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Akindinov, V. et al, Colomer, M., Gozzini, S. R., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., Khan Chowdhury, N. R., Thakore, T., et al. (2019). Letter of interest for a neutrino beam from Protvino to KM3NeT/ORCA. Eur. Phys. J. C, 79(9), 758–14pp.
Abstract: The Protvino accelerator facility located in the Moscow region, Russia, is in a good position to offer a rich experimental research program in the field of neutrino physics. Of particular interest is the possibility to direct a neutrino beam from Protvino towards the KM3NeT/ORCA detector, which is currently under construction in the Mediterranean Sea 40 km offshore Toulon, France. This proposal is known as P2O. Thanks to its baseline of 2595 km, this experiment would yield an unparalleled sensitivity to matter effects in the Earth, allowing for the determination of the neutrino mass ordering with a high level of certainty after only a few years of running at a modest beam intensity of sensitivity to the leptonic CP-violating Dirac phase can be achieved. A second stage of the experiment, comprising a further intensity upgrade of the accelerator complex and a densified version of the ORCA detector (Super-ORCA), would allow for up to a 6 sigma\documentclass[12pt] resolution on the CP phase after 10 years of running with a 450 kW beam, competitive with other planned experiments. The initial composition and energy spectrum of the neutrino beam would need to be monitored by a near detector, to be constructed several hundred meters downstream from the proton beam target. The same neutrino beam and near detector set-up would also allow for neutrino-nucleus cross section measurements to be performed. A short-baseline sterile neutrino search experiment would also be possible.
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Thakore, T., Devi, M. M., Agarwalla, S. K., & Dighe, A. (2018). Active-sterile neutrino oscillations at INO-ICAL over a wide mass-squared range. J. High Energy Phys., 08(8), 022–34pp.
Abstract: We perform a detailed analysis for the prospects of detecting active-sterile oscillations involving a light sterile neutrino, over a large Delta m(41)(2 )range of 10(-5) eV(2) to 10(2) eV(2), using 10 years of atmospheric neutrino data expected from the proposed 50 kt magnetized ICAL detector at the INO. This detector can observe the atmospheric nu(mu), and (nu) over bar (mu) separately over a wide range of energies and baselines, making it sensitive to the magnitude and sign of Arni i over a large range. If there is no light sterile neutrino, ICAL can place competitive upper limit on vertical bar U-mu 4 vertical bar(2) less than or similar to 0.02 at 90% C.L. for Delta m(41)(2) in the range (0.5-5) x 10(-3) eV(2). For the same vertical bar Delta m(41)(2)vertical bar range, ICAL would be able to determine its sign, exploiting the Earth's matter effect in mu(-) and mu(+) events separately if there is indeed a light sterile neutrino in Nature. This would help identify the neutrino mass ordering in the four-neutrino mixing scenario.
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ANTARES and IceCube Collaborations(Albert, A. et al), Colomer, M., Gozzini, R., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., Illuminati, G., Khan-Chowdhury, N. R., et al. (2020). Combined search for neutrinos from dark matter self-annihilation in the Galactic Center with ANTARES and IceCube. Phys. Rev. D, 102(8), 082002–13pp.
Abstract: We present the results of the first combined dark matter search targeting the Galactic Center using the ANTARES and IceCube neutrino telescopes. For dark matter particles with masses from 50 to 1000 GeV, the sensitivities on the self-annihilation cross section set by ANTARES and IceCube are comparable, making this mass range particularly interesting for a joint analysis. Dark matter self-annihilation through the tau(+)tau(-) , mu(+)mu(-) , b (b) over bar, and W+W- channels is considered for both the Navarro-Frenk-White and Burkert halo profiles. In the combination of 2101.6 days of ANTARES data and 1007 days of IceCube data, no excess over the expected background is observed. Limits on the thermally averaged dark matter annihilation cross section <sigma(A)upsilon > are set. These limits present an improvement of up to a factor of 2 in the studied dark matter mass range with respect to the individual limits published by both collaborations. When considering dark matter particles with a mass of 200 GeV annihilating through the tau(+)tau(-)channel, the value obtained for the limit is 7.44 x 10(-24) cm(3) s(-1 )for the Navarro-Frenk-White halo profile. For the purpose of this joint analysis, the model parameters and the likelihood are unified, providing a benchmark for forthcoming dark matter searches performed by neutrino telescopes.
