LUCE: A milli-Kelvin calorimeter experiment to study the electron capture of 176Lu

Abstract

The LUCE (LUtetium sCintillation Experiment) project will search for the 176 Lu electron based on a milli-Kelvin calorimetric approach. This decay is of special interest in the field of nuclear structure, with implications for the s-process and for a better comprehension of the nuclear matrix elements of neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ) and two-neutrino double beta decay (2νββ). Possible impacts also include the development of a new class of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEνNS) and spin-dependent (independent) dark matter detectors. We report on the current status and design of a novel detector cryogenic-module for the measurement of the electron capture and detail a future measurement plan.