Yao, D. L., Alvarez-Ruso, L., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2019). Neutral-current weak pion production off the nucleon in covariant chiral perturbation theory. Phys. Lett. B, 794, 109–113.
Abstract: Neutral current single pion production induced by neutrinos and antineutrinos on nucleon targets has been investigated in manifestly relativistic baryon chiral perturbation theory with explicit Delta(1232) degrees of freedom up to O(p(3)). At low energies, where chiral perturbation theory is applicable, the total cross sections for the different reaction channels exhibit a sizable non-resonant contribution, which is not present in event generators of broad use in neutrino oscillation and cross section experiments such as GENIE and NuWro.
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Alvarez-Ruso, L., Graczyk, K. M., & Saul-Sala, E. (2019). Nucleon axial form factor from a Bayesian neural-network analysis of neutrino-scattering data. Phys. Rev. C, 99(2), 025204–14pp.
Abstract: The Bayesian approach for feedforward neural networks has been applied to the extraction of the nucleon axial form factor from the neutrino-deuteron-scattering data measured by the Argonne National Laboratory bubble-chamber experiment. This framework allows to perform a model-independent determination of the axial form factor from data. When the low 0.05 < Q(2) < 0.10-GeV2 data are included in the analysis, the resulting axial radius disagrees with available determinations. Furthermore, a large sensitivity to the corrections from the deuteron structure is obtained. In turn, when the low-Q(2) region is not taken into account with or without deuteron corrections, no significant deviations from previous determinations have been observed. A more accurate determination of the nucleon axial form factor requires new precise measurements of neutrino-induced quasielastic scattering on hydrogen and deuterium.
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Yao, D. L., Alvarez-Ruso, L., Hiller Blin, A. N., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2018). Weak pion production off the nucleon in covariant chiral perturbation theory. Phys. Rev. D, 98(7), 076004–25pp.
Abstract: Weak pion production off the nucleon at low energies has been systematically investigated in manifestly relativistic baryon chiral perturbation theory with explicit inclusion of the Delta(1232) resonance. Most of the involved low-energy constants have been previously determined in other processes such as pion-nucleon elastic scattering and electromagnetic pion production off the nucleon. For numerical estimates, the few remaining constants are set to be of natural size. As a result, the total cross sections for single pion production on neutrons and protons, induced either by neutrino or antineutrino, are predicted. Our results are consistent with the scarce existing experimental data except in the nu(mu)n -> mu(-)n pi(+) channel, where higher-order contributions might still be significant. The Delta resonance mechanisms lead to sizeable contributions in all channels, especially in nu(mu)p -> mu(-) p pi(+), even though the considered energies are close to the production threshold. The present study provides a well-founded low-energy benchmark for phenomenological models aimed at the description of weak pion production processes in the broad kinematic range of interest for current and future neutrino-oscillation experiments.
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Alvarez-Ruso, L. et al, & Nieves, J. (2018). NuSTEC White Paper: Status and challenges of neutrino-nucleus scattering. Prog. Part. Nucl. Phys., 100, 1–68.
Abstract: The precise measurement of neutrino properties is among the highest priorities in fundamental particle physics, involving many experiments worldwide. Since the experiments rely on the interactions of neutrinos with bound nucleons inside atomic nuclei, the planned advances in the scope and precision of these experiments require a commensurate effort in the understanding and modeling of the hadronic and nuclear physics of these interactions, which is incorporated as a nuclear model in neutrino event generators. This model is essential to every phase of experimental analyses and its theoretical uncertainties play an important role in interpreting every result. In this White Paper we discuss in detail the impact of neutrino-nucleus interactions, especially the nuclear effects, on the measurement of neutrino properties using the determination of oscillation parameters as a central example. After an Executive Summary and a concise Overview of the issues, we explain how the neutrino event generators work, what can be learned from electron-nucleus interactions and how each underlying physics process – from quasi-elastic to deep inelastic scattering – is understood today. We then emphasize how our understanding must improve to meet the demands of future experiments. With every topic we find that the challenges can be met only with the active support and collaboration among specialists in strong interactions and electroweak physics that include theorists and experimentalists from both the nuclear and high energy physics communities.
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Yao, D. L., Alvarez-Ruso, L., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2017). Extraction of nucleon axial charge and radius from lattice QCD results using baryon chiral perturbation theory. Phys. Rev. D, 96(11), 116022–11pp.
Abstract: We calculate the nucleon axial form factor up to the leading one-loop order in a covariant chiral effective field theory with the Delta(1232) resonance as an explicit degree of freedom. We fit the axial form factor to the latest lattice QCD data and pin down the relevant low-energy constants. The lattice QCD data, for various pion masses below 400 MeV, can be well described up to a momentum transfer of similar to 0.6 GeV. The Delta(1232) loops contribute significantly to this agreement. Furthermore, we extract the axial charge and radius based on the fitted values of the low-energy constants. The results are g(A) = 1.237(74) and < r(A)(2)> = 0.263(38) fm(2). The obtained coupling g(A) is consistent with the experimental value if the uncertainty is taken into account. The axial radius is below but in agreement with the recent extraction from neutrino quasielastic scattering data on deuterium, which has large error bars. Up to our current working accuracy, r(A) is predicted only at leading order, i.e., the one-loop level. A more precise determination might need terms of O(p(5)).
