nEXO is the successor to the Enriched Xenon Observatory (EXO) program, which successfully operated an experiment called EXO-200. Using a time-projection chamber (TPC) based on xenon, nEXO aims to provide unprecedented sensitivity to an ultra-rare process known as "neutrinoless double-beta decay" (0νββ). This is accomplished by developing a mass of 5000kg of 136Xe, which is enriched from natural xenon that is only 9% abundant in the target isotope. The enrichment level must be at least 90%. nEXO is designed with the intent to construct the experiment in SNOLAB. The project is undergoing extensive review before it is approved for construction funding.
My interest in the program is specifically tied to key facilities needed for the construction of the experiment, especially the system for creating air with reduced radon content and for manufacturing copper relatively free from cobalt-60, a by-product of cosmic rays interacting in copper.