Low Background Counting with the Berkeley Low Background Facility and the Black Hills State University Underground Campus at SURF

The Berkeley Low Background Facility provides a variety of low background gamma spectroscopy services to a variety of projects and experiments. It operates HPGe spectrometers in two unique facilities: a surface low background lab at LBNL and 4,850 feet underground (4300 m.w.e.) at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, SD in a dedicated cleanroom at the Black Hills State University Underground Campus (BHUC). A large component of the measurements performed by the BLBF are for ultralow background experiments concerned with U, Th, K, and other radioisotopes within candidate construction materials to be used to construct sensitive detectors. Experiments utilizing these needs often include those studying dark matter, neutrinos, or neutrinoless double beta decay. A general overview of the services and facilities will be presented. The BHUC will ultimately host several HPGe low background counting stations and other sensitive instruments from several incoming low background groups and projects that will operate in a coordinated manner to provide low background measurements to the scientific community. An overview and description of the BHUC facility, status, and future plans will also be discussed.