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DOE OSTI2023

Eos: conceptual design for a demonstrator of hybrid optical detector technology

Eos is a technology demonstrator, designed to explore the capabilities of hybrid event detection technology, leveraging both Cherenkov and scintillation light simultaneously. With a fiducial mass of four tons, Eos is designed to operate in a high-precision regime, with sufficient size to utilize time-of-flight information for full event reconstruction, flexibility to demonstrate a range of cutting edge technologies, and simplicity of design to facilitate potential future deployment at alternative sites. Results from Eos can inform the design of future neutrino detectors for both fundamental physics and nonproliferation applications. This paper describes the conceptual design and potential applications of the Eos

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Naturally light Dirac neutrinos from SU(6)

A known mechanism for obtaining naturally light Dirac neutrinos is implemented in the context of SU(6) → SU(5) × U(1) N .

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Status of DUNE Offline Computing

We summarize the status of Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) Offline Software and Computing program. We describe plans for the computing infrastructure needed to acquire, catalog, reconstruct, simulate and analyze the data from the DUNE experiment and its prototypes in pursuit of the experiment's physics goals of precision measurements of neutrino oscillation parameters, detection of astrophysical neutrinos, measurement of neutrino interaction properties and searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. In contrast to traditional HEP computational problems, DUNE's Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber data consist of simple but very large (many GB) data objects which share many characteristics with astrophysical images. We have successfully reconstructed and simulated data from 4% prototype detector runs at CERN. The data volume from the full DUNE detector, when it starts commissioning late in this decade will present memory management challenges in conventional processing but significant opportunities to use advances in machine learning and pattern recognition as a frontier user of High Performance Computing facilities capable of massively parallel processing. Our goal is to develop infrastructure resources that are flexible and accessible enough to support creative software solutions as HEP computing evolves.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2022

Snowmass'21 Accelerator Frontier

The Particle Physics Community Planning Exercise (a.k.a. “Snowmass”) is the form of organization of regular, every 6 to 8 years, discussions among the entire particle physics community to develop a scientifc vision for the future of particle physics in the U.S. and its international partners. The Snowmass’21 Accelerator Frontier activities include discussions on high-energy hadron and lepton colliders, high-intensity beams for neutrino research and for the “Physics Beyond Colliders”, accelerator technologies, science, education and outreach as well as the progress of core accelerator technology, including RF, magnets, targets and sources.

Gourlay, Stephen Alan↗

DOE OSTI2021

LEvEL: Low-Energy Neutrino Experiment at the LHC

We propose the operation of LEvEL, the Low-Energy Neutrino Experiment at the LHC, a neutrino detector near the Large Hadron Collider Beam Dump. Such a detector is capable of exploring an intense, low-energy neutrino flux and can measure neutrino cross sections that have previously never been observed. These cross sections can inform other future neutrino experiments, such as those aiming to observe neutrinos from supernovae, allowing such measurements to accomplish their fundamental physics goals. We perform detailed simulations to determine neutrino production at the LHC beam dump, as well as neutron and muon backgrounds. Measurements at a few to ten percent precision of neutrino-argon charged current and neutrino-nucleus coherent scattering cross sections are attainable with 100 ton-year and 1 ton-year exposures at LEvEL, respectively, concurrent with the operation of the High Luminosity LHC. We also estimate signal and backgrounds for an experiment exploiting the forward direction of the LHC beam dump, which could measure neutrinos above 100 GeV.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Expanding the physics reach of DUNE in the near and far detectors

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a next-generation long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment. Its primary goal is the determination of the neutrino mass hierarchy and the CP-violating phase. The DUNE physics programme also includes the detection of astrophysical neutrinos and the search for beyond the Standard Model (BSM) phenomena. DUNE will consist of a near detector (ND) complex placed at Fermilab, and a modular Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) far detector (FD) to be built in the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF), approximately 1300 km away from the neutrino production point. This thesis describes three different projects within DUNE. First, a novel strategy to improve the triggering capabilities of the DUNE FD is proposed. It uses matched filters to enhance the production of online hits across all charge collection planes. Next, the possibility of detecting neutrinos coming from dark matter (DM) annihilations in the Sun with the FD is explored. The complementarity of DUNE to this kind of DM searches is shown. Finally, the simulation and reconstruction framework of ND-GAr, the gas argon ND proposed for Phase II of DUNE, is presented. A number of additions to this are described, particularly focused on the development of the particle identification (PID) capabilities of the detector. These are then used to perform the first event selection studies with an end-to-end simulation in ND-GAr, in particular the selection of pion exclusive samples in $\nu_{\mu}$ CC interactions. All three of these projects share the common goal of enhancing the physics programme of DUNE.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2026

