Looking beyond the standard model to explore neutron decay

The prototype NIST sensor may be able to help solve some mysteries of the universe.

The Standard Model describes particles of matter such as the electron and force carriers. It doesn't account for the dark matter and dark energy that scientists theorize make up most of the universe.

Building more sensitive detectors is one way to discover new phenomena. NIST comes in.

NIST physicists are adapting a sensor to measure charged particles instead of light. TheTKIDs can be combined into a large array and modified to detect faint signals of physics beyond the Standard Model.

The researchers focus on the decay of neutrons. When the nucleus of an atom is removed, the nucleus will decay into an electron, a protons and an antineutrino. Due to its relative simplicity, Neutron decay is an ideal laboratory for looking beyond the Standard Model.

The goal is to make large cameras of the TKIDs that can detect signals up to a hundred times weaker than what is currently available, and NIST is still in the testing phase.

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