Telling three from four neutrinos at the Neutrino Factory

We upgrade the study of the physical reach of a Neutrino Factory considering the possibility to distinguish a three (active) neutrino oscillation scenario from the scenario in which a light sterile neutrino is also present. The distinction is easily performed in the so--called 2+2 scheme, but also in the more problematic 3+1 scheme it can be attained in some regions of the parameter space. We also discuss the CP violating phase determination, showing that the effects of a large phase in the three--neutrino theory cannot be reproduced in a four--neutrino, CP conserving, model.Comment: 21 Latex2e pages, 9 figures using epsfig; minor changes and a footnote added, to be published on Nucl. Phys.

Long-Baseline Study of the Leading Neutrino Oscillation at a Neutrino Factory

Within the framework of three-flavor neutrino oscillations, we consider the physics potential of \nu_e --> \nu_\mu appearance and \nu_\mu --> \nu_\mu survival measurements at a neutrino factory for a leading oscillation scale \delta m^2 ~ 3.5 \times 10^{-3} eV^2. Event rates are evaluated versus baseline and stored muon energy, and optimal values discussed. Over a sizeable region of oscillation parameter space, matter effects would enable the sign of \delta m^2 to be determined from a comparison of \nu_e --> \nu_\mu with \bar\nu_e --> \bar\nu_\mu event rates and energy distributions. It is important, therefore, that both positive and negative muons can be stored in the ring. Measurements of the \nu_\mu --> \nu_\mu survival spectrum could determine the magnitude of \delta m^2 and the leading oscillation amplitude with a precision of O(1%--2%).Comment: 33 pages, single-spaced Revtex, uses epsf.sty, 14 postscript figures. Added references, expanded conclusions, improved figs. 13 and 14. Version to be published in Phys. Rev.

Measurement of CP violation at a Neutrino Factory

The prospects of measuring CP violation in the leptonic sector using the intense neutrino beams arising from muon decay in the straight sections of a muon accumulator ring (the so-called neutrino factory) are discussed.Comment: Invited talk given at the CP2000 Conference in Ferrara, September, 200

The silver channel at the Neutrino Factory

We notice that looking for $\nu_e \to \nu_\tau$ at the same time as $\nu_e \to \nu_\mu$ oscillations could significantly help to reduce the errors in the leptonic CP-violating phase $\delta$ measurement. We show how the $\nu_e \to \nu_\mu$ (``golden'') and $\nu_e \to \nu_\tau$ (``silver'') transitions observed at an OPERA-like 2 Kton lead-emulsion detector at L = 732 Km, in combination with the $\nu_e \to \nu_\mu$ transitions observed at a 40 Kton magnetized iron detector with a baseline of L = 3000 Km, strongly reduce the so-called $(\theta_{13}, \delta)$ ambiguity. We also show how a moderate increase in the OPERA-like detector mass (4 Kton instead of 2 Kton) completely eliminates the clone regions even for small values of $\theta_{13}$.Comment: Latex2e, 36 pages, using epsfi

Neutrino oscillation parameters from MINOS, ICARUS and OPERA combined

We perform a detailed analysis of the capabilities of the MINOS, ICARUS and OPERA experiments to measure neutrino oscillation parameters at the atmospheric scale with their data taken separately and in combination. MINOS will determine $\Delta m^2_{32}$ and $\sin^2 2\theta_{23}$ to within 10% at the 99% C.L. with 10 kton-years of data. While no one experiment will determine $\sin^2 2\theta_{13}$ with much precision, if its value lies in the combined sensitivity region of the three experiments, it will be possible to place a lower bound of O(0.01) at the 95% C.L. on this parameter by combining the data from the three experiments. The same bound can be placed with a combination of MINOS and ICARUS data alone.Comment: Version to appear in PR

On the energy and baseline optimization to study effects related to the δ\delta-phase (CP-/T-violation) in neutrino oscillations at a Neutrino Factory

In this paper we discuss the detection of CP and T-violation effects in the framework of a neutrino factory. We introduce three quantities, which are good discriminants for a non vanishing complex phase ($\delta$) in the $3\times 3$ neutrino mixing matrix. We find that these three discriminants (in vacuum) all scale with $L/E_{\nu}$. Matter effects modify the scaling, but these effects are large enough to spoil the sensitivity only for baselines larger than 5000 km. So, in the hypothesis of constant neutrino factory power, the sensitivity on the $\delta$-phase is independent of the baseline chosen. Specially interesting is the direct measurement of T-violation from the ``wrong-sign'' electron channel, which involves a comparison of the \nue\ra\numu and \numu\ra\nue oscillation rates. However, the \numu\ra\nue measurement requires magnetic discrimination of the electron charge, experimentally very challenging in a neutrino detector: low-energy neutrino beams and hence short baselines, are preferred. In this paper we show the exclusion regions in the $\Delta m^2_{12} - \delta$ plane for two concrete cases. We obtain a similar excluded region provided that the electron detection efficiency is $\sim$20% and the charge confusion 0.1%. The $\Delta m^2_{12}$ compatible with the LMA solar data can be tested with a flux of 5$\times 10^{21}$ muons. We compare these results with the fit of the visible energy distributions.Comment: 58 pages, 24 figure

