The OPERA detector, designed to search for v.sub.μ right arrow v.sub.τ oscillations in the CNGS beam, is located in the underground Gran Sasso laboratory, a privileged location to study TeV-scale ...cosmic rays. For the analysis here presented, the detector was used to measure the atmospheric muon charge ratio in the TeV region. OPERA collected charge-separated cosmic ray data between 2008 and 2012. More than 3 million atmospheric muon events were detected and reconstructed, among which about 110000 multiple muon bundles. The charge ratio R.sub.μ = N.sub.μ + /N.sub.μ- was measured separately for single and for multiple muon events. The analysis exploited the inversion of the magnet polarity which was performed on purpose during the 2012 Run. The combination of the two data sets with opposite magnet polarities allowed minimizing systematic uncertainties and reaching an accurate determination of the muon charge ratio. Data were fitted to obtain relevant parameters on the composition of primary cosmic rays and the associated kaon production in the forward fragmentation region. In the surface energy range 1-20 TeV investigated by OPERA, R.sub.μ is well described by a parametric model including only pion and kaon contributions to the muon flux, showing no significant contribution of the prompt component. The energy independence supports the validity of Feynman scaling in the fragmentation region up to 200 TeV/nucleon primary energy.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The OPERA experiment was designed to search for
ν
μ
→
ν
τ
oscillations in appearance mode through the direct observation of tau neutrinos in the CNGS neutrino beam. In this paper, we report a study ...of the multiplicity of charged particles produced in charged-current neutrino interactions in lead. We present charged hadron average multiplicities, their dispersion and investigate the KNO scaling in different kinematical regions. The results are presented in detail in the form of tables that can be used in the validation of Monte Carlo generators of neutrino–lead interactions.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
A
bstract
The OPERA neutrino experiment at the underground Gran Sasso Laboratory has measured the velocity of neutrinos from the CERN CNGS beam over a baseline of about 730 km. The measurement is ...based on data taken by OPERA in the years 2009, 2010 and 2011. Dedicated upgrades of the CNGS timing system and of the OPERA detector, as well as a high precision geodesy campaign for the measurement of the neutrino baseline, allowed reaching comparable systematic and statistical accuracies.
An arrival time of CNGS muon neutrinos with respect to the one computed assuming the speed of light in vacuum of
was measured corresponding to a relative difference of the muon neutrino velocity with respect to the speed of light
. The above result, obtained by comparing the time distributions of neutrino interactions and of protons hitting the CNGS target in 10.5
μ
s long extractions, was confirmed by a test performed at the end of 2011 using a short bunch beam allowing to measure the neutrino time of flight at the single interaction level.
We report on the performance of silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) light sensors operating in electric field strength up to 30 kV/cm and at a temperature of 149 K, relative to their performance in the ...absence of an external electric field. The SiPM devices used in this study show stable gain, photon detection efficiency, and rates of correlated pulses, when exposed to external fields, within the estimated uncertainties. No visible damage to the surface of the devices was caused by the exposure.
Abstract
The nEXO neutrinoless double beta (0
νββ
) decay experiment is designed to use a time projection chamber and 5000 kg of isotopically enriched liquid xenon to search for the decay in
136
Xe. ...Progress in the detector design, paired with higher fidelity in its simulation and an advanced data analysis, based on the one used for the final results of EXO-200, produce a sensitivity prediction that exceeds the half-life of 10
28
years. Specifically, improvements have been made in the understanding of production of scintillation photons and charge as well as of their transport and reconstruction in the detector. The more detailed knowledge of the detector construction has been paired with more assays for trace radioactivity in different materials. In particular, the use of custom electroformed copper is now incorporated in the design, leading to a substantial reduction in backgrounds from the intrinsic radioactivity of detector materials. Furthermore, a number of assumptions from previous sensitivity projections have gained further support from interim work validating the nEXO experiment concept. Together these improvements and updates suggest that the nEXO experiment will reach a half-life sensitivity of 1.35 × 10
28
yr at 90% confidence level in 10 years of data taking, covering the parameter space associated with the inverted neutrino mass ordering, along with a significant portion of the parameter space for the normal ordering scenario, for almost all nuclear matrix elements. The effects of backgrounds deviating from the nominal values used for the projections are also illustrated, concluding that the nEXO design is robust against a number of imperfections of the model.
Renal transplant recipients (RTRs) are known to have a high cardio-vascular disease (CVD) burden only partly explained by traditional CVD risk factors. The aim of this paper was therefore to ...determine: i) the prognostic value of autoantibodies against apoA-1 (anti-apoA-1 IgG) for incidence of CVD mortality, all-cause mortality and graft failure in RTR. Four hundred and sixty two (462) prospectively included RTRs were followed for 7.0 years. Baseline anti-apoA-1 IgG were determined and associations with incidence of CVD mortality (
= 48), all-cause mortality (
= 92) and graft failure (
= 39) were tested. Kaplan-Meier analyses demonstrated significant associations between tertiles of anti-apoA-1 IgG and CVD mortality (log rank test:
= 0.048). Adjusted Cox regression analysis showed a 54% increase in risk for CVD mortality for each anti-apoA-1 IgG levels standard deviation increase (hazard ratio HR: 1.54, 95% Confidence Interval 95%CI: 1.14-2.05,
= 0.005), and a 33% increase for all-cause mortality (HR: 1.33; 95%CI: 1.06-1.67,
= 0.01), independent of CVD risk factors, renal function and HDL function. The association with all-cause mortality disappeared after excluding cases of CVD specific mortality. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of anti-apoA-1 positivity for CVD mortality were 18.0%, 89.3%, 17.0%, and 90.0%, respectively. HDL functionality was not associated with anti-apoA-1 IgG levels. This prospective study demonstrates that in RTR, anti-apoA-1 IgG are independent predictors of CVD mortality and are not associated with HDL functionality.
A
bstract
In spring 2012 CERN provided two weeks of a short bunch proton beam dedicated to the neutrino velocity measurement over a distance of 730 km. The OPERA neutrino experiment at the ...underground Gran Sasso Laboratory used an upgraded setup compared to the 2011 measurements, improving the measurement time accuracy. An independent timing system based on the Resistive Plate Chambers was exploited providing a time accuracy of ~1 ns. Neutrino and anti-neutrino contributions were separated using the information provided by the OPERA magnetic spectrometers. The new analysis profited from the precision geodesy measurements of the neutrino baseline and of the CNGS/LNGS clock synchronization. The neutrino arrival time with respect to the one computed assuming the speed of light in vacuum is found to be δ
t
ν
≡
T OF
c
−
T OF
ν
= (0.6±0.4 (
stat
.)±3.0 (
syst
.)) ns and
ns for ν
μ
and
, respectively. This corresponds to a limit on the muon neutrino velocity with respect to the speed of light of −1.8 × 10
−6
< (
v
ν
−
c
)/
c
< 2.3 × 10
−6
at 90% C.L. This new measurement confirms with higher accuracy the revised OPERA result.
PDF
