Short-baseline Neutrino Oscillation Experiments Research Articles

Can standard model and experimental uncertainties resolve the MiniBooNE anomaly?

We critically examine a number of theoretical uncertainties affecting the MiniBooNE short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment in an attempt to better understand the observed excess of electronlike events. We reexamine the impact of fake charged current quasielastic events, the background due to neutral current ${\ensuremath{\pi}}^{0}$ production, and the single-photon background. For all processes, we compare the predictions of different event generators (genie, gibuu, nuance, and nuwro) and, for genie, of different tunes. Where MiniBooNE uses data-driven background predictions, we discuss the uncertainties affecting the relation between the signal sample and the control sample. In the case of the single-photon background, we emphasize the uncertainties in the radiative branching ratios of heavy hadronic resonances. We find that not even a combination of uncertainties in different channels adding up unfavorably (an ``Altarelli cocktail'') appears to be sufficient to resolve the MiniBooNE anomaly. We finally investigate how modified background predictions affect the fit of a $3+1$ sterile neutrino scenario. We carefully account for full four-flavor oscillations not only in the signal but also in the background and control samples. We emphasize that, because of the strong correlation between MiniBooNE's ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{e}$ and ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{\ensuremath{\mu}}$ samples, a sterile neutrino mixing only with ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{\ensuremath{\mu}}$ is sufficient to explain the anomaly, even though the well-known tension with external constraints on ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{\ensuremath{\mu}}$ disappearance persists.

Grid-based minimization at scale: Feldman-Cousins corrections for light sterile neutrino search

High Energy Physics (HEP) experiments generally employ sophisticated statistical methods to present results in searches of new physics. In the problem of searching for sterile neutrinos, likelihood ratio tests are applied to short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments to construct confidence intervals for the parameters of interest. The test statistics of the form Δχ2 is often used to form the confidence intervals, however, this approach can lead to statistical inaccuracies due to the small signal rate in the region-of-interest. In this paper, we present a computational model for the computationally expensive Feldman-Cousins corrections to construct a statistically accurate confidence interval for neutrino oscillation analysis. The program performs a grid-based minimization over oscillation parameters and is written in C++. Our algorithms make use of vectorization through Eigen3, yielding a single-core speed-up of 350 compared to the original implementation, and achieve MPI data parallelism by employing DIY. We demonstrate the strong scaling of the application at High-Performance Computing (HPC) sites. We utilize HDF5 along with HighFive to write the results of the calculation to file.

MeV-scale reheating temperature and cosmological production of light sterile neutrinos

We investigate how sterile neutrinos with a range of masses influence cosmology in MeV-scale reheating temperature scenarios. By computing the production of sterile neutrinos through the combination of mixing and scattering in the early Universe, we find that light sterile neutrinos, with masses and mixings as inferred from short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments, are consistent with big-bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) and cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation for the reheating temperature of \U0001d4aa(1) MeV if the parent particle responsible for reheating decays into electromagnetic components (radiative decay). In contrast, if the parent particle mainly decays into hadrons (hadronic decay), the bound from BBN becomes more stringent. In this case, the existence of the light sterile neutrinos can be cosmologically excluded, depending on the mass and the hadronic branching ratio of the parent particle.

Sterile neutrinos as a source of CP violation

Several anomalous results have been reported at short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments, which cannot be accommodated in the standard 3-flavor framework. The most popular interpretation of these anomalies entails new light sterile neutrinos (with mass in the eV range) which mix with the three ordinary “active” species. We show that the presence of sterile neutrinos induces new CP violating phenomena and how the the planned LBL experiments will be able to probe them.

Statistical methods in sterile neutrino experiments

We compare the current statistical methods applied to short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments looking for light sterile neutrinos. The interpretation of the reconstructed confidence regions differs because of the different definition of the alternative hypothesis in the hypothesis test. When the alternative hypothesis extends over the whole physical allowed parameter space of the oscillation parameters, proper confidence regions are obtained both in case of a limit and a signal. Since the different definition of the alternative hypothesis prevents from a direct comparison of the results, a standardized analysis is proposed.

