Nuclear recoil measurements in Superheated Superconducting Granule detectors

The response of Superheated Superconducting Granule (SSG) devices to nuclear recoils has been explored by irradiating SSG detectors with a 70MeV neutron beam. In the past we have tested Al SSG and more recently, measurements have been performed with Sn and Zn detectors. The aim of the experiments was to test the sensitivity of SSG detectors to recoil energies down to a few keV. In this paper, the preliminary results of the neutron irradiation of a SSG detector made of Sn granules 15–20µm in diameter will be discussed. For the first time, recoil energy thresholds of ∼1keV have been measured.