Speaker
Description
BL3 is a next-generation beam neutron lifetime experiment with the intent to 1) explore, cross check, and reduce all systematic uncertainties in the beam method to the 10-4 level; and 2) reduce the neutron lifetime uncertainty from the beam method to <0.3 s. The project received funding in 2022 and subsystems are now being developed and constructed. The apparatus will be integrated offline in 2026 and will run at the NIST Center for Neutron Research after the facility returns to operation, expected in 2027. BL3 will employ a larger magnet and proton trap, larger neutron beam, and segmented silicon detector to increase the proton trapping rate by a factor of 100 compared to the previous experiment. The motivation, description, and a status report on the experiment will be presented.
