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At least 253 records · Page 14

A Search for Neutron-Antineutron Oscillation in the NOvA Experiment

This dissertation presents the search for neutron-antineutron oscillation using the data collected in the Far Detector of the NOvA experiment. Searching for neutron anti-neutron oscillation is becoming an active research direction that promises immense values for the field of particle physics and cosmology. Experimental observation of the phenomenon would offer the possibility of new physics associated with anomalous $B$ and $B-L$ violating processes. This work is opening with a general introduction of the neutron-antineutron oscillation, its theoretical motivations, and recent empirical results related to the topic. The data-driven trigger that allows the NOvA experiment to collect the signal-like events constitutes a significant work of this study and will be described in detail. Following the discussion of the trigger, the thesis focuses on the development of a selection method to further classify collected events into the signal candidates and the background. This search chooses an analysis approach in which the real data is partially unblinded to assist the development and evaluation of the event selection. Because this is an ongoing work and essential aspects of the analysis have not been all finalized, this thesis closes out with a sensitivity study. By analyzing the data from 4 months of Far Detector exposure, a 90\% C.L. sensitivity limit of $4\times10^{30}$\,years is placed on the oscillation lifetime of bound neutrons inside the $^{12}$C targets. This limit is equivalent to a sensitivity of $0.57\times10^{8}$\,s placed on the oscillation lifetime of free neutrons. The NOvA's sensitivity is a factor of 5 below the most stringent limit of $2.7\times10^8$\,s set by the Super-Kamiokande experiment.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Measuring Neutrino Oscillations in the NOvA and CHIPS Detectors.

NOvA is a long baseline neutrino experiment which uses muon neutrinos produced by the NuMI beam at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory to measure muon neutrino disappearance and electron neutrino appearance, among other analyses. The Far/Near Extrapolation analysis framework (FNEX) was used to measure muon neutrino disappearance using the events observed by NOvA while the NuMI beam was in Forward Horn Current configuration (i.e. this analysis uses neutrino data, not antineutrino data). The values of the parameters measured in this analysis are sin 2 θ 23 - 0.499$^{+0.098}_{-0.069}$ and Δm$^2_{32}$ - 2.454$^{+0.108}_{0.119}$ × 10 -3 eV, which is consistent with the results of NOvA’s main muon neutrino disappearance analysis using the experiment’s usual framework, known as CAF. The CHIPS detector is a water Cherenkov detector currently in construction. It will also use the NuMI beam to perform muon neutrino disappearance and electron neutrino appearance analyses. The necessary water clarity for a detector with a diameter of 25 m and a height of 6 m is discussed, as well as the results of testing water filtration systems. The filtration that will be used for the detector is a 10 µm carbon block filter and a 0.5 µm filter in series, with no reverse osmosis or ultraviolet sterilisation being used. This provides an attenuation length of 16.63 ± 0.25 m for light of 532 nm wavelength (green), so light with a wavelength of 405 nm (violet) would have an attenuation length of 133±2 m. The greatest possible distance between a PMT and any point in the detector’s volume is approximately 26 m, so 133 m is sufficient for the detector to measure Cherenkov light produced anywhere in the detector.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Sensitivities to neutrino non-standard interactions from the disappearance of muon (anti)neutrinos at the NOvA experiment

