No Arabic abstract
We report results from a combined analysis of solar neutrino data from all phases of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory. By exploiting particle identification information obtained from the proportional counters installed during the third phase, this analysis improved background rejection in that phase of the experiment. The combined analysis resulted in a total flux of active neutrino flavors from 8B decays in the Sun of (5.25 pm 0.16(stat.)+0.11-0.13(syst.))times10^6 cm^{-2}s^{-1}. A two-flavor neutrino oscillation analysis yielded Deltam^2_{21} = (5.6^{+1.9}_{-1.4})times10^{-5} eV^2 and tan^2{theta}_{12}= 0.427^{+0.033}_{-0.029}. A three-flavor neutrino oscillation analysis combining this result with results of all other solar neutrino experiments and the KamLAND experiment yielded Deltam^2_{21} = (7.41^{+0.21}_{-0.19})times10^{-5} eV^2, tan^2{theta}_{12} = 0.446^{+0.030}_{-0.029}, and sin^2{theta}_{13} = (2.5^{+1.8}_{-1.5})times10^{-2}. This implied an upper bound of sin^2{theta}_{13} < 0.053 at the 95% confidence level (C.L.).
This paper details the solar neutrino analysis of the 385.17-day Phase-III data set acquired by the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO). An array of $^3$He proportional counters was installed in the heavy-water target to measure precisely the rate of neutrino-deuteron neutral-current interactions. This technique to determine the total active $^8$B solar neutrino flux was largely independent of the methods employed in previous phases. The total flux of active neutrinos was measured to be $5.54^{+0.33}_{-0.31}(stat.)^{+0.36}_{-0.34}(syst.)times 10^{6}$ cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$, consistent with previous measurements and standard solar models. A global analysis of solar and reactor neutrino mixing parameters yielded the best-fit values of $Delta m^2 = 7.59^{+0.19}_{-0.21}times 10^{-5}{eV}^2$ and $theta = 34.4^{+1.3}_{-1.2}$ degrees.
A search has been performed for neutrinos from two sources, the $hep$ reaction in the solar $pp$ fusion chain and the $ u_e$ component of the diffuse supernova neutrino background (DSNB), using the full dataset of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory with a total exposure of 2.47 kton-years after fiducialization. The $hep$ search is performed using both a single-bin counting analysis and a likelihood fit. We find a best-fit flux that is compatible with solar model predictions while remaining consistent with zero flux, and set a one-sided upper limit of $Phi_{hep} < 30times10^{3}~mathrm{cm}^{-2}~mathrm{s}^{-1}$ [90% credible interval (CI)]. No events are observed in the DSNB search region, and we set an improved upper bound on the $ u_e$ component of the DSNB flux of $Phi^mathrm{DSNB}_{ u_e} < 19~textrm{cm}^{-2}~textrm{s}^{-1}$ (90% CI) in the energy range $22.9 < E_ u < 36.9$~MeV.
The long baseline between the Earth and the Sun makes solar neutrinos an excellent test beam for exploring possible neutrino decay. The signature of such decay would be an energy-dependent distortion of the traditional survival probability which can be fit for using well-developed and high precision analysis methods. Here a model including neutrino decay is fit to all three phases of $^8$B solar neutrino data taken by the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory. This fit constrains the lifetime of neutrino mass state $ u_2$ to be ${>8.08times10^{-5}}$ s/eV at $90%$ confidence. An analysis combining this SNO result with those from other solar neutrino experiments results in a combined limit for the lifetime of mass state $ u_2$ of ${>1.04times10^{-3}}$ s/eV at $99%$ confidence.
We present the most recent results from the two currently running solar neutrino experiments, Borexino at the Gran Sasso laboratory in Italy and SuperK at Kamioka mine in Japan. SuperK has released the most precise yet measurement of the 8B solar neutrino interaction rate, with a precision better than 2%, consistent with a constant solar neutrino emission over more than a decade. Borexino has released refined measurements of all neutrinos produced in the pp fusion chain. For the first time, one single detector has measured the entire range of solar neutrinos at once. These new data weakly favor a high-metallicity Sun. Prospects for measuring CNO solar neutrinos with Borexino are discussed, and a brief outlook on the field provided.
A calibration source using gamma-rays from 16N (t_1/2 = 7.13 s) beta-decay has been developed for the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) for the purpose of energy and other calibrations. The 16N is produced via the (n,p) reaction on 16O in the form of CO2 gas using 14-MeV neutrons from a commercially available Deuterium-Tritium (DT) generator. The 16N is produced in a shielding pit in a utility room near the SNO cavity and transferred to the water volumes (D2O or H2O) in a CO2 gas stream via small diameter capillary tubing. The bulk of the activity decays in a decay/trigger chamber designed to block the energetic beta-particles yet permit the primary branch 6.13 MeV gamma-rays to exit. Detection of the coincident beta-particles with plastic scintillator lining the walls of the decay chamber volume provides a tag for the SNO electronics. This paper gives details of the production, transfer, and triggering systems for this source along with a discussion of the source gamma-ray output and performance.