  Low energy, low rate experiments, such as searches for neutrinoless double
beta decay and dark matter, require unprecedentedly low levels of background in
order to deliver their full science potential. $^{210}$Po driven, neutron
induced background, caused by nuclear $(\alpha, n)$-reactions on low-Z
materials, direct background contributions of the $^{210}$Po $\alpha$-radiation
and desorption of the $^{210}$Pb progeny $^{210}$Bi from surfaces into the
detector medium are of particular of concern. These backgrounds depend on
details of the components' exposure to radon-loaded lab air and, thus, their
handling history. The attachment rates of airborne radon progeny to surfaces,
needed for the estimation of these background rates, are poorly understood.
This article reports the results of a campaign comprising of more than 1200
attachment measurements, performed for 9 different materials. Correlations of
the attachment with environmental parameters such as air exchange rate,
electrical surface potential, temperature, atmospheric pressure, and relative
humidity have been studied and found to be significant only in case of the
first two. Attachment modelling, using the Jacobi model, is compared to data.