First measurement of the Ar(e,e′)X cross section at Jefferson Laboratory

The success of the ambitious programs of both long- and short-baseline neutrino-oscillation experiments employing liquid-argon time-projection chambers will greatly rely on the precision with which the weak response of the argon nucleus can be estimated. In the E12-14-012 experiment at Jefferson Lab Hall A, we have studied the properties of the argon nucleus by scattering a high-quality electron beam off a high-pressure gaseous argon target. Here, we present the measured $^{40}$Ar$(e,e^{\prime})$ double differential cross section at incident electron energy $E=2.222$~GeV and scattering angle $\theta = 15.541^\circ$. The data cover a broad range of energy transfers, where quasielastic scattering and delta production are the dominant reaction mechanisms. The result for argon is compared to our previously reported cross sections for titanium and carbon, obtained in the same kinematical setup.

Global status of light sterile neutrinos

The reactor, Gallium and LSND anomalies in favor of the light sterile neutrinos in short baseline neutrino oscillations are reviewed. The status of global fits including short baseline neutrino oscillation data and constraints from solar, atmospheric as well as long baseline reactor and accelerator neutrino experiments is presented. Finally the prospective of the future short baseline neutrino oscillation experiments is highlighted.

Constraints on a sub-eV scale sterile neutrino from nonoscillation measurements

Anomalies in several short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments suggest the possible existence of sterile neutrinos at about eV scale having appreciable mixing with the already known three neutrinos. We find that if such a light sterile neutrino exists, through a combined study of the leptonic decays of $\mu^-$, $\tau^-$, $\pi^-$ and $K^-$, some semi-leptonic decays of $\tau^-$ and the invisible decay width of the $Z$ boson, it is possible to constrain the relevant mixing matrix elements. Furthermore, we compare the constraints, derived by using the method presented here, with the experimental results obtained from short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We find that a single light sterile neutrino cannot satisfy the existing short-baseline neutrino oscillation constraints and explain the anomalies mentioned above. Along the way we provide a number of experimentally clean observables which can be used to directly study the light sterile neutrino independently of the neutrino oscillation experiments.

Sterile neutrinos with secret interactions—cosmological discord?

Several long-standing anomalies from short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments—most recently corroborated by new data from MiniBooNE—have led to the hypothesis that extra, “sterile”, neutrino species might exist. Models of this type face severe cosmological constraints, and several ideas have been proposed to avoid these constraints. Among the most widely discussed ones are models with so-called “secret interactions” in the neutrino sector. In these models, sterile neutrinos are hypothesized to couple to a new interaction, which dynamically suppresses their production in the early Universe through finite-temperature effects. Recently, it has been argued that the original calculations demonstrating the viability of this scenario need to be refined. Here, we update our earlier results from \\arXivid{1310.6337} [JCAP 10 (2015) 011] accordingly. We confirm that much of the previously open parameter space for secret interactions is in fact ruled out by cosmological constraints on the sum of neutrino masses and on free-streaming of active neutrinos. We then discuss possible modifications of the vanilla scenario that would reconcile sterile neutrinos with cosmology.

Updated global analysis of neutrino oscillations in the presence of eV-scale sterile neutrinos

We discuss the possibility to explain the anomalies in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments in terms of sterile neutrinos. We work in a 3 + 1 framework and pay special attention to recent new data from reactor experiments, IceCube and MINOS+. We find that results from the DANSS and NEOS reactor experiments support the sterile neutrino explanation of the reactor anomaly, based on an analysis that relies solely on the relative comparison of measured reactor spectra. Global data from the νe disappearance channel favour sterile neutrino oscillations at the 3σ level with Δm412 ≈ 1.3 eV2 and |Ue4| ≈ 0.1, even without any assumptions on predicted reactor fluxes. In contrast, the anomalies in the νe appearance channel (dominated by LSND) are in strong tension with improved bounds on νμ disappearance, mostly driven by MINOS+ and IceCube. Under the sterile neutrino oscillation hypothesis, the p-value for those data sets being consistent is less than 2.6 × 10−6. Therefore, an explanation of the LSND anomaly in terms of sterile neutrino oscillations in the 3 + 1 scenario is excluded at the 4.7σ level. This result is robust with respect to variations in the analysis and used data, in particular it depends neither on the theoretically predicted reactor neutrino fluxes, nor on constraints from any single experiment. Irrespective of the anomalies, we provide updated constraints on the allowed mixing strengths |Uα4| (α = e, μ, τ ) of active neutrinos with a fourth neutrino mass state in the eV range.

