Collaborative Research: nEDM: A Search for the Electric Dipole Moment of the Neutron

The overall goal of this project is the development of a new experiment to carry out a high-precision search for a non-zero electric dipole moment (EDM) of the neutron at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The discovery of a neutron EDM would provide unambiguous evidence for new physics beyond the Standard Model of Particle Physics. This experiment is being developed by a collaboration consisting of some 20 different university and national laboratory groups, to which the University of Kentucky is a major contributor. This proposal will support R&D efforts at multiple institutions on several key hardware components of the experimental apparatus over the course of a four-year Critical Component Demonstration (CCD) phase. The proposed work to be carried out at the University of Kentucky will address R&D issues related to the development of surface current magnets which will transport the neutron spins from the SNS neutron beamline into the apparatus, and also a system to monitor the magnetic fields within the apparatus. The surface current magnets must be tapered in a smooth manner from the magnetic field environment of a few Gauss in the neutron beamline to the level of several milli-Gauss in the apparatus. A prototype surface current magnet will be constructed and tested at UK. The magnetic field monitor system will determine the fields in the interior region of the apparatus from exterior measurements. A prototype system will be developed and tested at room temperatures at UK, and probes suitable for operation at the experiment's operating cryogenic temperatures will be characterized.