The experimental confirmation of the phenomenon of neutrino oscillations provided evidence for a non-zero value for the mass of neutrinos, a property not initially predicted by the Standard Model of Physics. Investigations of the existence of the so called Physics Beyond the Standard Model is a subject of growing interest and effort in the field of particle physics. Interactions of neutrinos with matter are well described by the Standard Model, however in the presence of new Physics, additional phenomena regarding neutrino properties would be possible, including non-standard interactions of neutrinos with matter. The NOvA experiment, at Fermilab, has been investigating neutrino oscillations through studies of ν µ produced at the Fermilab accelerator facilities, and also comprise a suitable environment for investigation of additional phenomena taking part in the neutrino oscillation framework. We show in this thesis the results of the sensitivity studies to neutrino non standard interactions in the NOvA experiment through investigation of the disappearance of muon (anti)neutrinos during their evolution in the NOvA 810 km baseline. We investigate the effect of the NSI parameters, |ε µτ | and δ µτ , on the determination of the standard oscillation parameters sin 2 (θ 23 ) and Δ$m^2_{32}$, as well as the relation between each parameter, for both neutrino mass hierarchies. This study makes use of an exposure of 9.48 × 10 20 POT for neutrino beam (FHC), and 12.33 × 10 20 POT for antineutrino beam (RHC). No deviations from the standard oscillation scenario is found at the 90% CL limit. The joint neutrino and antineutrino fit yields a limit of |ε µτ | ≤ 0.086 (0.085) for a fixed value of δ µτ = 0, and |ε µτ | ≤ 1.054 (1.053) for the case where both NSI parameters are fitted, for the normal (inverted) neutrino mass hierarchy, at the 90% CL. In the current sensitivity, all values of δ µτ are found to be allowed. The 90% CL interval for the standard oscillation parameters are Δ$m^2_{32}$ ϵ [2.379, 2.580] and sin 2 (θ 23 ) ϵ [0.420, 0.602] for the normal hierarchy scenario, and Δ$m^2_{32}$ ϵ [-2.639, - 2.438] and sin 2 (θ 23 ) ϵ [0.418, 0.602] for the inverted hierarchy scenario.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DENOVA: Deduplication Extended NOVA File System

This paper shows mathematically and experimentally that inline deduplication is not suitable for file systems on ultra-low latency Intel Optane DC PM devices in terms of performance, and proposes DeNova, an offline deduplication specially designed for log-structured NVM file systems such as NOVA. DeNova offers high-performance and low-latency I/O processing and executes deduplication in the background without interfering with foreground I/Os. DeNova employs DRAM-free persistent deduplication metadata, favoring CPU cache line, and ensures failure consistency on any system failure. We implement DeNova in the NOVA file system. Evaluation with DeNova confirms a negligible performance drop of baseline NOVA of less than 1%, while gaining high storage space savings. Extensive experiments show DeNova is failure consistent in all failure scenario cases.

Khan, Awais↗

Improving the NOvA 3-Flavour Neutrino Oscillation Analysis

NOvA is a long-baseline neutrino experiment studying neutrino oscillations, a quantum mechanical interference phenomena where the observed neutrino flavour differs from that measured earlier, stemming from neutrino mass and flavour states mixing. NOvA consists of two functionally identical tracking calorimeter detectors deployed in the Fermilab NuMI beam. Both detectors are placed 14.6 mrad off the beam axis to achieve a narrow energy peak at 1.8 GeV at an oscillation maximum. The NOvA 3-flavour oscillation analysis measures the neutrino oscillation parameters sin2θ23 and ∆m232 as well as sets limit to δCP , the octant of θ23 and the sign of ∆m32. The event selection for 3-flavour neutrino oscillation analysis ensures the maximum quantity of signal is made available and a minimal amount of background is present. The current disappearance analysis selection has an efficiency of 80% for selecting νμ CC events, and with some improvements additional events could be recovered into the analysis to improve the sensitivity to the aforementioned oscillation parameters. In an effort to recover the currently rejected signal event to the analysis, these events were trained in a classification neural network. The aim of the network was to divide the data into signal (νμ CC events) and background (NC and νe CC events). The highest performing network gave an additional figure of merit gain of 2.34 increasing the sensitivity by 4.3% in effective POT equal to 33 days of additional data taking. This was compared to changing the current particle identification event selection cuts, the best result out of the tested cut combinations gave an additional FOM of 3.36 equal to 3.7% increase in effective POT equivalent to 28 days of data taking.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Constraining Systematics for Future Sterile Neutrino Analysis at NOvA Experiment

In this article, we report an approach used to constrain the impact of cross-section systematic parameters in the future sterile neutrino analysis at the NOvA experiment. NOvA is a long-baseline neutrino experiment built to investigate the intricate properties of neutrinos, with the principal emphasis on active three-flavor neutrino mixing phenomena. Besides that, NOvA also explores exotic oscillations, including sterile neutrino search. Uncertainties on the neutrino flux, cross-section, and detector systematic parameters significantly contribute, complicating the disentanglement of genuine physics events from background noise. We present the impact of systematic reduction via near detector neutral current sample splitting and its implications on oscillation parameters, leveraging results primarily from Monte Carlo simulations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

