We study neutrino-induced charged-current (CC) π0 production on carbon nuclei using events with fully imaged final-state proton-π0 systems. Novel use of final-state correlations based on transverse ...kinematic imbalance enables the first measurements of the struck nucleon's Fermi motion, of the intranuclear momentum transfer (IMT) dynamics, and of the final-state hadronic momentum configuration in neutrino pion production. Event distributions are presented for (i) the momenta of neutrino-struck neutrons below the Fermi surface, (ii) the direction of missing transverse momentum characterizing the strength of IMT, and (iii) proton-pion momentum imbalance with respect to the lepton scattering plane. The observed Fermi motion and IMT strength are compared to the previous MINERνA measurement of neutrino CC quasielastic-like production. The measured shapes and absolute rates of these distributions, as well as the cross section asymmetries, show tensions with predictions from current neutrino generator models.
Purpose
Mammographic density phenotypes, adjusted for age and body mass index (BMI), are strong predictors of breast cancer risk. BMI is associated with mammographic density measures, but the role of ...circulating sex hormone concentrations is less clear. We investigated the relationship between BMI, circulating sex hormone concentrations, and mammographic density phenotypes using Mendelian randomization (MR).
Methods
We applied two-sample MR approaches to assess the association between genetically predicted circulating concentrations of sex hormones estradiol, testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), BMI, and mammographic density phenotypes (dense and non-dense area). We created instrumental variables from large European ancestry-based genome-wide association studies and applied estimates to mammographic density phenotypes in up to 14,000 women of European ancestry. We performed analyses overall and by menopausal status.
Results
Genetically predicted BMI was positively associated with non-dense area (IVW:
β
= 1.79; 95% CI = 1.58, 2.00;
p
= 9.57 × 10
−63
) and inversely associated with dense area (IVW:
β
= − 0.37; 95% CI = − 0.51,− 0.23;
p
= 4.7 × 10
−7
). We observed weak evidence for an association of circulating sex hormone concentrations with mammographic density phenotypes, specifically inverse associations between genetically predicted testosterone concentration and dense area (
β
= − 0.22; 95% CI = − 0.38, − 0.053;
p
= 0.009) and between genetically predicted estradiol concentration and non-dense area (
β
= − 3.32; 95% CI = − 5.83, − 0.82;
p
= 0.009), although results were not consistent across a range of MR approaches.
Conclusion
Our findings support a positive causal association between BMI and mammographic non-dense area and an inverse association between BMI and dense area. Evidence was weaker and inconsistent for a causal effect of circulating sex hormone concentrations on mammographic density phenotypes. Based on our findings, associations between circulating sex hormone concentrations and mammographic density phenotypes are weak at best.
Abstract
We study the impact of production of heavy neutral leptons (HNL) from meson decays on the number of neutrino charged current (CC) events that will be detected at the DUNE ND LArTPC. If the ...masses of the HNLs are below the kaon mass, then a decreased number of CC events at the DUNE LArTPC will be observed. This decrease is used to set upper limits on the mixing parameters of the HNLs. We find that these limits are at least 1 order of magnitude better than the current ones for masses below 1 MeV for a year of operation in neutrino mode.
We measure neutrino charged-current quasielasticlike scattering on hydrocarbon at high statistics using the wideband Neutrinos at the Main Injector beam with neutrino energy peaked at 6 GeV. The ...double-differential cross section is reported in terms of muon longitudinal (p_{∥}) and transverse (p_{⊥}) momentum. Cross section contours versus lepton momentum components are approximately described by a conventional generator-based simulation, however, discrepancies are observed for transverse momenta above 0.5 GeV/c for longitudinal momentum ranges 3-5 and 9-20 GeV/c. The single differential cross section versus momentum transfer squared (dσ/dQ_{QE}^{2}) is measured over a four-decade range of Q^{2} that extends to 10 GeV^{2}. The cross section turnover and falloff in the Q^{2} range 0.3-10 GeV^{2} is not fully reproduced by generator predictions that rely on dipole form factors. Our measurement probes the axial-vector content of the hadronic current and complements the electromagnetic form factor data obtained using electron-nucleon elastic scattering. These results help oscillation experiments because they probe the importance of various correlations and final-state interaction effects within the nucleus, which have different effects on the visible energy in detectors.
