23488016
Unitary parametrization of perturbations to tribimaximal neutrino mixing.
Current experimental data on neutrino mixing are very well described by tribimaximal mixing. Accordingly, any phenomenological parametrization of the Maki-Nakagawa-Sakata-Pontecorvo matrix must build upon tribimaximal mixing. We propose one particularly natural parametrization, which we call "triminimal." The three small deviations of the Particle Data Group angles from their tribimaximal values, and the PDG phase, parametrize the triminimal mixing matrix. As an important example of the utility of this new parametrization, we present the simple resulting expressions for the flavor-mixing probabilities of atmospheric and astrophysical neutrinos. As no foreseeable experiment will be sensitive to more than second order in the small parameters, we expand these flavor probabilities to second order.
117398144
Oscillation and Mixing Among the Three Neutrino Flavors
With the educated, interested non-specialist as the target audience, we overview what is known and not known about contemporary neutrino physics. Theory tells us that neutrinos are the second-most common particle in the Universe, behind only the quanta of radiation called photons. Almost a trillion neutrinos per second enter each human eyeball, and yet we do not see them; these neutrinos, in roughly equal numbers, are emanations from our Sun and relics of the hot "big bang" era of the early Universe. Much of what we know about neutrinos, and hope to learn in the future, is derived from a unique feature of neutrinos -- "oscillation" among neutrino "flavor" types. An initial neutrino flavor will in general oscillate into another flavor as the neutrino propagates in space and time. Oscillations are a quantum mechanical phenomenon. One of the wonders of neutrinos is that their quantum mechanics may be observed over large distances, even astronomically large. We begin this article with neutrino phenomenology in terms of masses and mixing angles, including the matter-antimatter asymmetric "phase" that appears with three neutrino types. Next we venture into neutrino oscillations. We conclude with a discussion of model-building for the neutrino masses and mixings. Throughout this article, attention is devoted to the 2012 result that the "small" neutrino mixing angle is not so small, after all.
119254616
Neutrino Oscillations from Cosmic Sources: A Nu Window to Cosmology
Neutrino astrophysics promises a wealth of information about neutrinos and the history of the universe through which they have traveled. In this letter, we extend the standard neutrino qoscillation discussion to neutrinos propagating through expanding curved space. This extension introduces a new cosmological parameter in the oscillation phase. The new parameter ℐ records cosmic history in much the same manner as the redshift variable z or the apparent luminosity distance DL. Measuring ℐ through neutrino oscillations may help to determine cosmological parameters and distinguish between different cosmologies.
2745888
Bounds on relic neutrino masses in the Z-burst model
Neutrinos from far-away sources annihilating at the Z resonance on relic neutrinos may give origin to the extreme-energy cosmic rays (EECR). If “Z-bursts” are responsible for the EECR events, then we show that the non-observation of cosmic ray events at energies above 2 ×10 20 eV by the AGASA Collaboration implies a lower bound ∼ 0.3 eV on the relic neutrino mass. Since this mass exceeds the mass-squared differences inferred from oscillation physics, the bound in fact applies to all three neutrino masses. Together with the upper bound provided by comparisons of the CMB anisotropy with largescale structure, this bound leaves only a small interval for neutrino masses around 0.3 eV, if Z-bursts are to explain the existing EECR events.
119170988
Flavor Sensitivity to $\theta_{13}$ and the Mass Hierarchy for neutrinos from Solar WIMP Annihilation
The effect of the higher-energy 2nd resonance and the associated adiabatic-to-nonadiabatic transition on neutrino propagation in solar matter is presented. For WIMP-annihilation neutrinos injected with energies in the "sweet region" between 300 MeV and 10 GeV at the Sun's center, a significant and revealing dependence on the neutrino mass hierarchy and the mixing angle theta_13 down to 0.5 degrees is found in the flavor ratios arriving at Earth. In addition, the amplification of flavor ratios in the sweet region allows a better discrimination among possible annihilation modes of the solar dark matter. Under mild assumptions on WIMP properties, it is estimated that 200 neutrino events in the sweet region would be required for inferences of theta_13, the mass hierarchy, and the dominant WIMP annihilation mode. Future large-volume, low-energy neutrino detectors are likely needed if the measurement is to be made.
