10:00–11:00 am
Please Join us:
Katrina Miller's PhD Thesis Defense
Thursday, April 20, 2023 at 10:00 am CDT
MEASUREMENTS OF THE EXCLUSIVE DIFFERENTIAL CHARGED CURRENT CROSS SECTION FOR ELECTRON NEUTRINOS ON ARGON WITH THE NUMI DATASET IN MICROBOONE
Neutrino research is at the forefront of new and exciting experimental searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. MicroBooNE is the first of several detectors in Fermilab's leading-edge liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC) program working toward stringent measurements of neutrino oscillations and searches for new physics. At energies relevant to accelerator-based experiments, electron neutrino charged current interactions with N>0 protons and no pions in the final topology are a dominant contribution to event rates. To date, however, limited experimental validation of this cross section exists, though such constraints are crucial for next-generation LArTPCs to reach discovery precision in the electron neutrino appearance oscillation channel. While MicroBooNE's primary physics analyses make use of the on-axis Booster Neutrino Beam, a significant off-axis neutrino flux is also received from the higher energy Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam. The greater electron neutrino content of the NuMI beam provides a unique opportunity for MicroBooNE to perform world-leading cross section measurements. This work presents the extraction of exclusive differential electron neutrino cross sections using a combination of NuMI data collected in neutrino and antineutrino mode by MicroBooNE. A state-of-the-art NuMI flux prediction, high purity 1e + Np event selection algorithm, and thorough evaluation of uncertainties are developed. Measurements are derived as a function of outgoing electron energy, total visible energy of the interaction, and opening angle between the electron and most energetic proton. The interaction rate as a function of proton multiplicity is also reported. Data-driven cross sections are compared to model predictions from neutrino event generators commonly employed in the field.
Committee Members:
David Schmitz (Chair)
Young-Kee Kim
Marcela Carena
Sam Zeller
Brian Nord
Katrina will join The New York Times as a reporting fellow, covering space, physics, and the intersection of science and society.