arXiv subjects

L. Ren

Publications and source records attributed to L. Ren.

50 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2015

Measurement of Ratios of $ν_μ$ Charged-Current Cross Sections on C, Fe, and Pb to CH at Neutrino Energies 2-20 GeV

We present measurements of $ν_μ$ charged-current cross section ratios on carbon, iron, and lead relative to a scintillator (CH) using the fine-grained MINERvA detector exposed to the NuMI neutrino beam at Fermilab. The measurements utilize events of energies $2 =8~GeV$, which have a reconstructed $μ^{-}$ scattering angle less than $17^\circ$ to extract ratios of inclusive total cross sections as a function of neutrino energy $E_ν$ and flux-integrated differential cross sections with respect to the Bjorken scaling variable $x$. These results provide the first high-statistics direct measurements of nuclear effects in neutrino scattering using different targets in the same neutrino beam. Measured cross section ratios exhibit a relative depletion at low $x$ and enhancement at large $x$. Both become more pronounced as the nucleon number of the target nucleus increases. The data are not reproduced by GENIE, a conventional neutrino-nucleus scattering simulation, or by the alternative models for the nuclear dependence of inelastic scattering that are considered.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

Measurement of Coherent Production of $π^\pm$ in Neutrino and Anti-Neutrino Beams on Carbon from $E_ν$ of $1.5$ to $20$ GeV

Neutrino-induced coherent charged pion production on nuclei, $\stackrel{(-)}ν_μA\toμ^\pmπ^\mp A$ is a rare, inelastic interaction in which a small squared four-momentum $| t|$ is transferred to the recoil nucleus leaving it intact in the reaction. In the scintillator tracker of MINERvA, we remove events with evidence of particles from nuclear breakup and reconstruct $| t|$ from the final state pion and muon. We select low $| t|$ events to isolate a sample rich in coherent candidates. By selecting low $| t|$ events we produce a model-independent measurement of the differential cross section for coherent scattering of neutrinos and anti-neutrinos on carbon. We find poor agreement with the predicted kinematics in neutrino generators used by current oscillation experiments.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

Measurement of Muon Antineutrino Quasi-Elastic Scattering on a Hydrocarbon Target at E_ν ~ 3.5 GeV

We have isolated muon anti-neutrino charged-current quasi-elastic interactions occurring in the segmented scintillator tracking region of the MINERvA detector running in the NuMI neutrino beam at Fermilab. We measure the flux-averaged differential cross-section, dσ/dQ^2, and compare to several theoretical models of quasi-elastic scattering. Good agreement is obtained with a model where the nucleon axial mass, M_A, is set to 0.99 GeV/c^2 but the nucleon vector form factors are modified to account for the observed enhancement, relative to the free nucleon case, of the cross-section for the exchange of transversely polarized photons in electron-nucleus scattering. Our data at higher Q^2 favor this interpretation over an alternative in which the axial mass is increased.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2014

Measurement of Muon Neutrino Quasi-Elastic Scattering on a Hydrocarbon Target at E_ν ~ 3.5 GeV

We report a study of muon neutrino charged-current quasi-elastic events in the segmented scintillator inner tracker of the MINERvA experiment running in the NuMI neutrino beam at Fermilab. The events were selected by requiring a μ^- and low calorimetric recoil energy separated from the interaction vertex. We measure the flux-averaged differential cross-section, dσ/dQ^2, and study the low energy particle content of the final state. Deviations are found between the measured dσ/dQ^2 and the expectations of a model of independent nucleons in a relativistic Fermi gas. We also observe an excess of energy near the vertex consistent with multiple protons in the final state.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2013

Plasmonic Nature of the Terahertz Conductivity Peak in Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes

Plasmon resonance is expected to occur in metallic and doped semiconducting carbon nanotubes in the terahertz frequency range, but its convincing identification has so far been elusive. The origin of the terahertz conductivity peak commonly observed for carbon nanotube ensembles remains controversial. Here we present results of optical, terahertz, and DC transport measurements on highly enriched metallic and semiconducting nanotube films. A broad and strong terahertz conductivity peak appears in both types of films, whose behaviors are consistent with the plasmon resonance explanation, firmly ruling out other alternative explanations such as absorption due to curvature-induced gaps.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

