Tau-neutrino as a probe of nonstandard interaction

Abstract

We study the Δ-resonance and deep inelastic scattering contributions in the tau-neutrino–nucleon scattering ντ+N→τ−+X and ν¯τ+N→τ++X in the presence of a charged Higgs and a W′ gauge boson. The new physics effects to the quasielastic process have been discussed in a previous work. The extractions of the atmospheric mixing angle θ23 rely on the standard model cross sections for ντ+N→τ−+X in ντ appearance experiments. Corrections to the cross sections from the charged Higgs and W′ contributions modify the measured mixing angle. We include form factor effects in the new physics calculations and find the deviations of the mixing angle. If high-energy Long Base Line experiments are designed to measure θ13 through tau-neutrino appearance, the new physics effects to ντ+N→τ−+X and ν¯τ+N→τ++X can impact the extraction of this mixing angle. Finally, we investigate the new physics effects on the polarization of the τ∓ leptons produced in ντ(ν¯τ)–nucleon scattering.