Confusing non-standard neutrino interactions with oscillations at a neutrino factory

Most neutrino mass theories contain non-standard interactions (NSI) of neutrinos which can be either non-universal (NU) or flavor-changing (FC). We study the impact of such interactions on the determination of neutrino mixing parameters at a neutrino factory using the so-called ``golden channels'' \pnu{e}\to\pnu{\mu} for the measurement of \theta_{13}. We show that a certain combination of FC interactions in neutrino source and earth matter can give exactly the same signal as oscillations arising due to \theta_{13}. This implies that information about \theta_{13} can only be obtained if bounds on NSI are available. Taking into account the existing bounds on FC interactions, this leads to a drastic loss in sensitivity in \theta_{13}, at least two orders of magnitude. A near detector at a neutrino factory offers the possibility to obtain stringent bounds on some NSI parameters. Such near site detector constitutes an essential ingredient of a neutrino factory and a necessary step towards the determination of \theta_{13} and subsequent study of leptonic CP violation.Comment: 23 pages, 5 figures, improved version, accepted for publication in Phs. Rev. D, references adde

Matter Effects on Neutrino Oscillations in Long Baseline Experiments

We calculate matter effects on neutrino oscillations relevant for long baseline experiments. In particular, we compare the results obtained with constant density along the neutrino path versus results obtained by incorporating the actual density profiles in the Earth. We study the dependence of the oscillation signal on both $E/\Delta m^2_{atm}$ and on the angles in the leptonic mixing matrix. We also comment on the influence of $\Delta m^2_{sol}$ on the oscillations. The results show quantitatively how, as a function of these input parameters, matter effects can cause significant (25 %) changes in the oscillation probabilities. An important conclusion is that matter effects can be useful in amplifying certain neutrino oscillation signals and helping one to obtain measurements of mixing parameters and the magnitude and sign of $\Delta m^2_{atm}$.Comment: 26 pages, Latex, 17 postscript figures, published version, some references adde

Long Baseline Neutrino Physics with a Muon Storage Ring Neutrino Source

We examine the physics capabilities of known flavor neutrino beams from intense muon sources. We find that long-baseline neutrino experiments based on such beams can provide precise measurements of neutrino oscillation mass and mixing parameters. Furthermore, they can test whether the dominant atmospheric neutrino oscillations are \nu_\mu --> \nu_\tau and/or \nu_\mu --> \nu_s, determine the \nu_\mu --> \nu_e content of atmospheric neutrino oscillations, and measure \nu_e --> \nu_\tau appearance. Depending on the oscillation parameters, they may be able to detect Earth matter and CP violation effects and to determine the ordering of some of the mass eigenstates.Comment: 38 pages, Revtex with epsf.sty, 21 postscript figures. Minor text revisions, some new numbers in Tables II and II

Progress in the physics of massive neutrinos

The current status of the physics of massive neutrinos is reviewed with a forward-looking emphasis. The article begins with the general phenomenology of neutrino oscillations in vacuum and matter and documents the experimental evidence for oscillations of solar, reactor, atmospheric and accelerator neutrinos. Both active and sterile oscillation possibilities are considered. The impact of cosmology (BBN, CMB, leptogenesis) and astrophysics (supernovae, highest energy cosmic rays) on neutrino observables and vice versa, is evaluated. The predictions of grand unified, radiative and other models of neutrino mass are discussed. Ways of determining the unknown parameters of three-neutrino oscillations are assessed, taking into account eight-fold degeneracies in parameters that yield the same oscillation probabilities, as well as ways to determine the absolute neutrino mass scale (from beta-decay, neutrinoless double-beta decay, large scale structure and Z-bursts). Critical unknowns at present are the amplitude of \nu_\mu to \nu_e oscillations and the hierarchy of the neutrino mass spectrum; the detection of CP violation in the neutrino sector depends on these and on an unknown phase. The estimated neutrino parameter sensitivities at future facilities (reactors, superbeams, neutrino factories) are given. The overall agenda of a future neutrino physics program to construct a bottom-up understanding of the lepton sector is presented.Comment: 111 pages, 35 figures. Update