Measurement of muon antineutrino charged current - 0 meson scattering, using the NOvA Near Detector

Antineutrino interaction cross sections are, at present, poorly constrained, particularly regarding the role of multi-nucleon processes such as 2-particle 2-hole (2p2h) interactions. The associated crosssection systematic uncertainties represent a significant challenge for precision oscillation measurements, especially for the next generation of neutrino experiments such as DUNE. We present a new measurement of the muon antineutrino charged-current cross section without mesons in the final state, using the high-statistics data set of the NOvA Near Detector. The analysis employs a cut-based selection enhanced by machine learning techniques to isolate a high-purity sample dominated by quasielastic (QE) and 2p2h interactions. We present the cross section as a function of the kinetic energy and scattering angle of the outgoing muon. We also present measurements of more model-dependent kinematic variables such as the neutrino energy and momentum transfer, to better probe the underlying nuclear physics. The results are compared against various neutrino event generators to test the robustness of current interaction models.

Vockerodt, Kevin John [Ohio State U.; Queen Mary, ↗

DOE OSTI2026

Updating the BNB Flux Prediction at SBND

Precise, accurate neutrino flux predictions for neutrino beam experiments are crucial for physics results. Flux uncertainties contribute significantly to the total systematic uncertainties seen in modern accelerator neutrino measurements such as cross sections, oscillations, and BSM studies.. For over a decade, experiments utilizing Fermilab’s Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) have relied on the 2009 MiniBooNE flux prediction. However, the high-statistics era of the Short-Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program, with both SBND and ICARUS now operating, demands a modernized flux model and framework. While SBND is using the MiniBooNE flux model for its Generation 1 analyses, including many upcoming cross section measurements, future work will be based on a new flux model. In this talk, the ongoing work towards this new model will be outlined, including a new simulation framework (G4BNB), a new evaluation of model parameters from hadron scattering data, and a new framework for evaluating systematic uncertainties (BNBFP). Additionally, expansions to the flux model to include BSM contributions from neutral mesons will be discussed, as well as the PRISM capabilities of SBND to observe a wide range of off axis angles of the neutrino beam.

Paton, Josephine [Fermilab]↗

DOE OSTI2026

Updating the BNB Flux Prediction at SBND

Paton, Josephine [Fermilab]↗

DOE OSTI2021

ICARUS: new voyage to sterile neutrino search in the Short Baseline Program

The ICARUS collaboration operated the 760-ton T600 detector in a successful three-year physics run at the underground LNGS laboratories studying neutrino oscillations with the CNGS neutrino beam from CERN, and searching for atmospheric neutrino interactions. ICARUS performed a sensitive search for LSND-like anomalous νe appearance in the CNGS beam, which contributed to the constraints on the allowed parameters to a narrow region around $Δm^2=1 e\text{V}^2$, where all the experimental results can be coherently accommodated at 90% C.L. After a significant overhaul at CERN, the T600 detector has been installed at Fermilab. In 2020 cryogenic commissioning began with detector cool down, liquid Argon filling and recirculation. ICARUS has started operations and is presently in its commissioning phase with the aim of collecting its first neutrino events from the Booster Neutrino Beam and the NuMI off-axis beam. The main goal of the first year of ICARUS data taking will then be the definitive verification of the recent claim by NEUTRINO-4 short baseline reactor experiment both in the $ν_μ$ channel with the BNB and in the $ν_e$ with NuMI. After the first year of operations, ICARUS will commence its search for evidence of a sterile neutrino jointly with the SBND near detector, within the Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program. The ICARUS exposure to the NuMI beam will also give the possibility for other physics studies such as light dark matter searches and neutrino-Argon cross section measurements. The proposed contribution addresses ICARUS achievements, its status and plans for the new run at Fermilab and the ongoing developments of the analysis tools needed to fulfill its physics program.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Neutrinoless double beta decay rates in the presence of light sterile neutrinos

