No Arabic abstract
A new summation method model of the reactor antineutrino energy spectrum is presented. It is updated with the most recent evaluated decay databases and with our Total Absorption Gamma-ray Spectroscopy measurements performed during the last decade. For the first time the spectral measurements from the Daya Bay experiment are compared with the detected antineutrino energy spectrum computed with the updated summation method without any renormalisation. The results exhibit a better agreement than is obtained with the Huber-Mueller model in the 2 to 5 MeV range, the region which dominates the detected flux. An unexpected systematic trend is found that the detected antineutrino flux computed with the summation model decreases with the inclusion of more Pandemonium free data. The detected flux obtained now lies only 1.9% above that detected in the Daya Bay experiment, a value that may be reduced with forthcoming new Pandemonium free data leaving less and less room to the reactor anomaly. Eventually, the new predictions of individual antineutrino spectra for the $^{235}$U, $^{239}$Pu, $^{241}$Pu and $^{238}$U are used to compute the dependence of the reactor antineutrino spectral shape on the fission fractions.
The theory of neutrino oscillations explains changes in neutrino flavor, count rates, and spectra from solar, atmospheric, accelerator, and reactor neutrinos. These oscillations are characterized by three mixing angles and two mass-squared differences. The solar mixing angle, {theta}_12, and the atmospheric mixing angle, {theta}_23, have been well measured, but until recently the neutrino mixing angle {theta}_13 was not well known. The Daya Bay experiment, located northeast of Hong Kong at the Guangdong Nuclear Power Complex in China, has made a precise measurement of electron antineutrino disappearance using six functionally-identical gadolinium-doped liquid scintillator-based detectors at three sites with distances between 364 and 1900 meters from six reactor cores. This proceeding describes the Daya Bay updated result, using 127 days of good run time collected between December 24, 2011 and May 11, 2012. For the far site, the ratio of the observed number of events to the expected number of events assuming no neutrino oscillation is 0.944 +/- 0.007(stat) +/- 0.003(syst). A fit for {theta}_13 in the three-neutrino framework yields sin^2 2{theta}_13 = 0.089 +/- 0.010(stat) +/- 0.005(syst).
We report an improved measurement of the neutrino mixing angle $theta_{13}$ from the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment. We exclude a zero value for $sin^22theta_{13}$ with a significance of 7.7 standard deviations. Electron antineutrinos from six reactors of 2.9 GW$_{rm th}$ were detected in six antineutrino detectors deployed in two near (flux-weighted baselines of 470 m and 576 m) and one far (1648 m) underground experimental halls. Using 139 days of data, 28909 (205308) electron antineutrino candidates were detected at the far hall (near halls). The ratio of the observed to the expected number of antineutrinos assuming no oscillations at the far hall is $0.944pm 0.007({rm stat.}) pm 0.003({rm syst.})$. An analysis of the relative rates in six detectors finds $sin^22theta_{13}=0.089pm 0.010({rm stat.})pm0.005({rm syst.})$ in a three-neutrino framework.
This work reports a precise measurement of the reactor antineutrino flux using 2.2 million inverse beta decay (IBD) events collected with the Daya Bay near detectors in 1230 days. The dominant uncertainty on the neutron detection efficiency is reduced by 56% with respect to the previous measurement through a comprehensive neutron calibration and detailed data and simulation analysis. The new average IBD yield is determined to be $(5.91pm0.09)times10^{-43}~rm{cm}^2/rm{fission}$ with total uncertainty improved by 29%. The corresponding mean fission fractions from the four main fission isotopes $^{235}$U, $^{238}$U, $^{239}$Pu, and $^{241}$Pu are 0.564, 0.076, 0.304, and 0.056, respectively. The ratio of measured to predicted antineutrino yield is found to be $0.952pm0.014pm0.023$ ($1.001pm0.015pm0.027$) for the Huber-Mueller (ILL-Vogel) model, where the first and second uncertainty are experimental and theoretical model uncertainty, respectively. This measurement confirms the discrepancy between the world average of reactor antineutrino flux and the Huber-Mueller model.
A new measurement of the reactor antineutrino flux and energy spectrum by the Daya Bay reactor neutrino experiment is reported. The antineutrinos were generated by six 2.9~GW$_{mathrm{th}}$ nuclear reactors and detected by eight antineutrino detectors deployed in two near (560~m and 600~m flux-weighted baselines) and one far (1640~m flux-weighted baseline) underground experimental halls. With 621 days of data, more than 1.2 million inverse beta decay (IBD) candidates were detected. The IBD yield in the eight detectors was measured, and the ratio of measured to predicted flux was found to be $0.946pm0.020$ ($0.992pm0.021$) for the Huber+Mueller (ILL+Vogel) model. A 2.9~$sigma$ deviation was found in the measured IBD positron energy spectrum compared to the predictions. In particular, an excess of events in the region of 4-6~MeV was found in the measured spectrum, with a local significance of 4.4~$sigma$. A reactor antineutrino spectrum weighted by the IBD cross section is extracted for model-independent predictions.
The Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment has measured a non-zero value for the neutrino mixing angle $theta_{13}$ with a significance of 5.2 standard deviations. Antineutrinos from six 2.9 GW$_{rm th}$ reactors were detected in six antineutrino detectors deployed in two near (flux-weighted baseline 470 m and 576 m) and one far (1648 m) underground experimental halls. With a 43,000 ton-GW_{rm th}-day livetime exposure in 55 days, 10416 (80376) electron antineutrino candidates were detected at the far hall (near halls). The ratio of the observed to expected number of antineutrinos at the far hall is $R=0.940pm 0.011({rm stat}) pm 0.004({rm syst})$. A rate-only analysis finds $sin^22theta_{13}=0.092pm 0.016({rm stat})pm0.005({rm syst})$ in a three-neutrino framework.