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Rocco, N., Alvarez-Ruso, L., Lovato, A., & Nieves, J. (2017). Electromagnetic scaling functions within the Green's function Monte Carlo approach. Phys. Rev. C, 96(1), 015504–12pp.
Abstract: We have studied the scaling properties of the electromagnetic response functions of He-4 and C-12 nuclei computed by the Green's function Monte Carlo approach, retaining only the one-body current contribution. Longitudinal and transverse scaling functions have been obtained in the relativistic and nonrelativistic cases and compared to experiment for various kinematics. The characteristic asymmetric shape of the scaling function exhibited by data emerges in the calculations in spite of the nonrelativistic nature of the model. The results are mostly consistent with scaling of zeroth, first, and second kinds. Our analysis reveals a direct correspondence between the scaling and the nucleon-density response functions. The scaling function obtained from the proton-density response displays scaling of the first kind, even more evidently than the longitudinal and transverse scaling functions.
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Ren, X. L., Alvarez-Ruso, L., Geng, L. S., Ledwig, T., Meng, J., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2017). Consistency between SU(3) and SU(2) covariant baryon chiral perturbation theory for the nucleon mass. Phys. Lett. B, 766, 325–333.
Abstract: Treating the strange quark mass as a heavy scale compared to the light quark mass, we perform a matching of the nucleon mass in the SU(3) sector to the two-flavor case in covariant baryon chiral perturbation theory. The validity of the 19low-energy constants appearing in the octet baryon masses up to next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order[1] is supported by comparing the effective parameters (the combinations of the 19couplings) with the corresponding low-energy constants in the SU(2) sector[2]. In addition, it is shown that the dependence of the effective parameters and the pion-nucleon sigma term on the strange quark mass is relatively weak around its physical value, thus providing support to the assumption made in Ref.[2] that the SU(2) baryon chiral perturbation theory can be applied to study n(f) = 2 + 1lattice QCD simulations as long as the strange quark mass is close to its physical value.
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Alvarez-Ruso, L., Hernandez, E., Nieves, J., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2016). Watson's theorem and the N Delta(1232) axial transition. Phys. Rev. D, 93(1), 014016–16pp.
Abstract: We present a new determination of the N Delta axial form factors from neutrino induced pion production data. For this purpose, the model of Hernandez et al. [Phys. Rev. D 76, 033005 (2007)] is improved by partially restoring unitarity. This is accomplished by imposing Watson's theorem on the dominant vector and axial multipoles. As a consequence, a larger C-5(A) (0), in good agreement with the prediction from the off-diagonal Goldberger-Treiman relation, is now obtained.
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Wang, E., Alvarez-Ruso, L., Hayato, Y., Mahn, K., & Nieves, J. (2015). Photon emission in neutral current interactions at the T2K experiment. Phys. Rev. D, 92(5), 053005–8pp.
Abstract: We have applied a microscopic model for single photon emission in neutral current interactions on nucleons and nuclei to determine the number and distributions of such events at the Super-Kamiokande detector, for the flux and beam exposure of the T2K experiment in neutrino mode. These reactions represent an effectively irreducible background in electron-(anti) neutrino appearance measurements aimed at a precise measurement of mixing angle theta(13) and the CP violating phase. We have obtained a total number of photon events that is twice as large as the one from the NEUT event generator (version 5.1.4.2) used in the analysis of T2K data. Detailed comparisons of energy and angular distributions for the nu μand (nu) over bar μfluxes have also been performed.
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Ren, X. L., Oset, E., Alvarez-Ruso, L., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2015). Antineutrino induced Lambda(1405) production off the proton. Phys. Rev. C, 91(4), 045201–11pp.
Abstract: We have studied the strangeness-changing antineutrino-induced reactions (v) over bar (l)p -> l(+)phi B, with phi B = K(-)p, (K) over bar (0)n, pi(0)Lambda, pi(0)Sigma(0), eta Lambda, eta Sigma(0), pi(+)Sigma(-), pi(-)Sigma(+), K+Xi(-), and K-0 Xi(0), using a chiral unitary approach. These ten coupled channels are allowed to interact strongly, using a kernel derived from the chiral Lagrangians. This interaction generates two Lambda(1405) poles, leading to a clear single peak in the pi Sigma invariant mass distributions. At backward scattering angles in the center-of-mass frame, (nu) over bar (mu)p -> mu(+)pi(0)Sigma(0) is dominated by the Lambda(1405) state at around 1420 MeV while the lighter state becomes relevant as the angle decreases, leading to an asymmetric line shape. In addition, there are substantial differences in the shape of pi Sigma invariant mass distributions for the three charge channels. If observed, these differences would provide valuable information on a claimed isospin I = 1, strangeness S = -1 baryonic state around 1400 MeV. Integrated cross sections have been obtained for the pi Sigma and (K) over barN channels and the impact of unitarization in the results has been investigated. The number of events with Lambda(1405) excitation in (nu) over bar μp collisions in the recent antineutrino run at the Main Injector Experiment for nu-A (MINER nu A) has also been obtained. We find that this reaction channel is relevant enough to be investigated experimentally and to be taken into account in the simulation models of future experiments with antineutrino beams.
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