Neutral current excitation of nuclei by solar neutrinos

Abstract

Neutrino excitation of nuclear levels (NUEX) via neutral weak currents has been shown to be important to solar ν's as a method of detecting ν's regardless of flavor. Using a double mode detection with NUEX and the usual charged current (CC) mediated inverse β-decay, the structure of the sun and the nature of the neutrino can be independently investigated. The nuclear aspects of NUEX and a brief account of a solar ν experiment based on 11B, the most promising NUEX candidate, are presented.