Design, Calibration, and Performance of the MINERvA Detector

The MINERvA experiment is designed to perform precision studies of neutrino-nucleus scattering using $ν_μ$ and ${\barν}_μ$ neutrinos incident at 1-20 GeV in the NuMI beam at Fermilab. This article presents a detailed description of the \minerva detector and describes the {\em ex situ} and {\em in situ} techniques employed to characterize the detector and monitor its performance. The detector is comprised of a finely-segmented scintillator-based inner tracking region surrounded by electromagnetic and hadronic sampling calorimetry. The upstream portion of the detector includes planes of graphite, iron and lead interleaved between tracking planes to facilitate the study of nuclear effects in neutrino interactions. Observations concerning the detector response over sustained periods of running are reported. The detector design and methods of operation have relevance to future neutrino experiments in which segmented scintillator tracking is utilized.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2013

Review of Anisotropic Terahertz Material Response

Anisotropy is ubiquitous in solids and enhanced in low-dimensional materials. In response to an electromagnetic wave, anisotropic absorptive and refractive properties result in dichroic and birefringent optical phenomena both in the linear and nonlinear optics regimes. Such material properties have led to a diverse array of useful polarization components in the visible and near-infrared, but mature technology is non-existent in the terahertz (THz). Here, we review several novel types of anisotropic material responses observed in the THz frequency range, including both linear and circular anisotropy, which have long-term implications for the development of THz polarization optics. We start with the extreme linear anisotropy of macroscopically aligned carbon nanotubes, arising from their intrinsically anisotropic dynamic conductivity. Magnetically induced anisotropy will then be reviewed, including the giant Faraday effects observed in semiconductors, semimetals, and two-dimensional electron systems.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2013

Collective Antenna Effects in the Terahertz and Infrared Response of Highly Aligned Carbon Nanotube Arrays

We study macroscopically-aligned single-wall carbon nanotube arrays with uniform lengths via polarization-dependent terahertz and infrared transmission spectroscopy. Polarization anisotropy is extreme at frequencies less than $\sim$3 THz with no sign of attenuation when the polarization is perpendicular to the alignment direction. The attenuation for both parallel and perpendicular polarizations increases with increasing frequency, exhibiting a pronounced and broad peak around 10 THz in the parallel case. We model the electromagnetic response of the sample by taking into account both radiative scattering and absorption losses. We show that our sample acts as an effective antenna due to the high degree of alignment, exhibiting much larger radiative scattering than absorption in the mid/far-infrared range. Our calculated attenuation spectrum clearly shows a non-Drude peak at $\sim$10 THz in agreement with the experiment.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Terahertz Dynamics of Quantum-Confined Electrons in Carbon Nanomaterials

Low-dimensional carbon nanostructures, such as single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and graphene, offer new opportunities for terahertz science and technology. Being zero-gap systems with a linear, photon-like energy dispersion, metallic SWCNTs and graphene exhibit a variety of extraordinary properties. Their DC and linear electrical properties have been extensively studied in the last decade, but their unusual finite-frequency, nonlinear, and/or non-equilibrium properties are largely unexplored, although they are predicted to be useful for new terahertz device applications. Terahertz dynamic conductivity measurements allow us to probe the dynamics of such photon-like electrons, or massless Dirac fermions. Here, we use terahertz time-domain spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to investigate terahertz conductivities of one-dimensional and two-dimensional electrons, respectively, in films of highly aligned SWCNTs and gated large-area graphene. In SWCNTs, we observe extremely anisotropic terahertz conductivities, promising for terahertz polarizer applications. In graphene, we demonstrate that terahertz and infrared properties sensitively change with the Fermi energy, which can be controlled by electrical gating and thermal annealing.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Methods to Determine Neutrino Flux at Low Energies:Investigation of the Low $ν$ Method

