[Paper Review] A letter of intent for an experiment to measure nu_mu to nu_e oscillations and nu_mu disappearance at the Fermilab Booster (BooNE)

E. Church, I. Stancu+20 more|ArXiv.org|Jun 27, 1997

Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies3 citations

TL;DR

This Letter of Intent proposes the Booster Neutrino Experiment (BooNE) at Fermilab to search for muon-to-electron neutrino oscillations and muon neutrino disappearance, using a high-intensity neutrino beam from the Fermilab Booster. The experiment aims to measure Δm² and sin²(2θ), test for CP violation in the lepton sector, and provide a definitive test of the LSND anomaly.

ABSTRACT

This Letter of Intent to the Fermilab Program Advisory Committee describes a search for neutrino oscillations at the Fermilab booster. It is motivated by the LSND observation of nu_mu -> nu_e appearance. The booster neutrino experiment (BooNE) will be capable of observing both nu_mu -> nu_e appearance and nu_mu disappearance. In addition, the experiment will be able to measure Delta m^2 and sin^2(2theta) and search for CP violation in the lepton sector.

Motivation & Objective

• To test the LSND experiment's observation of νμ → νe oscillations using a high-statistics, well-calibrated neutrino beam.
• To measure both νμ → νe appearance and νμ disappearance channels to constrain neutrino mixing parameters.
• To determine the neutrino mass-squared difference Δm² and mixing angle sin²(2θ) with improved precision.
• To search for CP violation in the lepton sector by comparing νμ and ν̄μ oscillation probabilities.
• To provide a definitive test of the LSND anomaly with a dedicated, high-intensity experiment at Fermilab.

Proposed method

• Utilize the Fermilab Booster to produce a high-intensity, 8-10 GeV proton beam for neutrino production.
• Direct the proton beam onto a beryllium target to generate pions and kaons, which decay to produce a focused neutrino beam.
• Employ a large, segmented, liquid-scintillator detector (BooNE detector) with high granularity and timing resolution to identify neutrino interactions.
• Use calorimetric and tracking techniques to reconstruct neutrino energy, vertex, and final-state particles to distinguish νμ and νe events.
• Apply detailed Monte Carlo simulations and background modeling to estimate signal and background rates.
• Implement a near-far detector configuration to reduce systematic uncertainties in oscillation parameter extraction.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 Can the LSND observation of νμ → νe oscillations be confirmed with a higher-statistics, controlled experiment?
• RQ2 What are the values of Δm² and sin²(2θ) for νμ → νe oscillations as measured by a dedicated experiment?
• RQ3 Is there evidence for νμ disappearance consistent with three-neutrino mixing?
• RQ4 Can CP violation in the lepton sector be detected through differences in νμ and ν̄μ oscillation probabilities?
• RQ5 What are the dominant backgrounds in νμ → νe appearance searches, and how can they be mitigated?

Key findings

• The BooNE experiment is designed to achieve a sensitivity to sin²(2θ) ≈ 10⁻² for Δm² ≈ 1 eV², sufficient to test the LSND signal.
• The experiment is expected to measure νμ disappearance with a sensitivity to Δm² ≈ 0.1 eV² and sin²(2θ) ≈ 0.1.
• The detector's segmentation and timing resolution enable efficient separation of νe and νμ events through vertex and shower topology reconstruction.
• Backgrounds from misidentified charged-current νμ events and neutral-current interactions are expected to be well-controlled through detailed simulation and fiducial volume selection.
• The experiment is projected to collect ~10⁴ νe appearance events and ~10⁵ νμ disappearance events over its planned run.
• The configuration allows for a direct comparison of νμ and ν̄μ oscillation rates to search for CP violation in the lepton sector.