Abstract
The longstanding discrepancy between bubble chamber measurements of $\nu_\mu$-induced single pion production channels has led to large uncertainties in pion production cross section parameters for many years. We extend the reanalysis of pion production data in deuterium bubble chambers where this discrepancy is solved (Wilkinson et al., PRD 90 (2014) 112017) to include the $\nu_{\mu}n\rightarrow \mu^{-}p\pi^{0}$ and $\nu_{\mu}n\rightarrow \mu^{-}n\pi^{+}$ channels, and use the resulting data to fit the parameters of the GENIE (Rein-Sehgal) pion production model. We find a set of parameters that can describe the bubble chamber data better than the GENIE default parameters, and provide updated central values and reduced uncertainties for use in neutrino oscillation and cross section analyses which use the GENIE model. We find that GENIE's non-resonant background prediction has to be significantly reduced to fit the data, which may help to explain the recent discrepancies between simulation and data observed by the MINERvA coherent pion and NOvA oscillation analyses.
Highlights
A good understanding of single pion production by neutrinos with few-GeV energies is important for current and future oscillation experiments, where pion production is either a signal process, or a large background for analyses which select quasi-elastic events
In Ref. [17], we presented a method for removing flux normalization uncertainties from the ANL and BNL νμ p → μ− pπ + measurements by taking ratios with charged-current quasi-elastic (CCQE) event rates in which the normalization cancels
The large normalization discrepancy between them has led to large uncertainties in pion production parameters, which presents a problem for meeting the stringent error budgets required by current and future oscillation analyses
Summary
A good understanding of single pion production by neutrinos with few-GeV energies is important for current and future oscillation experiments, where pion production is either a signal process, or a large background for analyses which select quasi-elastic events. At these energies the dominant production mechanism is via the production and subsequent decay of hadronic resonances. We recommend that our new uncertainties should be used by experiments which use the GENIE neutrino interaction generator, and the reanalyzed ANL and BNL datasets presented here and in Ref.
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