies. The Monte Carlo methods that are commonly employed to evaluate neutron-induced background and to optimize the experimental setup, are reviewed and discussed. Focus is given to the issue of reliability of Monte Carlo background estimates.