Publicación 2023: Measurement of the axial vector form factor from antineutrino–proton scattering

Titulo: Measurement of the axial vector form factor from antineutrino–proton scattering

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (del FERMILAB de EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Nature
Vol 614 (2023), 7946, 48-53
Published by IOP Publishing
doi: 10.1038/s41586-022-05478-3

Abstract: Measurement of the axial vector form factor from antineutrino–proton scattering

Scattering of high energy particles from nucleons probes their structure, as was done in the experiments that established the non-zero size of the proton using electron beams. The use of charged leptons as scattering probes enables measuring the distribution of electric charges, which is encoded in the vector form factors of the nucleon. Scattering weakly interacting neutrinos gives the opportunity to measure both vector and axial vector form factors of the nucleon, providing an additional, complementary probe of their structure. The nucleon transition axial form factor, F_A, can be measured from neutrino scattering from free nucleons, ν_μ n → μ−p and ν_μ p → μ+n, as a function of the negative four-momentum transfer squared (Q²). Up to now, F_A(Q²) has been extracted from the bound nucleons in neutrino–deuterium scattering, which requires uncertain nuclear corrections. Here we report the first high-statistics measurement, to our knowledge, of the ν p→μ+n cross-section from the hydrogenatom, using the plastic scintillator target of the MINERvA experiment, extracting F_A from free proton targets and measuring the nucleon axial charge radius, r_A, to be 0.73 ± 0.17 fm. The antineutrino–hydrogen scattering presented here can access the axial form factor without the need for nuclear theory corrections, and enables direct comparisons with the increasingly precise lattice quantum chromodynamics computations. Finally, the tools developed for this analysis and the result presented are substantial advancements in our capabilities to understand the nucleon structure in the weak sector, and also help the current and future neutrino oscillation experiments to better constrain neutrino interaction models.

Publicación 2020: Probing nuclear effects with neutrino-induced charge-current neutral pion production

Titulo: 

Probing nuclear effects with neutrino-induced charged-current neutral pion production

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 102 (2020), 072007
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.102.072007

Abstract: 

We study neutrino-induced charged-current (CC) π0 production on carbon nuclei using events with fully imaged final-state proton-π0 systems. Novel use of final-state correlations based on transverse kinematic imbalance enables the first measurements of the struck nucleon’s Fermi motion, of the intranuclear momentum transfer (IMT) dynamics, and of the final-state hadronic momentum configuration in neutrino pion production. Event distributions are presented for (i) the momenta of neutrino-struck neutrons below the Fermi surface, (ii) the direction of missing transverse momentum characterizing the strength of IMT, and (iii) proton-pion momentum imbalance with respect to the lepton scattering plane. The observed Fermi
motion and IMT strength are compared to the previous MINERνA measurement of neutrino CC quasielastic-like production. The measured shapes and absolute rates of these distributions, as well as the cross section asymmetries, show tensions with predictions from current neutrino generator models.

probing-nuclear-effects-with-neutrino-induced-charged-current-neutral-pion-production40prd102.072007.2020Download

Publicación 2020: Double-differential inclusive charge-current cross sections on hydrocarbon in MINERvA at =3.5 GeV

Titulo: Double-differential inclusive charged-current νμ cross sections on
hydrocarbon in MINERvA at <E_ν> ∼ 3.5 GeV

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 101 (2020), 112007
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.101.112007

Abstract: MINERvA reports inclusive charged-current cross sections for muon neutrinos on hydrocarbon in the NuMI beamline. We measured the double-differential cross section in terms of the longitudinal and transverse muon momenta, as well as the single-differential cross sections in those variables. The data used in this analysis correspond to an exposure of 3.34×10²⁰ protons on target with a peak neutrino energy of approximately 3.5 GeV. Measurements are compared to the GENIE, NuWro and GiBUU neutrino crosssection predictions, as well as a version of GENIE modified to produce better agreement with prior exclusive MINERvA measurements. None of the models or variants were able to successfully reproduce the data across the entire phase space, which includes areas dominated by each interaction channel.

physrevd.101.112007Download

Publicación 2020: Nucleon binding energy and transverse momentum imbalance in neutrino-nucleus reactions

