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arXiv · 1212.2182

Experimental Parameters for a Reactor Antineutrino Experiment at Very Short Baselines

K. M. Heeger·B. R. Littlejohn·H. P. Mumm·M. N. Tobin
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Abstract

Reactor antineutrinos are used to study neutrino oscillation, search for signatures of non-standard neutrino interactions, and to monitor reactor operation for safeguard applications. The flux and energy spectrum of reactor antineutrinos can be predicted from the decays of the nuclear fission products. A comparison of recent reactor calculations with past measurements at baselines of 10-100m suggests a 5.7% deficit. Precision measurements of reactor antineutrinos at very short baselines O(1-10 m) can be used to probe this anomaly and search for possible oscillations into sterile neutrino species. This paper studies the experimental requirements for a new reactor antineutrino measurement at very short baselines and calculates the sensitivity of various scenarios. We conclude that an experiment at a typical research reactor provides 5σ discovery potential for the favored oscillation parameter space with 3 years of data collection.

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K. M. Heeger, B. R. Littlejohn, H. P. Mumm, M. N. Tobin. 2012-12-10. Experimental Parameters for a Reactor Antineutrino Experiment at Very Short Baselines. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevd.87.073008

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