No Arabic abstract
It is said that the finding of the maximum oscillation in neutrino oscillation by Super-Kamiokande is one of the major achievements of the SK. In present paper, we examine the assumption made by Super-Kamiokande Collaboration that the direction of the incident neutrino is approximately the same as that of the produced lepton, which is the cornerstone in their L/E analysis and we find this approximation does not hold even approximately. In the Part 2 of the subsequent paper, we apply the results from Figures 12, 13 and 14 to L/E analysis and conclude that one cannot obtain the maximum oscillation in L/E analysis which shows strongly the oscillation pattern from the neutrino oscillation.
In the previous paper (Part~1), we have verified that the SK assumption on the direction does not hold in the analysis of neutrino events occurred inside the SK detector. We have made four possible L/E analyses, L_nu/E_nu, L_nu/E_mu, L_mu/E_nu and L_mu/E_mu. Among four kinds of L/E analyses, we have shown that only L_nu/E_nu analysis can give the signature of maximum oscillations clearly, while the L_mu/E_mu analysis which are really done by Super-Kamiokande Collaboration cannot give the maximum oscillation at all. It is thus concluded that Super-Kamiokande type experiment cannot find the maximum oscillation from L/E analysis. Therefore, we would suggest Super-Kamiokande Collaboration to re-analyze the zenith angle distribution of the neutrino events which occur inside the detector carefully.
A new event reconstruction algorithm based on a maximum likelihood method has been developed for Super-Kamiokande. Its improved kinematic and particle identification capabilities enable the analysis of atmospheric neutrino data in a detector volume 32% larger than previous analyses and increases sensitivity to the neutrino mass hierarchy. Analysis of a 253.9 kton-year exposure of the Super-Kamiokande IV atmospheric neutrino data has yielded a weak preference for the normal hierarchy, disfavoring the inverted hierarchy at 74% assuming oscillations at the best fit of the analysis.
An analysis of atmospheric neutrino data from all four run periods of superk optimized for sensitivity to the neutrino mass hierarchy is presented. Confidence intervals for $Delta m^2_{32}$, $sin^2 theta_{23}$, $sin^2 theta_{13}$ and $delta_{CP}$ are presented for normal neutrino mass hierarchy and inverted neutrino mass hierarchy hypotheses based on atmospheric neutrino data alone. Additional constraints from reactor data on $theta_{13}$ and from published binned T2K data on muon neutrino disappearance and electron neutrino appearance are added to the atmospheric neutrino fit to give enhanced constraints on the above parameters. Over the range of parameters allowed at 90% confidence level, the normal mass hierarchy is favored by between 91.5% and 94.5% based on the combined result.
This paper outlines a method for improving the precision of atmospheric neutrino oscillation measurements. One experimental signature for these oscillations is an observed deficit in the rate of $ u_{mu}$ charged-current interactions with an oscillatory dependence on $L_{ u}/E_{ u}$, where $L_{ u}$ is the neutrino propagation distance, and $E_{ u}$ is the neutrino energy. For contained-vertex atmospheric neutrino interactions, the $L_{ u}/E_{ u}$ resolution varies significantly from event to event. The precision of the oscillation measurement can be improved by incorporating information on $L_{ u}/E_{ u}$ resolution into the oscillation analysis. In the analysis presented here, a Bayesian technique is used to estimate the $L_{ u}/E_{ u}$ resolution of observed atmospheric neutrinos on an event-by-event basis. By separating the events into bins of $L_{ u}/E_{ u}$ resolution in the oscillation analysis, a significant improvement in oscillation sensitivity can be achieved.
While neutrino physics enters precision era, several important unknowns remain. Atmospheric neutrinos allow to simultaneously test key oscillation parameters, with Super-Kamiokande experiment playing a central role. We discuss results from atmospheric neutrino oscillation analysis of the full dataset from Super-Kamiokande I-IV phases. Further, we discuss tests of non-standard neutrino interactions with atmospheric neutrinos in Super-Kamiokande.