No Arabic abstract
The observation of neutrino oscillations is clear evidence for physics beyond the standard model. To make precise measurements of this phenomenon, neutrino oscillation experiments, including MiniBooNE, require an accurate description of neutrino charged current quasi-elastic (CCQE) cross sections to predict signal samples. Using a high-statistics sample of muon neutrino CCQE events, MiniBooNE finds that a simple Fermi gas model, with appropriate adjustments, accurately characterizes the CCQE events observed in a carbon-based detector. The extracted parameters include an effective axial mass, M_A^eff = 1.23+/-0.20 GeV, that describes the four-momentum dependence of the axial-vector form factor of the nucleon; and a Pauli-suppression parameter, kappa = 1.019+/-0.011. Such a modified Fermi gas model may also be used by future accelerator-based experiments measuring neutrino oscillations on nuclear targets.
We report a study of muon neutrino charged-current quasi-elastic events in the segmented scintillator inner tracker of the MINERvA experiment running in the NuMI neutrino beam at Fermilab. The events were selected by requiring a {mu}^- and low calorimetric recoil energy separated from the interaction vertex. We measure the flux-averaged differential cross-section, d{sigma}/dQ^2, and study the low energy particle content of the final state. Deviations are found between the measured d{sigma}/dQ^2 and the expectations of a model of independent nucleons in a relativistic Fermi gas. We also observe an excess of energy near the vertex consistent with multiple protons in the final state.
We have isolated muon anti-neutrino charged-current quasi-elastic interactions occurring in the segmented scintillator tracking region of the MINERvA detector running in the NuMI neutrino beam at Fermilab. We measure the flux-averaged differential cross-section, d{sigma}/dQ^2, and compare to several theoretical models of quasi-elastic scattering. Good agreement is obtained with a model where the nucleon axial mass, M_A, is set to 0.99 GeV/c^2 but the nucleon vector form factors are modified to account for the observed enhancement, relative to the free nucleon case, of the cross-section for the exchange of transversely polarized photons in electron-nucleus scattering. Our data at higher Q^2 favor this interpretation over an alternative in which the axial mass is increased.
In this work, we study charged current quasi elastic scattering of muon anti-neutrino off nucleon and nucleus using a formalism based on Llewellyn Smith (LS) model. Parameterizations by Galster et al. are used for electric and magnetic Sachs form factors of nucleons. We use Fermi gas model along with Pauli suppression condition to take into account the nuclear effects in anti-neutrino - nucleus QES. We calculate muon anti-neutrino-p and muon anti-neutrino-^{12}C charged current quasi elastic scattering differential and total cross sections for different values of axial mass M_{A} and compare the results with data from GGM, SKAT, BNL, NOMAD, MINERvA and MiniBooNE experiments. The present theoretical approach gives an excellent description of differential cross section data. The calculations with axial mass M_{A} = 0.979 and 1.05 GeV are compatible with data from most of the experiments.
Coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEvNS) is the dominant neutrino scattering channel for neutrinos of energy $E_ u < 100$ MeV. We report a limit for this process using data collected in an engineering run of the 29 kg CENNS-10 liquid argon detector located 27.5 m from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) Hg target with $4.2times 10^{22}$ protons on target. The dataset yielded $< 7.4$ observed CEvNS events implying a cross section for the process, averaged over the SNS pion decay-at-rest flux, of $<3.4 times 10^{-39}$ cm$^{2}$, a limit within twice the Standard Model prediction. This is the first limit on CEvNS from an argon nucleus and confirms the earlier CsI non-standard neutrino interaction constraints from the collaboration. This run demonstrated the feasibility of the ongoing experimental effort to detect CEvNS with liquid argon.
The study of neutrino-nucleus interactions has recently seen rapid development with a new generation of accelerator-based neutrino experiments employing medium and heavy nuclear targets for the study of neutrino oscillations. A few unexpected results in the study of quasi-elastic scattering and single photon production have spurred a revisiting of the underlying nuclear physics and connections to electron-nucleus scattering. A thorough understanding and resolution of these issues is essential for future progress in the study of neutrino oscillations. A recent workshop hosted by the Institute of Nuclear Theory at the University of Washington (INT-13-54W) examined experimental and theoretical developments in neutrino-nucleus interactions and related measurements from electron and pion scattering. We summarize the discussions at the workshop pertaining to the aforementioned issues in quasi-elastic scattering and single photon production, particularly where there was consensus on the highest priority issues to be resolved and the path towards resolving them.