We investigate the "low-$ν$" method (developed by the CCFR/NUTEV collaborations) to determine the neutrino flux in a wide band neutrino beam at very low energies, a region of interest to neutrino oscillations experiments. Events with low hadronic final state energy $ν<ν_{cut}$ (of 1, 2 and 5 GeV) were used by the MINOS collaboration to determine the neutrino flux in their measurements of neutrino ($ν_μ$) and antineutrino ($\nub_μ$) total cross sections. The lowest $ν_μ$ energy for which the method was used in MINOS is 3.5 GeV, and the lowest $\nub_μ$ energy is 6 GeV. At these energies, the cross sections are dominated by inelastic processes. We investigate the application of the method to determine the neutrino flux for $ν_μ$, $\nub_μ$ energies as low as 0.7 GeV where the cross sections are dominated by quasielastic scattering and $Δ$(1232) resonance production. We find that the method can be extended to low energies by using $ν_{cut}$ values of 0.25 and 0.50 GeV, which is feasible in fully active neutrino detectors such as MINERvA.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2012

Circular-Polarization Dependent Cyclotron Resonance in Large-Area Graphene in Ultrahigh Magnetic Fields

Using ultrahigh magnetic fields up to 170 T and polarized midinfrared radiation with tunable wavelengths from 9.22 to 10.67 um, we studied cyclotron resonance in large-area graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition. Circular-polarization dependent studies reveal strong p-type doping for as-grown graphene, and the dependence of the cyclotron resonance on radiation wavelength allows for a determination of the Fermi energy. Thermal annealing shifts the Fermi energy to near the Dirac point, resulting in the simultaneous appearance of hole and electron cyclotron resonance in the magnetic quantum limit, even though the sample is still p-type, due to graphene's linear dispersion and unique Landau level structure. These high-field studies therefore allow for a clear identification of cyclotron resonance features in large-area, low-mobility graphene samples.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2010

Polarization dependence of coherent phonon generation and detection in highly-aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes

We have investigated the polarization dependence of the generation and detection of radial breathing mode (RBM) coherent phonons (CP) in highly-aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes. Using polarization-dependent pump-probe differential-transmission spectroscopy, we measured RBM CPs as a function of angle for two different geometries. In Type I geometry, the pump and probe polarizations were fixed, and the sample orientation was rotated, whereas, in Type II geometry, the probe polarization and sample orientation were fixed, and the pump polarization was rotated. In both geometries, we observed a very nearly complete quenching of the RBM CPs when the pump polarization was perpendicular to the nanotubes. For both Type I and II geometries, we have developed a microscopic theoretical model to simulate CP generation and detection as a function of polarization angle and found that the CP signal decreases as the angle goes from 0 degrees (parallel to the tube) to 90 degrees (perpendicular to the tube). We compare theory with experiment in detail for RBM CPs created by pumping at the E44 optical transition in an ensemble of single-walled carbon nanotubes with a diameter distribution centered around 3 nm, taking into account realistic band structure and imperfect nanotube alignment in the sample.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2009

Carbon Nanotube Terahertz Polarizer

We describe a film of highly-aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes that acts as an excellent terahertz linear polarizer. There is virtually no attenuation (strong absorption) when the terahertz polarization is perpendicular (parallel) to the nanotube axis. From the data we calculated the reduced linear dichrosim to be 3, corresponding to a nematic order parameter of 1, which demonstrates nearly perfect alignment as well as intrinsically anisotropic terahertz response of single-walled carbon nanotubes in the film.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2007

Terahertz Time-Domain Magnetospectroscopy of a High-Mobility Two-Dimensional Electron Gas

We have observed cyclotron resonance in a high-mobility GaAs/AlGaAs two-dimensional electron gas by using the techniques of terahertz time-domain spectroscopy combined with magnetic fields. From this, we calculate the real and imaginary parts of the diagonal elements of the magnetoconductivity tensor, which in turn allows us to extract the concentration, effective mass, and scattering time of the electrons in the sample. We demonstrate the utility of ultrafast terahertz spectroscopy, which can recover the true linewidth of cyclotron resonance in a high-mobility ($>{10}^{6} \mathrm{cm^{2} V^{-1} s^{-1}}$) sample without being affected by the saturation effect.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