Study of the performance of a large scale water-Cherenkov detector (MEMPHYS)

MEMPHYS (MEgaton Mass PHYSics) is a proposed large-scale water Cherenkov experiment to be performed deep underground. It is dedicated to nucleon decay searches, neutrinos from supernovae, solar and atmospheric neutrinos, as well as neutrinos from a future Super-Beam or Beta-Beam to measure the CP violating phase in the leptonic sector and the mass hierarchy. A full simulation of the detector has been performed to evaluate its performance for beam physics. The results are given in terms of "Migration Matrices" of reconstructed versus true neutrino energy, taking into account all the experimental effects.Comment: Updated after JCAP's referee's comment

Future large-scale water-Cherenkov detector

MEMPHYS (MEgaton Mass PHYSics) is a proposed large-scale water-Cherenkov experiment to be performed deep underground. It is dedicated to nucleon decay searches and the detection of neutrinos from supernovae, solar, and atmospheric neutrinos, as well as neutrinos from a future beam to measure the CP violating phase in the leptonic sector and the mass hierarchy. This paper provides an overview of the latest studies on the expected performance of MEMPHYS in view of detailed estimates of its physics reach, mainly concerning neutrino beams

The CERN-Gran Sasso Neutrino Program

This paper reviews the current experimental program envisaged with the future CERN neutrino beam called CNGS. Two detectors, OPERA and ICARUS, are under preparation and should investigate the neutrino properties coming from the CNGS to shed light on neutrino oscillation physics.Comment: Invited talk at the Seventh International Workshop on Tau Lepton Physics (TAU02), Santa Cruz, CA, USA, Sept 2002, 9 pages, LaTex, 9 eps figures. PSN tau02_th09; v2: added 1 reference in section 6 + corrected typos and minor grammatical change

Initial report from the ICFA Neutrino Panel

In July 2013 ICFA established the Neutrino Panel with the mandate "To promote international cooperation in the development of the accelerator-based neutrino-oscillation program and to promote international collaboration in the development a neutrino factory as a future intense source of neutrinos for particle physics experiments". This, the Panel's Initial Report, presents the conclusions drawn by the Panel from three regional "Town Meetings" that took place between November 2013 and February 2014. After a brief introduction and a short summary of the status of the knowledge of the oscillation parameters, the report summarises the approved programme and identifies opportunities for the development of the field. In its conclusions, the Panel recognises that to maximise the discovery potential of the accelerator-based neutrino-oscillation programme it will be essential to exploit the infrastructures that exist at CERN, FNAL and J-PARC and the expertise and resources that reside in laboratories and institutes around the world. Therefore, in its second year, the Panel will consult with the accelerator-based neutrino-oscillation community and its stakeholders to: develop a road-map for the future accelerator-based neutrino-oscillation programme that exploits the ambitions articulated at CERN, FNAL and J-PARC and includes the programme of measurement and test-beam exposure necessary to ensure the programme is able to realise its potential; develop a proposal for a coordinated "Neutrino RD" programme, the accelerator and detector R&D programme required to underpin the next generation of experiments; and to explore the opportunities for the international collaboration necessary to realise the Neutrino Factory.Comment: ICFA Neutrino Panel 2014(01

Future Precision Neutrino Oscillation Experiments and Theoretical Implications

Future neutrino oscillation experiments will lead to precision measurements of neutrino mass splittings and mixings. The flavour structure of the lepton sector will therefore at some point become better known than that of the quark sector. This article discusses the potential of future oscillation experiments on the basis of detailed simulations with an emphasis on experiments which can be done in about ten years. In addition, some theoretical implications for neutrino mass models will be briefly discussed.Comment: Talk given at Nobel Symposium 2004: Neutrino Physics, Haga Slott, Enkoping, Sweden, 19-24 Aug 200

Teleology and Realism in Leibniz's Philosophy of Science

This paper argues for an interpretation of Leibniz’s claim that physics requires both mechanical and teleological principles as a view regarding the interpretation of physical theories. Granting that Leibniz’s fundamental ontology remains non-physical, or mentalistic, it argues that teleological principles nevertheless ground a realist commitment about mechanical descriptions of phenomena. The empirical results of the new sciences, according to Leibniz, have genuine truth conditions: there is a fact of the matter about the regularities observed in experience. Taking this stance, however, requires bringing non-empirical reasons to bear upon mechanical causal claims. This paper first evaluates extant interpretations of Leibniz’s thesis that there are two realms in physics as describing parallel, self-sufficient sets of laws. It then examines Leibniz’s use of teleological principles to interpret scientific results in the context of his interventions in debates in seventeenth-century kinematic theory, and in the teaching of Copernicanism. Leibniz’s use of the principle of continuity and the principle of simplicity, for instance, reveal an underlying commitment to the truth-aptness, or approximate truth-aptness, of the new natural sciences. The paper concludes with a brief remark on the relation between metaphysics, theology, and physics in Leibniz

On the complementarity of Hyper-K and LBNF

The next generation of long-baseline experiments is being designed to make a substantial step in the precision of measurements of neutrino-oscillation probabilities. Two qualitatively different proposals, Hyper-K and LBNF, are being considered for approval. This document outlines the complimentarity between Hyper-K and LBNF.Comment: 5 pager

Procedure for short-lived particle detection in the OPERA experiment and its application to charm decays

The OPERA experiment, designed to perform the first observation of $\nu_\mu \rightarrow \nu_\tau$ oscillations in appearance mode through the detection of the $\tau$ leptons produced in $\nu_\tau$ charged current interactions, has collected data from 2008 to 2012. In the present paper, the procedure developed to detect $\tau$ particle decays, occurring over distances of the order of 1 mm from the neutrino interaction point, is described in detail. The results of its application to the search for charmed hadrons are then presented as a validation of the methods for $\nu_\tau$ appearance detection