The Profiled Feldman-Cousins Method for Confidence Interval Construction for the Nova 3-Flavor Oscillation Analysis

The small interaction cross-section of neutrinos makes experimental neutrino physics particularly responsive to technological advancements. A significant development leveraged by the NOvA experiment is large-scale parallel processing, enabling novel computational approaches to longstanding experimental challenges. Central to managing the resulting high-throughput data is NOvA’s implementation of the Freight Train model, designed for efficient data production and handling.This dissertation details the methodology and execution of the NOvA 2024 3-Flavor Oscillation Analysis, supported by a comprehensive dataset spanning ten years. It emphasizes frequentist results refined through the Feldman-Cousins (FC) technique, specifically addressing confidence interval corrections in parameter estimation. The computational intensity associated with Feldman-Cousins arises from extensive Monte Carlo simulations, which were substantially mitigated through parallel computing on the Perlmutter supercomputer at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), employing the MPI framework.To further enhance computational efficiency, an Importance Sampling method is introduced and evaluated, demonstrating significant potential to reduce complexity, particularly in exploring extreme parameter space regions. This thesis presents both the successful application of advanced computational resources and the development of sophisticated statistical techniques, aiming to enhance the precision and scope of neutrino oscillation analyses.

Dye ajdye11190@gmail.com, Andrew Joseph [Mississip↗

NOvA Dual-Baseline Search for Active-to-Sterile Neutrino Oscillations using Neutrino- and Antineutrino-Enriched Samples

We report a search for neutrino oscillations to sterile neutrinos in the NOvA detectors under a model with three active and one sterile neutrinos. This search simultaneously fits data in the two NOvA detectors and is the first from NOvA to use both neutrino- and antineutrino-mode beams, with exposures of $26.61\times10^{20}$ and $12.50\times10^{20}$ protons on target, respectively. There is no evidence for sterile neutrinos in the data and we are able to exclude regions of parameter space that were allowed by previous experiments, including most of the allowed region reported by IceCube.

Abubakar, S. [Erciyes U.]↗

Explanation of the seasonal variation of cosmic multiple muon events observed with the NOvA Near Detector

The flux of cosmic ray muons at the Earth’s surface exhibits seasonal variations due to changes in the temperature of the atmosphere affecting the production and decay of mesons in the upper atmosphere. Using 1473 live days of data collected by the NuMI Off-axis 𝜈 𝑒 Appearance (NOvA) Near Detector during 2018–2022, we studied the seasonal pattern in the multiple-muon event rate. The data confirm an anticorrelation between the multiple-muon event rate and effective atmospheric temperature, consistent across all the years of data. Previous analyses from MINOS and NOvA saw a similar anticorrelation but did not include an explanation. We find that this anticorrelation is driven by altitude–geometry effects as the average muon production height changes with the season. This has been studied with a CORSIKA cosmic ray simulation package by varying atmospheric parameters, and provides an explanation to a longstanding discrepancy between the seasonal phases of single and multiple-muon events.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Suzaku Observation of the Classical Nova V2491 Cyg in Quiescence

We present Suzaku XIS observation of V2491 Cyg (Nova Cyg 2008 No. 2) obtained in quiescence, more than two years after the outburst. The nova was detected as a very luminous source in a wide spectral range from soft to hard X-rays. A very soft blackbody-like component peaking at 0.5 keV indicates that either we observe remaining, localized hydrogen burning on the surface of the white dwarf, or accretion onto a magnetized polar cap. In the second case, V2491 Cyg is a candidate "soft intermediate polar". We obtained the best fit for the X-ray spectra with several components: two of thermal plasma, a blackbody and a complex absorber. The later is typical of intermediate polars. The X-ray light-curve shows a modulation with an approximately 38 min period. The amplitude of this modulation is strongly energy dependent and reaches maximum in the 0.8-2.0 keV range. We discuss the origin of the X-ray emission and pulsations, and the likelihood of the intermediate polar scenario.

