Laboratoire de physique subatomique et des technologies associées

First measurement of a nuclear recoil signal from solar neutrinos with XENONnT

The XENONnT collaboration announced today the first measurement of low-energy nuclear recoils from solar neutrinos, at the IDM conference in L'Aquila. These recoils are caused by neutrinos produced by nuclear reactions in the Sun, particularly from Bore-8.
XENONnT uses a time-projection chamber containing 5.9 tonnes of liquid xenon to detect rare interactions. Installed at the Gran Sasso Laboratory (LNGS) in Italy, it tracks dark matter with an ultra-low background. Detection of solar neutrinos via coherent elastic scattering on xenon nuclei (CEvNS) was carried out over a two-year period, with a total exposure of 3.5 ton-years. The results showed an excess of events consistent with a Bore-8 solar neutrino signal, with a statistical significance of 2.7 sigma, or a 0.35% probability that this signal was due to background noise.
This measurement is significant as it represents the first CEvNS observation with solar neutrinos and marks a new chapter in the direct detection of dark matter. XENONnT anticipates future discoveries as it continues to accumulate data. For more information, please visit https://xenonexperiment.org/

Informations about the Xenon team research at Subatech involved in the collaboration : http://www-subatech.in2p3.fr/fr/recherche/equipes/xenon/presentation

Solar neutrino experiments

Celebrating 30 years of research !

On June 13, 2024, our Subatech laboratory celebrated 30 years of research with an event that brought together laboratory staff, retired staff and former members, our supervisory bodies, the scientific community and our institutional partners. It was an opportunity to review the history of our laboratory and its activities. Nearly 200 participants attended a ceremony marked by speeches from our 3 supervisory bodies: Christophe Lerouge, Director IMT Atlantique, Olivier Chauvet, Professor at Nantes Université and Christelle Roy, Director of IN2P3/CNRS. This was followed by testimonials from our former directors: Daniel Ardouin (1994-1995), Hans Gutbrod (1995-2001), Jacques Martino (2001-2011) and Bernd Grambow (2011-2018), who recalled the highlights of our past three decades. Finally, Gines Martinez, Subatech's current Managing Director, took the floor to thank our teams for all their hard work. The event ended with the remarkable play "Épopée Quantique", performed by La Compagnie 13.7. 

A look back at some of the highlights : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NjOk8aZw0g

The following day, Subatech staff continued the festivities with a rich program: Quiz, Kepler Music Project and Team Olympics!
The three winning teams were awarded trophies created by members of our laboratory: PhD students and mechanics. Many thanks to all those who contributed to the success of this wonderful event.

Awards ceremony for the academic winners of the Science Olympiad

As the school year draws to a close, the academic and national winners of the national Olympiads organized by the Ministry of Education and Youth in the scientific disciplines (mathematics, geosciences, biology, physics, chemistry, engineering sciences) and of the Construction Geniuses competition are honored at an awards ceremony.
This special occasion highlights the hard work and determination shown by the students in these high-level competitions. Throughout their preparation (individually or in groups), they are accompanied and supported by their teachers.
Beyond the challenge they set themselves to achieve excellence, students enjoy working on themes and issues, seeking solutions and developing team projects.
The award ceremony took place on June 10 at the Lycée Carcouët in Nantes. To open the ceremony, Sara Diglio, a researcher in the Xenon team at Subatech, gave a mini-conference on her work on "The physics of two infinities".
To find out more: lesgeniesdelaconstruction.fr/

Chemistry Olympiad winners and their teachers, with Sara Diglio (far left) and Katia Béguin, Rector of the Académie de Nantes (far right)