Characterization of a 2 g LiF bolometer

Abstract The bolometric properties of a 2 g LiF single crystal have been investigated below 100 mK under alpha and thermal neutron irradiation. The reported energy resolution at 5 MeV on both alphas and the neutron capture line of the n( 6 Li, α)t reaction is 16 keV FWHM. Evidence is given for a dependence of the thermal response on the nature of the absorbed radiation. Light emission of undoped LiF has been investigated down to 10 K under gamma and alpha irradiation. We discuss the possibility to use LiF bolometers in dark matter detection experiments and neutron spectrometry.