Titulo: Nucleon binding energy and transverse momentum imbalance
in neutrino-nucleus reactions

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 101 (2020), 092001
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.101.092001

Abstract: We have measured new observables based on the final state kinematic imbalances in the mesonless production of νμ + A → μ− + p + X in the MINERνA tracker. Components of the muon-proton momentum imbalances parallel (δ_pTy) and perpendicular (δ_pTx) to the momentum transfer in the transverse plane are found to be sensitive to the nuclear effects such as Fermi motion, binding energy, and non-quasielastic (QE) contributions. The QE peak location in δ_pTy is particularly sensitive to the binding energy. Differential cross sections are compared to predictions from different neutrino interaction models. The Fermi gas models presented in this study cannot simultaneously describe features such as QE peak location, width, and the non-QE events contributing to the signal process. Correcting the GENIE’s binding energy implementation according to theory causes better agreement with data. Hints of proton left-right asymmetry are observed in δ_pTx. Better modeling of the binding energy can reduce the bias in neutrino energy reconstruction, and these observables can be applied in current and future experiments to better constrain nuclear effects.

 

physrevd.101.092001.2020Descarga

Publicación 2020: High-Statistics Measurement of Neutrino Quasielasticlike Scattering at 6 GeV on a Hydrocarbon Target

Titulo: High-Statistics Measurement of Neutrino Quasielasticlike Scattering
at 6 GeV on a Hydrocarbon Target

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB de EEUU) – C. J. Solano Salinas (co-autor)

Physical Review Letters
Vol 124 (2020), 121801
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.121801

Abstract: We measure neutrino charged-current quasielasticlike scattering on hydrocarbon at high statistics using the wideband Neutrinos at the Main Injector beam with neutrino energy peaked at 6 GeV. The double-differential cross section is reported in terms of muon longitudinal (p//) and transverse (p⊥) momentum. Cross section contours versus lepton momentum components are approximately described by a conventional generator-based simulation, however, discrepancies are observed for transverse momenta above 0.5 GeV/c for longitudinal momentum ranges 3–5 and 9–20 GeV/c. The single differential cross section versus momentum transfer squared (dσ/dQ^2_QE) is measured over a four-decade range of Q^2 that extends to 10 GeV^2. The cross section turnover and falloff in the Q^2 range 0.3–10 GeV^2 is not fully reproduced by generator predictions that rely on dipole form factors. Our measurement probes the axial-vector content of the hadronic current and complements the electromagnetic form factor data obtained using electron-nucleon elastic scattering. These results help oscillation experiments because they probe the importance of various correlations and final-state interaction effects within the nucleus, which have different effects on the visible energy in detectors.

High-Statistics Meas of Nu QE Scattering at 6 GeV on a HC Target@PRL124.121801.2020

Publicación 2109: Constraint of the MINERνA medium energy neutrino flux using neutrino-electron elastic scattering

Titulo: Constraint of the MINERνA medium energy neutrino flux using neutrino-electron elastic scattering

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 100 (2019), 092001
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.100.092001

Abstract: Elastic neutrino scattering on electrons is a precisely known purely leptonic process that provides a standard candle for measuring neutrino flux in conventional neutrino beams. Using a total sample of 810 neutrino-electron scatters after background subtraction, the measurement reduces the normalization uncertainty on the νμ NuMI beam flux between 2 and 20 GeV from 7.6 to 3.9%. This is the most precise measurement of neutrino-electron scattering to date, will reduce uncertainties on MINERνA’s absolute cross section measurements, and demonstrates a technique that can be used in future neutrino beams such as long baseline neutrino facility.

