Novel Applications of Power Over Fiber Technology in the DUNE FD-VD Detector

by Dr Biswaranjan Behera (South Dakota Mines, USA)

Tuesday 15 Apr 2025, 14:30 → 16:30 Asia/Kolkata

AG 69 (TIFR, Mumbai)

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a next-generation long-baseline neutrino experiment designed to study neutrino oscillations with unprecedented precision. It will utilize an intense neutrino beam directed from Fermilab (located in Chicago) to two detector complexes: a near detector at Fermilab and a far detector (FD) situated approximately 1.5 km underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South Dakota. One of the FD modules will implement Vertical Drift (VD) liquid argon time projection chamber technology, where ionized electrons drift vertically from a cathode plane positioned at mid-height within the active volume. The photon detection system (PDS) will be installed along the cathode and behind the field cage to enhance photon collection efficiency. The presence of high voltage (~300 kV) at the cathode, however, prevents the use of conventional copper cables for power delivery. To address this, the Power-over-Fiber (PoF) technology will be deployed, allowing for the optical transmission of power via optical fibers to the PDS. In this talk, I will present the ongoing R&D efforts to develop and validate PoF components for operation in harsh environments and discuss their novel application in the PDS.