We investigate neutrinoless double-beta decay (0νββ) in minimal extensions of the Standard Model of particle physics where gauge-singlet right-handed neutrinos give rise to Dirac and Majorana neutrino mass terms. We argue that the standard treatment of these scenarios, based on mass-dependent nuclear matrix elements, is missing important contributions to the 0νββ amplitude. First, new effects arise from the exchange of neutrinos with very small (ultrasoft) momenta, for which we compute the associated nuclear matrix elements for the decays of 76 Ge and 136 Xe. These contributions can dominate the 0νββ rate in cases with light sterile neutrinos. The ultrasoft terms are also relevant in the more standard scenario of just three light Majorana neutrinos where they lead to a 10% reduction of the total 0νββ amplitude. Secondly, we highlight the importance of short-range terms associated with medium-heavy sterile neutrinos and provide explicit formulae that can be used in phenomenological analyses. As examples we discuss impact of these new effects in several explicit scenarios, including a realistic 3 + 2 model with two right-handed gauge-singlet neutrinos.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2021

IceCube-Gen2: the window to the extreme Universe

The observation of electromagnetic radiation from radio to γ-ray wavelengths has provided a wealth of information about the Universe. However, at PeV (10 15 eV) energies and above, most of the Universe is impenetrable to photons. New messengers, namely cosmic neutrinos, are needed to explore the most extreme environments of the Universe where black holes, neutron stars, and stellar explosions transform gravitational energy into non-thermal cosmic rays. These energetic particles havemillions of times higher energies than those produced in the most powerful particle accelerators on Earth. As neutrinos can escape from regions otherwise opaque to radiation, they allow an unique view deep into exploding stars and the vicinity of the event horizons of black holes. The discovery of cosmic neutrinos with IceCube has opened this new window on the Universe. IceCube has been successful in finding first evidence for cosmic particle acceleration in the jet of an active galactic nucleus. Yet, ultimately, its sensitivity is too limited to detect even the brightest neutrino sources with high significance, or to detect populations of less luminous sources. In thiswhite paper, we present an overview of a next-generation instrument, IceCube-Gen2, which will sharpen our understanding of the processes and environments that govern the Universe at the highest energies. IceCube-Gen2 is designed to: (a) Resolve the high-energy neutrino sky from TeV to EeV energies (b) Investigate cosmic particle acceleration through multi-messenger observations (c) Reveal the sources and propagation of the highest energy particles in the Universe (d) Probe fundamental physics with high-energy neutrinos IceCube-Gen2 will enhance the existing IceCube detector at the South Pole. It will increase the annual rate of observed cosmic neutrinos by a factor of ten compared to IceCube, and will be able to detect sources five times fainter than its predecessor. Furthermore, through the addition of a radio array, IceCube- Gen2 will extend the energy range by several orders of magnitude compared to IceCube. Construction will take 8 years and cost about $350M. The goal is to have IceCube-Gen2 fully operational by 2033. IceCube-Gen2 will play an essential role in shaping the new era of multimessenger astronomy, fundamentally advancing our knowledge of the highenergy Universe. Overall, this challenging mission can be fully addressed only through the combination of the information from the neutrino, electromagnetic, and gravitational wave emission of high-energy sources, in concert with the new survey instruments across the electromagnetic spectrum and gravitational wave detectors which will be available in the coming years.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

ANNIE: the Accelerator Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment

The Accelerator Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE) is a Gadolinium-loaded water Cherenkov detector placed in the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, USA. The primary physics goal of ANNIE is to perform neutrino cross-section measurements that will constrain systematic uncertainties in the next generation of long-baseline neutrino experiments. The first measurement will be the multiplicity of final-state neutrons from neutrino-nucleus interactions in water. Alongside these measurements, ANNIE has achieved the first ever deployments of two novel detector technologies in a neutrino beam: Large Area Picosecond Photodetectors (LAPPDs) and Water-based Liquid Scintillator (WbLS). LAPPDs are micro-channel-plate-based devices that provide timing resolution of ~100 picoseconds and sub-centimeter spatial resolution. WbLS combines the low attenuation and Cherenkov production of pure water with the high light-yield and low detection threshold of liquid scintillator. This talk will discuss the status of ANNIE's physics and R&D measurements.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Demonstration of new MeV-scale capabilities in large neutrino LArTPCs using ambient radiogenic and cosmogenic activity in MicroBooNE