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ANTARES Collaboration(Albert, A. et al), Alves, S., Calvo, D., Carretero, V., Gozzini, R., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., et al. (2022). Search for non-standard neutrino interactions with 10 years of ANTARES data. J. High Energy Phys., 07(7), 048–22pp.
Abstract: Non-standard interactions of neutrinos arising in many theories beyond the Standard Model can significantly alter matter effects in atmospheric neutrino propagation through the Earth. In this paper, a search for deviations from the prediction of the standard 3-flavour atmospheric neutrino oscillations using the data taken by the ANTARES neutrino telescope is presented. Ten years of atmospheric neutrino data collected from 2007 to 2016, with reconstructed energies in the range from similar to 16 GeV to 100 GeV, have been analysed. A log-likelihood ratio test of the dimensionless coefficients epsilon(mu tau) and epsilon(tau tau) – epsilon(mu mu) does not provide clear evidence of deviations from standard interactions. For normal neutrino mass ordering, the combined fit of both coefficients yields a value 1.7 sigma away from the null result. However, the 68% and 95% confidence level intervals for epsilon(mu tau) and epsilon(tau tau) – epsilon(mu mu), respectively, contain the null value. Best fit values, one standard deviation errors and bounds at the 90% confidence level for these coefficients are given for both normal and inverted mass orderings. The constraint on epsilon(mu tau) is among the most stringent to date and it further restrains the strength of possible non-standard interactions in the μ- tau sector.
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ANTARES Collaboration(Albert, A. et al), Barrios-Marti, J., Coleiro, A., Colomer, M., Gozzini, R., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., et al. (2019). Measuring the atmospheric neutrino oscillation parameters and constraining the 3+1 neutrino model with ten years of ANTARES data. J. High Energy Phys., 06(6), 113–23pp.
Abstract: The ANTARES neutrino telescope has an energy threshold of a few tens of GeV. This allows to study the phenomenon of atmospheric muon neutrino disappearance due to neutrino oscillations. In a similar way, constraints on the 3+1 neutrino model, which foresees the existence of one sterile neutrino, can be inferred. Using data collected by the ANTARES neutrino telescope from 2007 to 2016, a new measurement of m 2 and (23) has been performed which is consistent with world best-fit values and constraints on the 3+1 neutrino model have been derived.
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Khatun, A., Chatterjee, S. S., Thakore, T., & Agarwalla, S. K. (2020). Enhancing sensitivity to non-standard neutrino interactions at INO combining muon and hadron information. Eur. Phys. J. C, 80(6), 533–17pp.
Abstract: In this paper, we explore the impact of flavor violating neutral current non-standard interaction (NSI) parameter epsilon(mu tau) in the oscillation of atmospheric neutrinos and antineutrinos separately using the 50 kt magnetized ICAL detector at INO. We find that due to non-zero epsilon(mu tau), nu(mu) -> nu(mu) and (nu) over bar (mu) -> (nu) over bar (mu) transition probabilities get modified substantially at higher energies and longer baselines, where vacuum oscillation dominates. We demonstrate for the first time that by adding the hadron energy information along with the muon energy and muon direction in each event, the sensitivity of ICAL to the NSI parameter epsilon(mu tau) can be enhanced significantly. The most optimistic bound on epsilon(mu tau) that we obtain is – 0.01 < epsilon(mu tau) < 0.01 at 90% C.L. using 500 kt.yr exposure and considering E-mu, cos theta(mu), and E-had' as observables in their ranges of [1, 21] GeV, [- 1, 1], and [0, 25] GeV, respectively. We discuss for the first time the importance of the charge identification capability of the ICAL detector to have better constraints on epsilon(mu t). We also study the impact of non-zero epsilon(mu tau) on mass hierarchy determination and precision measurement of oscillation parameters.
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Chakraborty, K., Goswami, S., Gupta, C., & Thakore, T. (2019). Enhancing the hierarchy and octant sensitivity of ESS nu SB in conjunction with T2K, NO nu A and ICAL@INO. J. High Energy Phys., 05(5), 137–26pp.
