The CUORE experiment, a ton-scale cryogenic bolometer array, recently began operation at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy. The array represents a significant advancement in this technology, and in this work we apply it for the first time to a high-sensitivity search for a lepton-number-violating process: ^{130}Te neutrinoless double-beta decay. Examining a total TeO_{2} exposure of 86.3 kg yr, characterized by an effective energy resolution of (7.7±0.5)  keV FWHM and a background in the region of interest of (0.014±0.002)  counts/(keV kg yr), we find no evidence for neutrinoless double-beta decay. Including systematic uncertainties, we place a lower limit on the decay half-life of T_{1/2}^{0ν}(^{130}Te)>1.3×10^{25}  yr (90% C.L.); the median statistical sensitivity of this search is 7.0×10^{24}  yr. Combining this result with those of two earlier experiments, Cuoricino and CUORE-0, we find T_{1/2}^{0ν}(^{130}Te)>1.5×10^{25}  yr (90% C.L.), which is the most stringent limit to date on this decay. Interpreting this result as a limit on the effective Majorana neutrino mass, we find m_{ββ}<(110-520)  meV, where the range reflects the nuclear matrix element estimates employed.

We report the final result of the CUORICINO experiment. Operated between 2003 and 2008, with a total exposure of 19.75 kg · y of 130Te, CUORICINO was able to set a lower bound on the 130Te 0νββ half-life of 2.8 × 1024 years at 90% C.L. The limit here reported includes the effects of systematic uncertainties that are examined in detail in the paper. The corresponding upper bound on the neutrino Majorana mass is in the range 300-710 meV, depending on the adopted nuclear matrix element evaluation. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

High purity TeO 2 crystals are produced to be used for the search for the neutrinoless double beta decay of 130 Te. Dedicated production lines for raw material synthesis, crystal growth and surface processing were built compliant with radio-purity constraints specific to rare event physics experiments. High sensitivity measurements of radioisotope concentrations in raw materials, reactants, consumables, ancillaries and intermediary products used for TeO 2 crystals production are reported. Production and certification protocols are presented and resulting ready-to-use TeO 2 crystals are described.

To better understand the contribution of cosmic ray muons to the CUORICINO background, ten plastic scintillator detectors were installed at the CUORICINO site and operated during the final 3 months of the experiment. From these measurements, an upper limit of 0.0021 counts/(keV·kg·yr) (95% C.L.) was obtained on the cosmic ray induced background in the neutrinoless double beta decay region of interest. The measurements were also compared to Geant4 simulations.