Abstract
The Fermilab Short-Baseline Neutrino (SBN) experiments, MicroBooNE, ICARUS, and SBND, are expected to have significant sensitivity to light weakly coupled hidden sector particles. Here we study the capability of the SBN experiments to probe dark scalars interacting through the Higgs portal. We investigate production of dark scalars using both the Fermilab Booster 8 GeV and NuMI 120 GeV proton beams, simulating kaons decaying to dark scalars and taking into account the beamline geometry. We also investigate strategies to mitigate backgrounds from beam-related neutrino scattering events. We find that SBND, with its comparatively short ${\cal O}(100\ {\rm m})$ baseline, will have the best sensitivity to scalars produced with Booster, while ICARUS, with its large detector volume, will provide the best limits on off-axis dark scalar production from NuMI. The SBN experiments can provide leading tests of dark scalars with masses in the 50 - 350 MeV range in the near term. Our results motivate dedicated experimental searches for dark scalars and other long-lived hidden sector states at these experiments.
Highlights
Light weakly coupled hidden sectors may play a role in addressing some of the outstanding puzzles in particle physics and cosmology, such as dark matter, neutrino masses, the matter-antimatter asymmetry, the hierarchy problem, and inflation [1,2,3,4]
In this paper we study the capability of the short-baseline neutrino (SBN) experiments to search for dark scalar particles S interacting via the Higgs portal
For scalars produced along the Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam line from the main injector, we find that ICARUS, with its large detector volume, will have the leading sensitivity
Summary
Light weakly coupled hidden sectors may play a role in addressing some of the outstanding puzzles in particle physics and cosmology, such as dark matter, neutrino masses, the matter-antimatter asymmetry, the hierarchy problem, and inflation [1,2,3,4] They provide an interesting physics target for a variety of intensity frontier experiments. Kaons decaying at rest (KDAR) after stopping in the NuMI absorber could produce monoenergetic scalars entering ICARUS at a different angle from neutrinos produced in the target, providing a novel signature. In both cases, our projections cover regions of scalar mass—mixing angle parameter space extending beyond existing experimental limits.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
