The DUNE Near Detector

Abstract

DUNE is a next-generation experiment aiming to provide precision measurements of neutrino oscillation parameters. It will detect neutrinos produced in the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility beamline at Fermilab, using a Near Detector situated near the beam target where the neutrinos originate and a Far Detector located 1300 km away in South Dakota. A comparison of the spectra of neutrinos measured at the Far and the Near Detector will allow for the extraction of oscillation probabilities from which the oscillation parameters can be inferred. The specific role of the Near Detector is to serve as the experiment’s control: it will establish the no oscillation null hypothesis, measure and monitor the beam, constrain systematic uncertainties, and provide essential measurements of the neutrino interactions to improve models. The Near Detector complex will include three primary detector components: a liquid argon time projection chamber, a high-pressure gas time projection chamber and an on-axis beam monitor. The three detectors will serve important individual and overlapping functions, with two of them being also able to move transverse to the beam’s axis via the DUNE-PRISM program. The overall mission of the Near Detector, as well as the three sub-detectors’ unique capabilities and physics programs will be discussed in these proceedings.