Large neutrino liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC) experiments can broaden their physics reach by reconstructing and interpreting MeV-scale energy depositions, or blips, present in their data. We demonstrate new calorimetric and particle discrimination capabilities at the MeV energy scale using reconstructed blips in data from the MicroBooNE LArTPC at Fermilab. We observe a concentration of low-energy (<3 MeV) blips around fiberglass mechanical support struts along the time projection chamber edges with energy spectrum features consistent with the Compton edge of 2.614 MeV 208 Tl decay 𝛾 rays. These features are used to verify proper calibration of electron energy scales in MicroBooNE’s data to few percent precision and to measure the specific activity of 208 Tl in the fiberglass composing these struts, (11.7 ± 0.2⁢(stat) ± 3.1⁢(syst)) Bq/kg. Cosmogenically produced blips above 3 MeV in reconstructed energy are used to showcase the ability of large LArTPCs to distinguish between low-energy proton and electron energy depositions. An enriched sample of low-energy protons selected using this new particle discrimination technique is found to be smaller in data than in dedicated corsika cosmic-ray simulations, suggesting either incorrect corsika modeling of incident cosmic fluxes or particle transport modeling issues in geant4.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Thermodynamic stability of xenon-doped liquid argon detectors

Liquid argon detectors are employed in a wide variety of nuclear and particle physics experiments. The addition of small quantities of xenon to argon modifies its scintillation, ionization, and electroluminescence properties and can improve its performance as a detection medium. However, a liquid argon-xenon mixture can develop instabilities, especially in systems that require phase transitions or that utilize high xenon concentrations. In this work, we analyze the causes of these instabilities and describe a small (liter-scale) apparatus with a unique cryogenic circuit specifically designed to handle argon-xenon mixtures. The system is capable of condensing argon gas mixed with $\mathscr{O}$ (1%) xenon by volume and maintains a stable liquid mixture near the xenon saturation limit while actively circulating it in the gas phase. We also demonstrate control over instabilities that develop when the detector condition is allowed to deviate from optimized settings. This progress enables future liquid argon detectors to benefit from the effects of high concentrations of xenon doping, such as more efficient detection of low-energy ionization signals. In conclusion, this work also develops tools to study and mitigate instabilities in large argon detectors that use low concentration xenon doping.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2020

On the decaying-sterile-neutrino solution to the electron (anti)neutrino appearance anomalies

We explore the hypothesis that the unexplained data from LSND and MiniBooNE are evidence for a new, heavy neutrino mass-eigenstate that mixes with the muon-type neutrino and decays into an electron-type neutrino and a new, very light scalar particle. We consider two different decay scenarios, one with Majorana neutrinos, one with Dirac neutrinos; both fit the data equally well. We find a reasonable, albeit not excellent, fit to the data of MiniBooNE and LSND. The decaying-sterile-neutrino hypothesis, however, cleanly evades constraints from disappearance searches and precision measurements of leptonic meson decays, as long as $1~{\rm MeV}\gtrsim m_4\gtrsim 10$~keV. The SBN program at Fermilab should be able to definitively test the decaying-sterile-neutrino hypothesis.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2024

SBND In 10 Minutes

The Short-Baseline Near Detector (SBND) is one of three Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) neutrino detectors positioned along the axis of the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) at Fermilab, as part of the Short-Baseline Neutrino (SBN) Program. The detector is currently being commissioned and is expected to take neutrino data this year. SBND is characterized by superb imaging capabilities and will record over a million neutrino interactions per year. Thanks to its unique combination of measurement resolution and statistics, SBND will carry out a rich program of neutrino interaction measurements and novel searches for physics beyond the Standard Model (BSM). It will enable the potential of the overall SBN sterile neutrino program by performing a precise characterization of the unoscillated event rate, and constraining BNB flux and neutrino-argon cross-section systematic uncertainties. In this talk, the physics reach, current status, and future prospects of SBND are discussed.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), Far Detector Technical Design Report (Volume II: DUNE Physics)

The Physics volume of the DUNE far detector (FD) Technical Design Report (TDR) presents the science program of DUNE. Within, we describe the array of identified scientific opportunities and key goals. Crucially, we also report our best current understanding of the capability of DUNE to realize these goals, along with the detailed arguments and investigations on which this understanding is based. In the context of the complete set of DUNE TDR volumes, a central role for this volume is to document the scientific basis underlying the conception and design of the LBNF/DUNE experimental configurations. As a result, it is the description of DUNE’s experimental capabilities that constitutes the bulk of the document. Key linkages between requirements for successful execution of the physics program and primary specifications of the experimental configurations are drawn and summarized. This document also serves a wider purpose as a statement on the scientific potential of DUNE as a central component within a global program of frontier theoretical and experimental particle physics research. Thus, the presentation also aims to serve as a resource for the particle physics community at large. In this chapter, the scientific goals, the methodologies utilized to obtain sensitivity projections, the corresponding results for selected elements of the scientific program, and the demands placed on the experiment design and performance are presented in summary form. Together with the two chapters that follow, this summary establishes the context for the detailed descriptions specific to each area of research that comprise the remaining chapters.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