arXiv subjects

A. W. P. Poon

Publications and source records attributed to A. W. P. Poon.

121 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

arXiv2011

Combined Analysis of all Three Phases of Solar Neutrino Data from the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

We report results from a combined analysis of solar neutrino data from all phases of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory. By exploiting particle identification information obtained from the proportional counters installed during the third phase, this analysis improved background rejection in that phase of the experiment. The combined analysis resulted in a total flux of active neutrino flavors from 8B decays in the Sun of (5.25 \pm 0.16(stat.)+0.11-0.13(syst.))\times10^6 cm^{-2}s^{-1}. A two-flavor neutrino oscillation analysis yielded \Deltam^2_{21} = (5.6^{+1.9}_{-1.4})\times10^{-5} eV^2 and tan^2θ_{12}= 0.427^{+0.033}_{-0.029}. A three-flavor neutrino oscillation analysis combining this result with results of all other solar neutrino experiments and the KamLAND experiment yielded \Deltam^2_{21} = (7.41^{+0.21}_{-0.19})\times10^{-5} eV^2, tan^2θ_{12} = 0.446^{+0.030}_{-0.029}, and sin^2θ_{13} = (2.5^{+1.8}_{-1.5})\times10^{-2}. This implied an upper bound of sin^2θ_{13} < 0.053 at the 95% confidence level (C.L.).

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2011

A Monte Carlo simulation of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory proportional counters

The third phase of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) experiment added an array of 3He proportional counters to the detector. The purpose of this Neutral Current Detection (NCD) array was to observe neutrons resulting from neutral-current solar neutrino-deuteron interactions. We have developed a detailed simulation of the current pulses from the NCD array proportional counters, from the primary neutron capture on 3He through the NCD array signal-processing electronics. This NCD array Monte Carlo simulation was used to model the alpha-decay background in SNO's third-phase 8B solar-neutrino measurement.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2011

Four methods for determining the composition of trace radioactive surface contamination of low-radioactivity metal

Four methods for determining the composition of low-level uranium- and thorium-chain surface contamination are presented. One method is the observation of Cherenkov light production in water. In two additional methods a position-sensitive proportional counter surrounding the surface is used to make both a measurement of the energy spectrum of alpha particle emissions and also coincidence measurements to derive the thorium-chain content based on the presence of short-lived isotopes in that decay chain. The fourth method is a radiochemical technique in which the surface is eluted with a weak acid, the eluate is concentrated, added to liquid scintillator and assayed by recording beta-alpha coincidences. These methods were used to characterize two `hotspots' on the outer surface of one of the He-3 proportional counters in the Neutral Current Detection array of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory experiment. The methods have similar sensitivities, of order tens of ng, to both thorium- and uranium-chain contamination.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2010

Astroparticle Physics with a Customized Low-Background Broad Energy Germanium Detector

The MAJORANA Collaboration is building the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR, a 60 kg array of high purity germanium detectors housed in an ultra-low background shield at the Sanford Underground Laboratory in Lead, SD. The MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR will search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of 76Ge while demonstrating the feasibility of a tonne-scale experiment. It may also carry out a dark matter search in the 1-10 GeV/c^2 mass range. We have found that customized Broad Energy Germanium (BEGe) detectors produced by Canberra have several desirable features for a neutrinoless double-beta decay experiment, including low electronic noise, excellent pulse shape analysis capabilities, and simple fabrication. We have deployed a customized BEGe, the MAJORANA Low-Background BEGe at Kimballton (MALBEK), in a low-background cryostat and shield at the Kimballton Underground Research Facility in Virginia. This paper will focus on the detector characteristics and measurements that can be performed with such a radiation detector in a low-background environment.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2009

The calibration of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory using uniformly distributed radioactive sources

The production and analysis of distributed sources of 24Na and 222Rn in the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) are described. These unique sources provided accurate calibrations of the response to neutrons, produced through photodisintegration of the deuterons in the heavy water target, and to low energy betas and gammas. The application of these sources in determining the neutron detection efficiency and response of the 3He proportional counter array, and the characteristics of background Cherenkov light from trace amounts of natural radioactivity is described.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2007

An array of low-background $^3$He proportional counters for the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

An array of Neutral-Current Detectors (NCDs) has been built in order to make a unique measurement of the total active flux of solar neutrinos in the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO). Data in the third phase of the SNO experiment were collected between November 2004 and November 2006, after the NCD array was added to improve the neutral-current sensitivity of the SNO detector. This array consisted of 36 strings of proportional counters filled with a mixture of $^3$He and CF$_4$ gas capable of detecting the neutrons liberated by the neutrino-deuteron neutral current reaction in the D$_2$O, and four strings filled with a mixture of $^4$He and CF$_4$ gas for background measurements. The proportional counter diameter is 5 cm. The total deployed array length was 398 m. The SNO NCD array is the lowest-radioactivity large array of proportional counters ever produced. This article describes the design, construction, deployment, and characterization of the NCD array, discusses the electronics and data acquisition system, and considers event signatures and backgrounds.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2006

A geoneutrino experiment at Homestake

A significant fraction of the 44TW of heat dissipation from the Earth's interior is believed to originate from the decays of terrestrial uranium and thorium. The only estimates of this radiogenic heat, which is the driving force for mantle convection, come from Earth models based on meteorites, and have large systematic errors. The detection of electron antineutrinos produced by these uranium and thorium decays would allow a more direct measure of the total uranium and thorium content, and hence radiogenic heat production in the Earth. We discuss the prospect of building an electron antineutrino detector approximately 700m^3 in size in the Homestake mine at the 4850' level. This would allow us to make a measurement of the total uranium and thorium content with a statistical error less than the systematic error from our current knowledge of neutrino oscillation parameters. It would also allow us to test the hypothesis of a naturally occurring nuclear reactor at the center of the Earth.