The antineutrino scattering channel v¯μCH→μ+π−X (nucleon(s)) is analyzed in the incident energy range 1.5 to 10 GeV using the MINERvA detector at Fermilab. Differential cross sections are reported as ...functions of μ+ momentum and production angle, π− kinetic energy and production angle, and antineutrino energy and squared four-momentum transfer. Distribution shapes are generally reproduced by simulations based on the GENIE, NuWro, and GiBUU event generators, however GENIE (GiBUU) overestimates (underestimates) the cross section normalizations by 8% (10%). Comparisons of data with the GENIE-based reference simulation probe conventional treatments of cross sections and pion intranuclear rescattering. The distribution of nontrack vertex energy is used to decompose the signal sample into reaction categories, and cross sections are determined for the exclusive reactions μ+π−n and μ+π−p. A similar treatment applied to the published MINERvA sample v¯μCH→μ+π0Xnucleon(s) has determined the μ+π0n cross section, and the latter is used with σ(π−n) and σ(π−p) to carry out an isospin decomposition of v¯μ-induced CC(π). The ratio of magnitudes and relative phase for isospin amplitudes A3 and A1 thereby obtained are: Rv¯=0.99±0.19 and ϕv¯=93°±7°. Our results are in agreement with bubble chamber measurements made four decades ago.
The semiexclusive channel νμ+CH→μ−π0+nucleon(s) is analyzed using MINERvA exposed to the low-energy NuMI νμ beam with spectral peak at Eν≃3 GeV. Differential cross sections for muon momentum and ...production angle, π0 kinetic energy and production angle, and for squared four-momentum transfer are reported, and the cross section σ(Eν) is obtained over the range 1.5 GeV≤Eν<20 GeV. Results are compared to GENIE and NuWro predictions and to published MINERvA cross sections for charged-current π+(π0) production by νμ(ν¯μ) neutrinos. Disagreements between data and simulation are observed at very low and relatively high values for muon angle and for Q2 that may reflect shortfalls in modeling of interactions on carbon. For π0 kinematic distributions, however, the data are consistent with the simulation and provide support for generator treatments of pion intranuclear scattering. Using signal-event subsamples that have reconstructed protons as well as π0 mesons, the pπ0 invariant mass distribution is obtained, and the decay polar and azimuthal angle distributions in the rest frame of the pπ0 system are measured in the region of Δ(1232)+ production, W<1.4 GeV.
We have studied the consequences of breaking the CPT symmetry in the neutrino sector, using the expected high-energy neutrino flux from distant cosmological sources such as active galaxies. For this ...purpose we have assumed three different hypotheses for the neutrino production model, characterised by the flavour fluxes at production ϕ
0
e
: ϕ
0
μ
: ϕ
0
τ
= 1 : 2 : 0, 0 : 1 : 0, and 1 : 0 : 0, and studied the theoretical and experimental expectations for the muon-neutrino flux at Earth, ϕ
μ
, and for the flavour ratios at Earth,
R
= ϕ
μ
/ϕ
e
and
S
= ϕ
τ
/ϕ
μ
. CPT violation (CPTV) has been implemented by adding an energy-independent term to the standard neutrino oscillation Hamiltonian. This introduces three new mixing angles, two new eigenvalues and three new phases, all of which have currently unknown values. We have varied the new mixing angles and eigenvalues within certain bounds, together with the parameters associated to pure standard oscillations. Our results indicate that, for the models 1 : 2 : 0 and 0 : 1 : 0, it might be possible to find large deviations of ϕ
μ
,
R
, and
S
between the cases without and with CPTV, provided the CPTV eigenvalues lie within 10
−29
− 10
−27
GeV, or above. Moreover, if CPTV exists, there are certain values of R and S that can be accounted for by up to three production models. If no CPTV were observed, we could set limits on the CPTV eigenvalues of the same order. Detection prospects calculated using IceCube suggest that for the models 1 : 2 : 0 and 0 : 1 : 0, the modifications due to CPTV are larger and more clearly separable from the standard-oscillations predictions. We conclude that IceCube is potentially able to detect CPTV but that, depending on the values of the CPTV parameters, there could be a mis-determination of the neutrino production model.
MINERvA presents a new analysis of neutrino induced quasielastic-like interactions in a hydrocarbon tracking target. We report a double-differential cross section using the muon transverse and ...longitudinal momentum. In addition, differential cross sections as a function of the square of the four-momentum transferred and the neutrino energy are calculated using a quasielastic hypothesis. Finally, an analysis of energy deposited near the interaction vertex is presented. These results are compared to modified genie predictions as well as a NuWro prediction. All results use a data set produced by 3.34 × 1020 protons on target creating a neutrino beam with a peak energy of approximately 3.5 GeV.
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