Revised neutrino-gallium cross section and prospects of BEST in resolving the gallium anomaly

O(1) eV sterile neutrino can be responsible for a number of anomalous results of neutrino oscillation experiments. This hypothesis may be tested at short base-line neutrino oscillation experiments, several of which are either ongoing or under construction. Here we concentrate on the so-called Gallium anomaly, found by SAGE and GALLEX experiments, and its foreseeable future tests with BEST experiment at Baksan Neutrino Observatory. We start with a revision of the neutrino-gallium cross section, that is performed by utilizing the recent measurements of the nuclear final state spectra. We accordingly correct the parameters of Gallium anomaly and refine the BEST prospects in testing it and searching for sterile neutrinos. We further evolve the previously proposed idea to investigate the anomaly with Zn-65 artificial neutrino source as a next option available at BEST, and estimate its sensitivity to the sterile neutrino model parameters following the Bayesian approach. We show that after the two stages of operation BEST will make 5$\sigma$-discovery of the sterile neutrinos, if they are behind the Gallium anomaly.

First observation of low energy electron neutrinos in a liquid argon time projection chamber

The capabilities of liquid argon time projection chambers (LArTPCs) to reconstruct the spatial and calorimetric information of neutrino events have made them the detectors of choice in a number of experiments, specifically those looking to observe electron neutrino ($\nu_e$) appearance. The LArTPC promises excellent background rejection capabilities, especially in this "golden" channel for both short and long baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We present the first experimental observation of electron neutrinos and anti-neutrinos in the ArgoNeut LArTPC, in the energy range relevant to DUNE and the Fermilab Short Baseline Neutrino Program. We have selected 37 electron candidate events and 274 gamma candidate events, and measured an 80\% purity of electrons based on a topological selection. Additionally, we present a of separation of electrons from gammas using calorimetric energy deposition, demonstrating further separation of electrons from background gammas.

Light sterile neutrino sensitivity of 163Ho experiments

We explore the sensitivity of $^{163}$Ho electron capture experiments to neutrino masses in the standard framework of three-neutrino mixing and in the framework of 3+1 neutrino mixing with a sterile neutrino which mixes with the three standard active neutrinos, as indicated by the anomalies found in short-baseline neutrino oscillations experiments. We calculate the sensitivity to neutrino masses and mixing for different values of the energy resolution of the detectors, of the unresolved pileup fraction and of the total statistics of events, considering the expected values of these parameters in the two planned stages of the ECHo project (ECHo-1k and ECHo-1M). We show that an extension of the ECHo-1M experiment with the possibility to collect $10^{16}$ events will be competitive with the KATRIN experiment. This statistics will allow to explore part of the 3+1 mixing parameter space indicated by the global analysis of short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. In order to cover all the allowed region, a statistics of about $10^{17}$ events will be needed.

Light sterile neutrinos: Status and perspectives

The indications in favor of the existence of light sterile neutrinos at the eV scale found in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments is reviewed. The future perspectives of short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments and the connections with β-decay measurements of the neutrino masses and with neutrinoless double-β decay experiments are discussed.

Phenomenology of Light Sterile Neutrinos

After a short review of the current status of standard three-neutrino mixing, we consider its extension with the addition of one or two light sterile neutrinos which can explain the anomalies found in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We review the results of the global analyses of short-baseline neutrino oscillation data in 3+1, 3+2 and 3+1+1 neutrino mixing schemes.

