High frequency Josephson traveling wave parametric amplifiers for neutrino mass measurement

J. Wang | W. Van De Pontseele | K. Serniak | P. Harrington | J. Qiu | K. Peng | J. A. Formaggio | W. D. Oliver | K. P. O’Brien

Josephson traveling wave parametric amplifiers (JTWPAs) are workhorse elements in superconducting quantum systems, crucial for simultaneous readout of single-photon-level signals. JTWPAs can attain high gain (>20 dB) over several GHz of bandwidth with near-ideal quantum efficiency, and can be tailored to a wide range of applications, such as quantum information processing, dark matter searches, and fundamental particle physics. In particular, neutrino mass measurement experiments utilizing Cyclotron Radiation Emission Spectroscopy (CRES) have a weak output signal at 27 GHz of about 1 fW in power. This requires a signal-to-noise ratio 10 to 20 times greater than currently achieved per receiver antenna, and we need to trigger the signal within 10 microseconds to achieve the desired energy resolution. Here we show simulation and measurement results of a JTWPA designed to operate at high frequencies for neutrino mass determination. We also propose steps toward integrating the JTWPA into the neutrino mass measurement chain. We aim to achieve an electron antineutrino mass sensitivity on the order of 40 meV, which will surpass the sensitivity of the most recent Katrin result (0.7 eV at 90% confidence level) by an order of magnitude, and provide evidence for neutrino mass ordering.

Funding Sources: MIT-CQE Doc Bedard Fellowship | U.S. Department of Energy Science Office (DE-FOA-0002110)