arXiv subjects

J. Micallef

Publications and source records attributed to J. Micallef.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

First study of neutrino angle reconstruction using quasielastic-like interactions in MicroBooNE

We investigate the expected precision of the reconstructed neutrino direction using a {\nu}{\mu}-argon quasielastic-like event topology with one muon and one proton in the final state and the reconstruction capabilities of the MicroBooNE liquid argon time projection chamber. This direction is of importance in the context of DUNE sub-GeV atmospheric oscillation studies. MicroBooNE allows for a data-driven quantification of this resolution by investigating the deviation of the reconstructed muon-proton system orientation with respect to the well-known direction of neutrinos originating from the Booster Neutrino Beam with an exposure of 1.3 x 1021 protons on target. Using simulation studies, we derive the expected sub-GeV DUNE atmospheric-neutrino reconstructed simulated spectrum by developing a reweighting scheme as a function of the true neutrino energy. We further report flux-integrated single- and double-differential cross section measurements of charged-current {\nu}{\mu} quasielastic-like scattering on argon as a function of the muon-proton system angle using the full MicroBooNE data sets. We also demonstrate the sensitivity of these results to nuclear effects and final state hadronic reinteraction modeling.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2025

First measurement of $\nu_e$ + $\bar{\nu}_e$ charged current single charged pion production differential cross sections on argon using the MicroBooNE detector

Understanding electron neutrino interactions is crucial for measurements of neutrino oscillations and searches for new physics in neutrino experiments. We present the first measurement of the flux-averaged $\nu_e$ + $\bar{\nu}_e$ charged current single charged pion production cross section on argon using the MicroBooNE detector and data from the NuMI neutrino beam. The total cross section is measured to be (0.93 $\pm$ 0.13 (stat.) $\pm$ 0.27 (syst.)) $\times 10^{-39}$ cm$^2$/nucleon at a mean $\nu_e$ + $\bar{\nu}_e$ energy of 730 MeV. Differential cross sections are also reported in electron energy, electron and pion angles, and electron-pion opening angle.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2025

Inclusive Search for Anomalous Single-Photon Production in MicroBooNE

We present an inclusive search for anomalous production of single-photon events from neutrino interactions in the MicroBooNE experiment. The search and its signal definition are motivated by the previous observation of a low-energy excess of electromagnetic shower events from the MiniBooNE experiment. We use the Wire-Cell reconstruction framework to select a sample of inclusive single-photon final-state interactions with a final efficiency and purity of 7.0% and 40.2%, respectively. We leverage simultaneous measurements of sidebands of charged current $\nu_{\mu}$ interactions and neutral current interactions producing $\pi^{0}$ mesons to constrain signal and background predictions and reduce uncertainties. We perform a blind analysis using a dataset collected from February 2016 to July 2018, corresponding to an exposure of $6.34\times10^{20}$ protons on target from the Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) at Fermilab. In the full signal region, we observe agreement between the data and the prediction, with a goodness-of-fit $p$-value of 0.11. We then isolate a sub-sample of these events containing no visible protons, and observe $93\pm22\text{(stat.)}\pm35\text{(syst.)}$ data events above prediction, corresponding to just above $2\sigma$ local significance, concentrated at shower energies below 600 MeV.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2019

Search for $K_L \!\to\! π^0 ν\overlineν$ and $K_L \!\to\! π^0 X^0$ Decays at the J-PARC KOTO Experiment

A search for the rare decay $K_L \!\to\! π^0 ν\overlineν$ was performed. With the data collected in 2015, corresponding to $2.2 \times 10^{19}$ protons on target, a single event sensitivity of $( 1.30 \pm 0.01_{\rm stat} \pm 0.14_{\rm syst} ) \times 10^{-9}$ was achieved and no candidate events were observed. We set an upper limit of $3.0 \times 10^{-9}$ for the branching fraction of $K_L \!\to\! π^0 ν\overlineν$ at the 90% confidence level (C.L.), which improved the previous limit by almost an order of magnitude. An upper limit for $K_L \!\to\! π^0 X^0$ was also set as $2.4 \times 10^{-9}$ at the 90% C.L., where $X^0$ is an invisible boson with a mass of $135~{\rm MeV}/c^2$.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2016

A new search for the $K_{L} \to π^0 ν\overlineν$ and $K_{L} \to π^{0} X^{0}$ decays

We searched for the $CP$-violating rare decay of neutral kaon, $K_{L} \to π^0 ν\overlineν$, in data from the first 100 hours of physics running in 2013 of the J-PARC KOTO experiment. One candidate event was observed while $0.34\pm0.16$ background events were expected. We set an upper limit of $5.1\times10^{-8}$ for the branching fraction at the 90\% confidence level (C.L.). An upper limit of $3.7\times10^{-8}$ at the 90\% C.L. for the $K_{L} \to π^{0} X^{0}$decay was also set for the first time, where $X^{0}$ is an invisible particle with a mass of 135 MeV/$c^{2}$.

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