The PTOLEMY experiment aims at detecting the cosmic neutrino background, generated ap-
proximately one second after the Big Bang, in accordance with Standard Cosmology. Given the
extremely low energy of these neutrinos, reliable experimental detection can be accomplished
through neutrino captures on beta-unstable nuclides, eliminating the need for a specific energy
threshold. Tritium implanted on a carbon-based nanostructure emerges as a promising candi-
date among the various isotopes due to its favorable cross-section and low-endpoint energy. The
Ptolemy collaboration plans to integrate a solid-state tritium source with a novel compact electro-
magnetic filter, based on the dynamic transverse momentum cancellation concept. This filter will
be employed in conjunction with an event-based preliminary radio-frequency preselection. The
measurement of neutrino mass and the exploration of light sterile neutrinos represent additional
outcomes stemming from the Ptolemy experiment’s physics potential, even when utilizing smaller
or intermediate-scale detectors. To finalize the conceptualization of the detector, a demonstrator
prototype will be assembled and tested at LNGS in 2024. This prototype aims at addressing the
challenging aspects of the Ptolemy experiment.