cataclysmic variables: general aEuro" nova: indivi↗

Search for 22 Na in novae supported by a novel method for measuring femtosecond nuclear lifetimes

Classical novae are thermonuclear explosions in stellar binary systems, and important sources of 26 Al and 22 Na. While γ rays from the decay of the former radioisotope have been observed throughout the Galaxy, 22 Na remains untraceable. Its half-life (2.6 yr) would allow the observation of its 1.275 MeV γ-ray line from a cosmic source. However, the prediction of such an observation requires good knowledge of its nucleosynthesis. The 22 Na(p, γ) 23 Mg reaction remains the only source of large uncertainty about the amount of 22 Na ejected. Its rate is dominated by a single resonance on the short-lived state at 7785.0(7) keV in 23 Mg. Here, we propose a combined analysis of particle-particle correlations and velocity-difference profiles to measure femtosecond nuclear lifetimes. The application of this method to the study of the 23 Mg states, places strong limits on the amount of 22 Na produced in novae and constrains its detectability with future space-borne observatories.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Proton capture on 34 S in the astrophysical energy regime of O-Ne novae

Nuclear reaction sensitivity studies have shown that the final isotopic abundance of O-Ne nova nucleosynthesis is dependent on the 34 S(p,γ) 35 Cl reaction at astrophysical energies corresponding to peak nova burning temperatures of 0.1–0.4 GK. Isotopic ratios of the S, Cl, and Ar products are all used in various methods of cosmochemical analysis of presolar meteoritic grains. Due to the lack of direct experimental data, the 34 S+p reaction rate has been estimated using statistical modeling or information from indirect nucleon transfer experiments. In order to provide direct reaction information, here the resonance strengths of several low energy resonances, E c.m. = 272–495 keV, in the 34 S(p,γ) 35 Cl reaction were measured for the first time in inverse kinematics using the DRAGON recoil separator located at TRIUMF, Canada’s Particle Accelerator Centre in Vancouver.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Search for slow magnetic monopoles with the NOvA detector on the surface

We report a search for a magnetic monopole component of the cosmic-ray flux in a 95-day exposure of the NOvA experiment’s Far Detector, a 14 kt segmented liquid scintillator detector designed primarily to observe GeV-scale electron neutrinos. No events consistent with monopoles were observed, setting an upper limit on the flux of 2 × 10 -14 cm -2 s -1 sr -1 at 90% C.L. for monopole speed 6 × 10 -4 < β < 5 × 10 -3 and mass greater than 5 × 10 8 GeV. Because of NOvA’s small overburden of 3 meters-water equivalent, this constraint covers a previously unexplored low-mass region.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Mass ordering sum rule for the neutrino disappearance channels in T2K, NOvA, and JUNO

We revisit, reformulate, and extend a method for determining the neutrino mass ordering by using precision measurements of the atmospheric Δ m 2 s in both electron and muon neutrino disappearance channels, first proposed by the authors in 2005 [H. Nunokawa , Phys. Rev. D 72, 013009 (2005)]. The mass ordering is a very important outstanding question for our understanding of the elusive neutrino and determination of the mass ordering has consequences to particle physics, nuclear physics, and cosmology. The JUNO reactor experiment will start data taking this year, and the precision of the atmospheric Δ m 2 s from electron antineutrino measurements will improve by a factor of 3 from Daya Bay’s 2.4% to 0.8% within a year. This measurement, when combined with the atmospheric Δ m 2 ’s measurements from T2K and NOvA for muon neutrino disappearance, will contribute substantially to the Δ χ 2 between the two remaining neutrino mass orderings. In this paper we derive for the first time a mass ordering sum rule that can be used to address the possibility that JUNO’s atmospheric Δ m 2 ’s measurement, when combined with other experiments in particular T2K and NOvA, can determine the neutrino mass ordering at the 3 σ confidence level within one year of operation. For a confidence level of 5 σ in a single experiment, we will have to wait until the middle of the next decade when the DUNE experiment is operating.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Search for Nova Presolar Grains: $γ$-Ray Spectroscopy of 34 Ar and its Relevance for the Astrophysical 33 Cl($p,γ$) Reaction

