No Arabic abstract
Neutrino oscillations provide an unique opportunity to probe physics beyond the Standard Model. Fermilab is constructing two new neutrino beams to provide a decicive test of two of the recent positive indications for neutrino oscillations: MiniBOONE experiment will settle the LSND controversy, MINOS will provide detailed studies of the region indicated by the SuperK results.
The Fermilab Short-Baseline Neutrino (SBN) experiments, MicroBooNE, ICARUS, and SBND, are expected to have significant sensitivity to light weakly coupled hidden sector particles. Here we study the capability of the SBN experiments to probe dark scalars interacting through the Higgs portal. We investigate production of dark scalars using both the Fermilab Booster 8 GeV and NuMI 120 GeV proton beams, simulating kaons decaying to dark scalars and taking into account the beamline geometry. We also investigate strategies to mitigate backgrounds from beam-related neutrino scattering events. We find that SBND, with its comparatively short ${cal O}(100 {rm m})$ baseline, will have the best sensitivity to scalars produced with Booster, while ICARUS, with its large detector volume, will provide the best limits on off-axis dark scalar production from NuMI. The SBN experiments can provide leading tests of dark scalars with masses in the 50 - 350 MeV range in the near term. Our results motivate dedicated experimental searches for dark scalars and other long-lived hidden sector states at these experiments.
Oscillations in the electron-capture (EC) decay rate observed in storage-ring experiments are reconsidered in connection with the neutrino mass difference. Taking into account that - according to Relativity Theory - time is slowed down in the reference frame of the orbiting charged particles as compared to the neutral particles (neutrinos) moving on a rectilinear path after the EC decay, we derive a value of $Delta m^{2}_{21}=(0.768pm0.012)cdot10^{-4} eV^{2}$ for the neutrino mass-squared difference which fully agrees with that observed in other neutrino-oscillation experiments. To further check the connection between EC-decay oscillations and $Delta m^{2}_{21}$ we suggest experiments with different orbital speeds, i.e., different values of the Lorentz factor.
We discuss the potential of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) to constraint the four--neutrino mixing schemes favoured by the results of all neutrino oscillations experiments. Our results show that some information on the value of $cos^2(vartheta_{23}) cos^2(vartheta_{24})$ can be obtained by the first SNO measurement of the CC ratio, while considerable improvement on the knowledge of this mixing will be achievable after the measurement of the NC/CC ratio.
Fermilab has had a very active long baseline neutrino program since initiation of the NuMI project in 1998. Commissioned in 2005, the NuMI beam with 400 kW design power has been in operation for the MINOS neutrino oscillation program since that time. Upgrade of NuMI to 700 kW for NOvA is now well advanced, with implementation of the beam upgrades to be accomplished in 2012-2013. Design development for the next generation LBNE neutrino beam is now a major ongoing effort. We report here salient features and constraints for each of these beams, as well as significant challenges both experienced and expected.
The Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) facility at Fermilab began operations in late 2004. NuMI will deliver an intense muon neutrino beam of variable energy (2-20 GeV) directed into the Earth at 58 mrad for short (~1km) and long (~700-900 km) baseline experiments. Several aspects of the design and results from early commissioning runs are reviewed.