Latest results of the R2D2 project

Abstract

The search for neutrinoless double beta decay (0\U0001d708\U0001d708β) could cast light on one critical piece missing in our knowledge i.e. the nature of the neutrino mass. Its observation is indeed the most sensitive experimental way to prove that neutrino is a Majorana particle. The observation of such a potentially rare process demands a detector with an excellent energy resolution, an extremely low radioactivity and a large mass of emitter isotope. Nowadays many techniques are pursued but none of them meets all the requirements at the same time. R2D2 is an R&D project aiming to prove that a spherical high pressure gas TPC filled with xenon could meet all the requirements and provide an ideal detector for the 0\U0001d708ββ decay search. An excellent energy resolution has been demonstrated in argon with a first prototype, meeting the expectations. Furthermore the energy resolution has been proved to be independent on the particle track’s length. In the presented talk the latest R2D2 results are discussed as well as the preliminary results on the scintillation light detection which could serve as trigger for a better position reconstruction. The project roadmap and future developments are also discussed.