Phenomenology of light sterile neutrinos

We consider the extension of standard three-neutrino mixing with the addition of one or two light sterile neutrinos which can explain the anomalies found in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We review the results of the global analyses of short-baseline neutrino oscillation data in [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] neutrino mixing schemes.

Light sterile neutrinos and inflationary freedom

We perform a cosmological analysis in which we allow the primordial power spectrum of scalar perturbations to assume a shape that is different from the usual power-law predicted by the simplest models of cosmological inflation. We parameterize the free primordial power spectrum with a ``piecewise cubic Hermite interpolating polynomial'' (PCHIP). We consider a 3+1 neutrino mixing model with a sterile neutrino having a mass at the eV scale, which can explain the anomalies observed in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We find that the freedom of the primordial power spectrum allows to reconcile the cosmological data with a fully thermalized sterile neutrino in the early Universe. Moreover, the cosmological analysis gives us some information on the shape of the primordial power spectrum, which presents a feature around the wavenumber k=0.002 Mpc−1.

Cosmology with self-interacting sterile neutrinos and dark matter: A pseudoscalar model

Short baseline neutrino oscillation experiments have shown hints of the existence of additional sterile neutrinos in the eV mass range. Such sterile neutrinos are incompatible with cosmology because they suppress structure formation unless they can be prevented from thermalizing in the early Universe or removed by subsequent decay or annihilation. Here, we present a novel scenario in which both sterile neutrinos and dark matter are coupled to a new, light pseudoscalar. This can prevent thermalization of sterile neutrinos and make dark matter sufficiently self-interacting to have an impact on galactic dynamics and possibly resolve some of the known problems with the standard cold dark matter scenario. Even more importantly it leads to a strongly self-interacting plasma of sterile neutrinos and pseudoscalars at late times and provides an excellent fit to cosmic microwave background data. The usual cosmological neutrino mass problem is avoided by sterile neutrino annihilation to pseudoscalars. The preferred value of ${H}_{0}$ is substantially higher than in standard $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}\mathrm{CDM}$ (lambda cold dark matter) and in much better agreement with local measurements.

Short Baseline Neutrino Oscillation Experiments

Series of short baseline neutrino oscillation experiments provided unexpected results, and now they are called short baseline anomalies, and all indicates an existence of sterile neutrinos with a mass scale around 1 eV. The signals of short baseline anomalies are reported from 4 different classes of experiments. However, at this moment, there is no convincing theoretical model to explain such sterile neutrinos, and a single experiment to confirm 1 eV sterile neutrinos may be challenging. In this short note, we describe classes of short baseline neutrino oscillation experiments and their goals.

Current status of new SAGE project with 51Cr neutrino source

A very short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment with an intense 51Cr neutrino source is currently under construction at the Baksan Neutrino Observatory of the Institute for Nuclear Research RAS (BNO). The experiment, which is based on the existing SAGE experiment, will use an upgraded Gallium-Germanium Neutrino Telescope (GGNT) and an artificial 51Cr neutrino source with activity ∼3 MCi to search for transitions of active neutrinos to sterile states with Δm 2 ∼1 eV2. The neutrino source will be placed in the center of a liquid Ga metal target that is divided into two concentric zones, internal and external. The average path length of neutrinos in each zone will be the same and the neutrino capture rate will be measured separately in each zone. The oscillation signature, which comes from the ratio of events in the near and far gallium volumes, will be largely free of systematic errors, such as may occur from cross section and source strength uncertainties, and will provide a clean signal of electron neutrino disappearance into a sterile state at baselines of about 0.6 and 2.0 m. The sensitivity to the disappearance of electron neutrinos is expected to be a few percent. Construction of this set of new facilities, including a two-zone tank for irradiation of 50 tons of Ga metal with the intense 51Cr source, as well as additional modules of the GGNT counting and extraction systems, is close to completion. To check the new facilities they will first be used for SAGE solar neutrino measurements.