physics.geo-ph↗

arXiv2005

Review of Solar and Reactor Neutrinos

Over the last several years, experiments have conclusively demonstrated that neutrinos are massive and that they mix. There is now direct evidence for $ν_e$s from the Sun transforming into other active flavors while en route to the Earth. The disappearance of reactor $\barν_e$s, predicted under the assumption of neutrino oscillation, has also been observed. In this paper, recent results from solar and reactor neutrino experiments and their implications are reviewed. In addition, some of the future experimental endeavors in solar and reactor neutrinos are presented.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2003

Recent Results from the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) measures both the flux of the electron-type neutrinos and the total flux of all active flavours of neutrinos originating from the Sun. A model-independent test of neutrino flavour transformation was performed by comparing these two measurements. In 2002, this flavour transformation was definitively demonstrated. In this talk, results from these measurements and the current status of the SNO detector are presented.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2003

Solving the Solar Neutrino Problem 2 km Underground -- the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) is capable of measuring simultaneously the flux of electron-type neutrinos and the total flux of all active flavours of neutrinos originating from the Sun. A model-independent test of neutrino flavour transformation was performed by comparing these two measurements. Assuming an undistorted neutrino energy spectrum, this transformation has been definitively demonstrated in the pure D2O phase of the SNO experiment. In the second phase with dissolved NaCl in the D2O, the total active solar neutrino flux was measured without any assumption on the energy dependence of flavour transformation. In this talk, results from these measurements, their physics implications and the current status of the SNO experiment are presented.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2002

Solar Neutrino Observations at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) is a 1000-tonne heavy water Cherenkov detector. Its usage of \dto as target allows the simultaneous measurements of the $ν_e$ flux from $^8$B decay in the Sun and the total flux of all active neutrino species through the charged-current and the neutral-current interactions on the deuterons. Assuming the standard $^{8}$B shape, the $ν_e$ component of the $^{8}$B solar neutrino flux is measured to be $ϕ_e = 1.76^{+0.05}_{-0.05}{(stat.)}^{+0.09}_{-0.09} {(syst.)} x 10^6 {\rm cm}^{-2} {\rm s}^{-1}$ for a kinetic energy threshold of 5 MeV. The non-\nue component is found to be $\phinumutau = 3.41^{+0.45}_{-0.45}{(stat.)}^{+0.48}_{-0.45} {(syst.)} x 10^6 {\rm cm}^{-2} {\rm s}^{-1}$. This $5.3σ$ difference provides strong evidence for $ν_{e}$ flavor transformation in the solar neutrino sector. The total active neutrino flux is measured with the neutral-current reaction at a neutrino energy threshold of 2.2 MeV. This flux is determined to be $ϕ_{NC} = 5.09^{+0.44}_{-0.43}{(stat.)}^{+0.46}_{-0.43} {(syst.)} x 10^6 {\rm cm}^{-2} {\rm s}^{-1}$, and is consistent with solar model predictions. Assuming an undistorted $^8$B spectrum, the night minus day rate is 14.0$\pm$6.3(stat.)$^{+1.5}_{-1.4}$(sys.)\% of the average rate in the charged-current channel. If the total active neutrino flux is constrained to have no asymmetry, the night-day asymmetry in the $ν_e$ flux is found to be 7.0$\pm$4.9(stat.)$^{+1.3}_{1.2}$(sys.)\%. A global analysis of all the available solar neutrino data in terms of matter-enhanced oscillations of two active flavors strongly favors the Large Mixing Angle (LMA) solution.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2001

Neutrino Observations from the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) is a water imaging Cherenkov detector. Its usage of 1000 metric tons of D$_{2}$O as target allows the SNO detector to make a solar-model independent test of the neutrino oscillation hypothesis by simultaneously measuring the solar $ν_{e}$ flux and the total flux of all active neutrino species. Solar neutrinos from the decay of $^{8}$B have been detected at SNO by the charged-current (CC) interaction on the deuteron and by the elastic scattering (ES) of electrons. While the CC reaction is sensitive exclusively to $ν_{e}$, the ES reaction also has a small sensitivity to $ν_μ$ and $ν_τ$. In this paper, recent solar neutrino results from the SNO experiment are presented. It is demonstrated that the solar flux from $^{8}$B decay as measured from the ES reaction rate under the no-oscillation assumption is consistent with the high precision ES measurement by the Super-Kamiokande experiment. The $ν_{e}$ flux deduced from the CC reaction rate in SNO differs from the Super-Kamiokande ES results by 3.3$sigma$. This is evidence for an active neutrino component, in additional to $ν_{e}$, in the solar neutrino flux. These results also allow the first experimental determination of the total active $^{8}$B neutrino flux from the Sun, and is found to be in good agreement with solar model predictions.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2000

A Compact 3H(p,gamma)4He 19.8-MeV Gamma-Ray Source for Energy Calibration at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) is a new 1000-tonne D2O Cerenkov solar neutrino detector. A high energy gamma-ray source is needed to calibrate SNO beyond the 8B solar neutrino endpoint of 15 MeV. This paper describes the design and construction of a source that generates 19.8-MeV gamma rays using the 3H(p,gamma)4He reaction (``pt''), and demonstrates that the source meets all the physical, operational and lifetime requirements for calibrating SNO. An ion source was built into this unit to generate and to accelerate protons up to 30 keV, and a high purity scandium tritide target with a scandium-tritium atomic ratio of 1:2.0+/-0.2 was included. This pt source is the first self-contained, compact, and portable high energy gamma-ray source (E>10 MeV).

physics.ins-det↗