121147596
Dimuon production by neutrinos: Test of weak-current models
We compare predictions of weak-current models for ..mu../sup +/..mu../sup -/ production initiated by ..nu.. and anti ..nu.. with experimental x, y, p, and v distributions of the muon associated with the incident neutrino. These distributions indicate that ..nu..N dimuon production occurs dominantly off valence quarks, with a y dependence that is somewhat suggestive of (1 - y)/sup 2/, while anti ..nu..N production occurs from sea quarks. Nevertheless, the original charm model provides a viable explanation within the uncertainties of present data. An improved description of the ..nu..N dimuon distributions is obtained with a V + A charm-changing current. The dimuon data do not exhibit the characteristics expected from the production of the b-type quark of vectorlike theories. A vector-meson-dominance interpretation does not predict satisfactory x dependences. (AIP)
55312556
Performance test of a micro-pattern stereo detector with two gas electron multipliers
Abstract We report on the performance of a large micro-pattern detector with two gas electron multiplier foils and a two-layer readout structure at ground potential. The two readout layers each have a 406 μm pitch and cross at an effective angle of 6.7°. This structure allows for two orthogonal coordinates to be determined. Using a muon beam at CERN together with a silicon tracking system, the position resolutions of the two coordinates are measured to be 50 μm and 1 mm respectively (1 standard deviation). The muon detection efficiency for the two-dimensional space points reaches 96%. The detector was found to be well operational over a wide range in the settings of the different electrical fields.
17929707
Evaluation of Beam Losses And Energy Deposition for a Possible Phase II Design for LHC Collimation
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) beams are designed to have high stability and to be stored for many hours. The nominal beam intensity lifetime is expected to be of the order of 20h. The Phase II collimation system has to be able to handle particle losses in stable physics conditions at 7 TeV in order to avoid beam aborts and to allow correction of parameters and restoration to nominal conditions. Monte Carlo simulations are needed in order to evaluate the behavior of metallic high-Z collimators during operation scenarios using a realistic distribution of losses, which is a mix of the three limiting halo cases. Moreover, the consequences in the IR7 insertion of the worst (case) abnormal beam loss are evaluated. The case refers to a spontaneous trigger of the horizontal extraction kicker at top energy, when Phase II collimators are used. These studies are an important input for engineering design of the collimation Phase II system and for the evaluation of their effect on adjacent components. The goal is to build collimators that can survive the expected conditions during LHC stable physics runs, in order to avoid quenches of the SC magnets and to protect other LHC equipments.
55572949
CRITICAL HALO LOSS LOCATIONS IN THE LHC
Results of simulations with all movable elements of the LHC collimation system [1] are discussed for various operation modes. Compared to previous results, the placing of additional collimators reduced the beam losses by a factor 10 in the ideal machine case, i.e. nominal collimators settings for both 450 GeV and 7 TeV beam energies. First results for Beam 2 are also reviewed. The sensitivity of the system to free orbit oscillations is addressed. These results show that it is sufficient to use a limited number of beam loss monitors (BLMs) for the setup and optimization of the LHC Collimation System.
107656092
Results of the studies on energy deposition in IR6 superconducting magnets from continuous beam loss on the TCDQ system
SummaryA single sided mobile graphite diluter block TCDQ, in combination with a two-sidedsecondary collimator TCS and an iron shield TCDQM, will be installed in front of thesuperconducting quadrupole Q4 magnets in IR6, in order to protect it and other downstreamLHC machine elements from destruction in the event of a beam dump that is not synchronisedwith the abort gap. The TCDQ will be positioned close to the beam, and will intercept theparticles from the secondary halo during low beam lifetime. Previous studies [1-4] haveshown that the energy deposited in the Q4 magnet coils can be close to or above the quenchlimit. In this note the results of the latest FLUKA energy deposition simulations for Beam 2are described, including an upgrade possibility for the TCDQ system with an additionalshielding device. The results are discussed in the context of the expected performance levelsfor the different phases of LHC operation. 1. Introduction The LHC beam dumping system includes a single sided mobile diluter block TCDQ [5],consisting of two blocks namely TCDQA and TCDQB, in combination with a secondarycollimator TCS and an iron shield TCDQM [6], installed in front of the superconductingquadrupole Q4 magnet in IR6, in order to protect it and other LHC machine elements fromdestruction in the event of a beam dump that is not synchronised with the abort gap [7]. TheTCDQ element should protect the LHC from damage from swept bunches under all conditions,in particular the arc aperture at 450 GeV, the low-beta triplet aperture and the tungsten tertiarycollimators at 7 TeV. The TCDQ must also prevent quenches of Q4, arising from spuriousparticles in the abort gap during a normal beam dump, and from particles lost from the beamhalo during regular operation.The two-jawed TCS collimator is located immediately after the TCDQ to precisely definethe horizontal beam position and to achieve higher precision collimation of secondary haloparticles from both sides. The TCS will receive a potentially high load from the secondary haloin the event of low beam lifetime. The nominal settings of the TCDQ and TCS are assumed tobe 8 and 7 s
119117884
Proceedings of the 2nd Workshop on Flavor Symmetries and Consequences in Accelerators and Cosmology (FLASY12)
Although existing theoretical models generally prefer extremely heavy right-handed neutrinos to generate light neutrino masses via the seesaw mechanism, there are several observed phenomena that point to the existence of both keVand eV-scale sterile neutrinos. We present two A4 flavor symmetry models that can accommodate light sterile neutrinos and remain compatible with neutrino data. Higher order seesaw terms and higher-dimensional operators are studied, and the phenomenological implications of light sterile neutrinos on neutrinoless double beta decay are discussed. 1.