Zdesenko started researches in the Laboratory of Nuclear Physics of the T.G. Shevchenko Kyiv State University (1970–1971) and then in the Institute of Geochemistry and Physics of Minerals (1971–1980) where he dealt with neutron activation analysis of minerals and radiocarbon dating. At that time he became interested in double beta decay of atomic nuclei.[1]
In 1980 he created the Laboratory for Low Background Measurements of the Special Construction Technological Center of the Institute for Nuclear Research of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences (1980–1986) where searches for the double beta decay of 130Te,[2]96Zr[3] and 100Mo[4] were realized. In 1986 the laboratory was transformed to the Lepton Physics Department of the Institute for Nuclear Research (Kyiv, Ukraine).
initiated construction of the Solotvina Underground Laboratory in Solotvina, in Zakarpattia Oblast on the west of Ukraine. The Laboratory was located in a salt mine at a depth of 430 m. Low counting experiments were started in the Solotvina laboratory in 1984. Investigations of rare nuclear alpha and beta decays, searches for neutrinoless double beta decay of atomic nuclei were performed in the laboratory. The most valuable results obtained in the Solotvina Underground Laboratory are as following:
the most stringent limits on neutrinoless double beta decay of 116Cd obtained with the help of cadmium tungstate crystal scintillators enriched in isotope116Cd at 83%. One of the most stringent limits on the effective Majorananeutrino mass was derived from the experiments;[5][6][7]
observation of the two neutrino double beta decay of 116Cd;[8][7]
search for neutrinoless double beta decay of 160Gd[13][14] and 186W.[7]
development of low background technique for low counting experiments,[10][15] in particular, the cadmium tungstate crystal scintillators from enriched isotope cadmium 116 [5]
Zdesenko and his group have also contributed to searches for hypothetical decays beyond the Standard Model: decays of nucleons into invisible channels,[10][16] decays of electron with non-conservation of the electric charge,[17] charge-non-conserving β decays.[18] Yuri G. Zdesenko is author or coauthor of above 300 scientific publications for which there are more than 1500 references in papers of other authors.