Constraint of MINERνA ME nu flux using nue elastic scatt@PRD100.092001.2019

Publicación 2109: Measurement of νμ charged-current single π− production on hydrocarbon in the few-GeV region using MINERvA

Titulo: Measurement of ν_μ charged-current single π− production on hydrocarbon in the few-GeV region using MINERvA

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 100 (2019), 052008
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.100.052008

Abstract: The antineutrino scattering channel ν¯μ CH → μ+π−X (nucleon(s)) is analyzed in the incident energy range 1.5 to 10 GeV using the MINERvA detector at Fermilab. Differential cross sections are reported as functions of μ+ momentum and production angle, π− kinetic energy and production angle, and antineutrino energy and squared four-momentum transfer. Distribution shapes are generally reproduced by simulations based on the GENIE, NuWro, and GiBUU event generators, however GENIE (GiBUU) overestimates (underestimates) the cross section normalizations by 8% (10%). Comparisons of data with the GENIEbased reference simulation probe conventional treatments of cross sections and pion intranuclear rescattering. The distribution of nontrack vertex energy is used to decompose the signal sample into reaction categories, and cross sections are determined for the exclusive reactions μ+ π− n and μ+ π p. A similar treatment applied to the published MINERvA sample ν¯μ CH → μ+ π0 X [nucleon(s)] has determined the μ+π0 n cross section, and the latter is used with σ(π−  n) and σ(π− p) to carry out an isospin decomposition of ν¯μ-induced CC(π). The ratio of magnitudes and relative phase for isospin amplitudes A3 and A1 thereby obtained are: R^[¯ν]= 0.99 +-0.19 and ϕ¯ν = 93° +-7°. Our results are in agreement with bubble chamber measurements made four decades ago.Comparisons of data with the GENIEbased reference simulation probe conventional treatments of cross sections and pion intranuclear

Meas of ν¯μ CC single π− prod on HC in fewGeV in MINERvA@PRD100.052008.2019

20th International Workshop on Next generation Nucleon Decay and Neutrino Detectors (NNN19), Medellín, Colombia, on November 7-9, 2019

http://www.nnn19medellin.com/index.php

The 20th International Workshop on Next generation Nucleon Decay and Neutrino Detectors (NNN19) will be held for the first time in Latin America at the University of Medellin, Colombia, on November 7-9, 2019. This series of workshops brings together experts from across the particle physics community to discuss future large scale detectors for research on nucleon decay and neutrino physics. This year NNN will complete 20 years since its first version on 1999 at Stony Brook University, New York, USA.

 

Publicación 2109: Neutron measurements from antineutrino hydrocarbon reactions

Titulo: Neutron measurements from antineutrino hydrocarbon reactions

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-EEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 100 (2019), 052002
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.100.052002

Abstract: Charged-current antineutrino interactions on a hydrocarbon scintillator in the MINERvA detector are used to study activity from their final-state neutrons. To ensure that most of the neutrons are from the primary interaction, rather than hadronic reinteractions in the detector, the sample is limited to momentum transfers below 0.8 GeV/c. From 16 129 interactions, 15 246 neutral particle candidates are observed. The reference simulation predicts 64% of these candidates are due to neutrons from the antineutrino interaction directly but also overpredicts the number of candidates by 15% overall. This discrepancy is beyond the standard uncertainty estimates for models of neutrino interactions and neutron propagation in the detector.We explore these two aspects of the models using the measured distributions for energy deposition, time of flight, position, and speed.We also use multiplicity distributions to evaluate the presence of a two-nucleon knockout process. These results provide critical new information toward a complete description of the hadronic final state of neutrino interactions, which is vital to neutrino oscillation experiments.

Neutron measur from anti-nu HC reactions@PRD100.052002.2019

Publicación 2019: Measurement of quasielastic-like neutrino scattering at Eν ∼ 3.5 GeV on a hydrocarbon target

Titulo: Measurement of quasielastic-like neutrino scattering at <Eν> ∼ 3.5 GeV on a hydrocarbon target

Autores: Colaboración MINERvA (FERMILAB-νEEUU), C. J. Solano Salinas

Physical Review D
Vol 99 (2019), 012004
Published by American Physical Society
doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.99.012004

Abstract: MINERvA presents a new analysis of neutrino induced quasielastic-like interactions in a hydrocarbon tracking target. We report a double-differential cross section using the muon transverse and longitudinal momentum. In addition, differential cross sections as a function of the square of the four-momentum transferred and the neutrino energy are calculated using a quasielastic hypothesis. Finally, an analysis of energy deposited near the interaction vertex is presented. These results are compared to modified GENIE predictions as well as a NuWro prediction. All results use a data set produced by 3.34 × 10^20 protons on target creating a neutrino beam with a peak energy of approximately 3.5 GeV.

PRD99.012004.2019