The discovery of presolar grains in primitive meteorites has launched a new era of research in the study of stellar nucleosynthesis. However, the accurate classification of presolar grains as being of specific stellar origins is particularly challenging. Recently, it has been suggested that sulfur isotopic abundances may hold the key to definitively identifying presolar grains with being of nova origins and, in this regard, the astrophysical Cl 33 ( p , γ ) Ar 34 reaction is expected to play a decisive role. As such, we have performed a detailed γ -ray spectroscopy study of Ar 34 . Excitation energies have been measured with high precision and spin-parity assignments for resonant states, located above the proton threshold in Ar 34 , have been made for the first time. Uncertainties in the Cl 33 ( p , γ ) reaction have been dramatically reduced and the results indicate that a newly identified ℓ = 0 resonance at E r = 396.9 ( 13 ) keV dominates the entire rate for T = 0.25 – 0.40 GK . Furthermore, nova hydrodynamic simulations based on the present work indicate an ejected S 32 / S 33 abundance ratio distinctive from type-II supernovae and potentially compatible with recent measurements of a presolar grain.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Precision Measurement of Neutrino Oscillation Parameters with 10 Years of Data from the NOvA Experiment

This Letter reports measurements of muon-neutrino disappearance and electron-neutrino appearance and the corresponding antineutrino processes between the two NOvA detectors in the NuMI neutrino beam. These measurements use a dataset with double the neutrino mode beam exposure that was previously analyzed, along with improved simulation and analysis techniques. A joint fit to these samples in the three-flavor paradigm results in the most precise single-experiment constraint on the atmospheric neutrino mass-splitting, $Δm^2_{32}= 2.431^{+0.036}_{-0.034} (-2.479^{+0.036}_{-0.036}) \times 10^{-3}$~eV$^2$ if the mass ordering is Normal (Inverted). In both orderings, a region close to maximal mixing with $\sin^2θ_{23}=0.55_{+0.06}^{-0.02}$ is preferred. The NOvA data show a mild preference for the Normal mass ordering with a Bayes factor of 2.4 (corresponding to 70% of the posterior probability), indicating that the Normal ordering is 2.4 times more probable than the Inverted ordering. When incorporating a 2D $Δm^2_{32}\textrm{--}\sin^2 2θ_{13}$ constraint based on Daya Bay data, this preference strengthens to a Bayes factor of 6.6 (87\%).

FOS: Physical sciences↗

Study of the ${{^{25}}}$Mg(d,p)${{^{26}}}$Mg reaction to constrain the ${{^{25}}}$Al(p,${\gamma }$)${{^{26}}}$Si resonant reaction rates in nova burning conditions

The rate of the 25 Al( p,γ) 26 Si reaction is one of the few key remaining nuclear uncertainties required for predicting the production of the cosmic γ-ray emitter 26 Al in explosive burning in novae. This reaction rate is dominated by three key resonances (J π = 0 + , 1 + and 3 + ) in 26 Si. Only the 3 + resonance strength has been directly constrained by experiment. A high resolution measurement of the 25 Mg(d, p) reaction was used to determine spectroscopic factors for analog states in the mirror nucleus, 26 Mg. A first spectroscopic factor value is reported for the 0 + state at 6.256 MeV, and a strict upper limit is set on the value for the 1 + state at 5.691 MeV, that is incompatible with an earlier ( 4 He, 3 He) study. These results are used to estimate proton partial widths, and resonance strengths of analog states in 26 Si contributing to the 25 Al( p,γ) 26 Si reaction rate in nova burning conditions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Physics with NOvA: a half-time review

The NOvA experiment has been collecting data in the NuMI neutrino beam since 2014. In this article we describe the rich physics program of the experiment, including long-baseline oscillation measurements, neutrino cross-section measurements, searches for phenomena beyond the standard three flavor oscillation paradigm, as well as astro-physical searches. Only half way through its expected run plan, NOvA will continue to explore exciting physics topics through 2026 and beyond.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