2016/06/14 by R. Arnold, C. Augier, A. M. Bakalyarov +95 · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Neutrino Physics Research #Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies #Dark Matter and Cosmic Phenomena
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevd.93.112008
openalex publication_date 2016/06/14 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04
The NEMO-3 experiment at the Modane Underground Laboratory investigates the double-beta decay of 48Ca. Using 5.25 yr of data recorded with a 6.99 g sample of 48Ca, approximately 150 double-beta decay candidate events are selected with a signal-to-background ratio greater than 3. The half-life for the two-neutrino double-beta decay of 48Ca is measured to be T1/2^2\ensuremathν=[6.4_\ensuremath-0.6+0.7(stat)_\ensuremath-0.9+1.2(syst)]\ifmmode×\else\texttimes\fi1019 yr. A search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of 48Ca yields a null result, and a corresponding lower limit on the half-life is found to be T1/2^0\ensuremathν>2.0\ifmmode×\else\texttimes\fi1022 yr at 90% confidence level, translating into an upper limit on the effective Majorana neutrino mass of ⟨m_\ensuremathβ\ensuremathβ⟩<6.0--26 eV, with the range reflecting different nuclear matrix element calculations. Limits are also set on models involving Majoron emission and right-handed currents.