Characterization and Scientific Opportunities at the Colorado Underground Research Institute (CURIE)

The Colorado Underground Research Institute (CURIE) is a new shallow-underground laboratory located at the Edgar Experimental Mine, offering a low-background environment for basic science research. Located under ~200 m of rock (equivalent shielding of ~415 m.w.e.), the facility provides a ~700-fold reduction in the cosmogenic muon flux, relative to sea level, and attenuation of the primary cosmogenic hadronic and electromagnetic components. Additionally, the facility is university-owned and operated, and offers horizontal, rail-driven access.

We present a characterization of the cosmogenic muon background, based on simulations of the mountainous overburden with MUTE and GEANT4, validated by in situ measurements. The underground muon energy and angular spectra, along with muon-induced secondary particle fluxes, have been estimated. Additionally, we demonstrate efforts to mitigate magnetic and vibrational noise for dilution refrigerators planned for installation at CURIE.

CURIE offers a testbed for the development of superconducting qubits and novel detector technologies, as well as for studying backgrounds relevant to rare-event searches, such as those for dark matter and neutrinoless double-beta decay. We welcome new collaborations and users for this facility.