Abstract: The main aim of the ESSSB proposal is the discovery of the leptonic CP phase (CP) with a high significance (5 sigma for 50% values of (CP)) by utilizing the physics at the second oscillation maxima of the P-e channel. It can achieve 3 sigma sensitivity to hierarchy for all values of (CP). In this work, we concentrate on the hierarchy and octant sensitivity of the ESSSB experiment. We show that combining the ESSSB experiment with the atmospheric neutrino data from the proposed India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) experiment can result in an increased sensitivity to mass hierarchy. In addition, we also combine the results from the ongoing experiments T2K and NOa assuming their full run-time and present the combined sensitivity of ESSSB + ICAL@INO + T2K + NOA. We show that while by itself ESSSB can have up to 3 sigma hierarchy sensitivity, the combination of all the experiments can give up to 5 sigma sensitivity depending on the true hierarchy-octant combination. The octant sensitivity of ESSSB is low by itself. However the combined sensitivity of all the above experiments can give up to 3 sigma sensitivity depending on the choice of true hierarchy and octant. We discuss the various degeneracies and the synergies that lead to the enhanced sensitivity when combining different experimental data.
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ANTARES Collaboration(Albert, A. et al), Colomer, M., Gozzini, R., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., Illuminati, G., Khan-Chowdhury, N. R., et al. (2020). Search for neutrino counterparts of gravitational-wave events detected by LIGO and Virgo during run O2 with the ANTARES telescope. Eur. Phys. J. C, 80(5), 487–9pp.
Abstract: An offline search for a neutrino counterpart to gravitational -wave (GW) events detected during the second observation run (02) of Advanced-LIGO and Advanced Virgo performed with ANTARES data is presented. In addition to the search for long tracks induced by pp, (17i,) charged current interactions, a search for showering events induced by interactions of neutrinos of any flavour is conducted. The severe spatial and time coincidence provided by the gravitational -wave alert allows regions above the detector horizon to be probed, extending the ANTARES sensitivity over the entire sky. The results of this all -neutrino -flavour and all -sky time dependent analysis are presented. The search for prompt neutrino emission within 500 s around the time of six GW events yields no neutrino counterparts. Upper limits on the neutrino spectral fluence and constraints on the isotropic energy radiated via high-energy neutrinos (from a few TeV to a few tens of PeV) are set for each GW event analysed.
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KM3NeT Collaboration(Aiello, S. et al), Alves Garre, S., Calvo, D., Carretero, V., Colomer, M., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., et al. (2021). The KM3NeT potential for the next core-collapse supernova observation with neutrinos. Eur. Phys. J. C, 81(5), 445–19pp.
Abstract: The KM3NeT research infrastructure is under construction in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of two water Cherenkov neutrino detectors, ARCA and ORCA, aimed at neutrino astrophysics and oscillation research, respectively. Instrumenting a large volume of sea water with similar to 6200 optical modules comprising a total of similar to 200,000 photomultiplier tubes, KM3NeT will achieve sensitivity to similar to 10 MeV neutrinos from Galactic and near-Galactic core-collapse supernovae through the observation of coincident hits in photomultipliers above the background. In this paper, the sensitivity of KM3NeT to a supernova explosion is estimated from detailed analyses of background data from the first KM3NeT detection units and simulations of the neutrino signal. The KM3NeT observational horizon (for a 5 sigma discovery) covers essentially the Milky-Way and for the most optimistic model, extends to the Small Magellanic Cloud (similar to 60 kpc). Detailed studies of the time profile of the neutrino signal allow assessment of the KM3NeT capability to determine the arrival time of the neutrino burst with a few milliseconds precision for sources up to 5-8 kpc away, and detecting the peculiar signature of the standing accretion shock instability if the core-collapse supernova explosion happens closer than 3-5 kpc, depending on the progenitor mass. KM3NeT's capability to measure the neutrino flux spectral parameters is also presented.
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KM3NeT Collaboration(Aiello, S. et al), Calvo, D., Coleiro, A., Colomer, M., Gozzini, S. R., Hernandez-Rey, J. J., et al. (2019). KM3NeT front-end and readout electronics system: hardware, firmware, and software. J. Astron. Telesc. Instrum. Syst., 5(4), 046001–15pp.
Abstract: The KM3NeT research infrastructure being built at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea will host water-Cherenkov telescopes for the detection of cosmic neutrinos. The neutrino telescopes will consist of large volume three-dimensional grids of optical modules to detect the Cherenkov light from charged particles produced by neutrino-induced interactions. Each optical module houses 31 3-in. photomultiplier tubes, instrumentation for calibration of the photomultiplier signal and positioning of the optical module, and all associated electronics boards. By design, the total electrical power consumption of an optical module has been capped at seven Watts. We present an overview of the front-end and readout electronics system inside the optical module, which has been designed for a 1-ns synchronization between the clocks of all optical modules in the grid during a life time of at least 20 years. (C) 2019 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)
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