Geoneutrinos: physics and prospects

Apart from seismology we much lack techniques to probe the interior of Earth. Geo-neutrino detection has the potential to provide a new experimental method. The detection of geo-neutrinos,  which are anti-neutrinos generated by beta decays in the thorium and uranium decay chains, at multiple locations around the globe will reveal information about the formation of Earth and it’s later evolution. The SNO+ detector in Sudbury (Ontario, Canada) started operations in 2016, currently with water as the detection medium. In the next phase the water will be replaced by liquid scintillator and the observation of the low energy geo-neutrinos (anti-neutrinos) starts. Beyond the present experiments new and larger detectors are already being proposed.