Search results for "[formula omitted] decay"
showing 10 items of 1452 documents
Search for heavy neutrinos mixing with tau neutrinos
2001
We report on a search for heavy neutrinos ($\nus$) produced in the decay $D_s\to \tau \nus$ at the SPS proton target followed by the decay $\nudecay$ in the NOMAD detector. Both decays are expected to occur if $\nus$ is a component of $\nu_{\tau}$.\ From the analysis of the data collected during the 1996-1998 runs with $4.1\times10^{19}$ protons on target, a single candidate event consistent with background expectations was found. This allows to derive an upper limit on the mixing strength between the heavy neutrino and the tau neutrino in the $\nus$ mass range from 10 to 190 $\rm MeV$. Windows between the SN1987a and Big Bang Nucleosynthesis lower limits and our result are still open for f…
Search for lepton flavor violating decays τ±→l± ω
2008
A search for lepton flavor violating decays of a {tau} to a lighter-mass charged lepton and an {omega} vector meson is performed using 384.1 fb{sup -1} of e{sup +}e{sup -} annihilation data collected with the BABAR detector at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center PEP-II storage ring. No signal is found, and the upper limits on the branching ratios are determined to be {beta}({tau}{sup {+-}} {yields} e{sup {+-}}{omega}) < 1.1 x 10{sup -7} and {beta}({tau}{sup {+-}} {yields} {mu}{sup {+-}}{omega}) < 1.0 x 10{sup -7} at 90% confidence level.
Precision measurement of the ratio of the charged kaon leptonic decay rates
2013
A precision measurement of the ratio RK of the rates of kaon leptonic decays K+- --> e nu and K+- --> mu nu with the full data sample collected by the NA62 experiment at CERN in 2007-2008 is reported. The result, obtained by analysing ~150000 reconstructed K+- --> e nu candidates with 11% background contamination, is RK = (2.488+-0.010)*10^{-5}, in agreement with the Standard Model expectation.
Spectral modeling of scintillator for the NEMO-3 and SuperNEMO detectors
2010
We have constructed a GEANT4-based detailed software model of photon transport in plastic scintillator blocks and have used it to study the NEMO-3 and SuperNEMO calorimeters employed in experiments designed to search for neutrinoless double beta decay. We compare our simulations to measurements using conversion electrons from a calibration source of $\rm ^{207}Bi$ and show that the agreement is improved if wavelength-dependent properties of the calorimeter are taken into account. In this article, we briefly describe our modeling approach and results of our studies.
Radiogenic backgrounds in the NEXT double beta decay experiment
2019
[EN] Natural radioactivity represents one of the main backgrounds in the search for neutrinoless double beta decay. Within the NEXT physics program, the radioactivity- induced backgrounds are measured with the NEXT-White detector. Data from 37.9 days of low-background operations at the Laboratorio Subterraneo de Canfranc with xenon depleted in Xe-136 are analyzed to derive a total background rate of (0.84 +/- 0.02) mHz above 1000 keV. The comparison of data samples with and without the use of the radon abatement system demonstrates that the contribution of airborne-Rn is negligible. A radiogenic background model is built upon the extensive radiopurity screening campaign conducted by the NEX…
Demonstration of the event identification capabilities of the NEXT-White detector
2019
[EN] In experiments searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay, the possibility of identifying the two emitted electrons is a powerful tool in rejecting background events and therefore improving the overall sensitivity of the experiment. In this paper we present the first measurement of the efficiency of a cut based on the different event signatures of double and single electron tracks, using the data of the NEXT-White detector, the first detector of the NEXT experiment operating underground. Using a 228Th calibration source to produce signal-like and background-like events with energies near 1.6 MeV, a signal efficiency of 71.6 ± 1.5 stat ± 0.3 sys% for a background acceptance of 20.6 ± …
Demonstration of background rejection using deep convolutional neural networks in the NEXT experiment
2021
[EN] Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are widely used state-of-the-art computer vision tools that are becoming increasingly popular in high-energy physics. In this paper, we attempt to understand the potential of CNNs for event classification in the NEXT experiment, which will search for neutrinoless double-beta decay in Xe-136. To do so, we demonstrate the usage of CNNs for the identification of electron-positron pair production events, which exhibit a topology similar to that of a neutrinoless double-beta decay event. These events were produced in the NEXT-White high-pressure xenon TPC using 2.6 MeV gamma rays from a Th-228 calibration source. We train a network on Monte Carlo-simulat…
Sensitivity of the NEXT experiment to Xe-124 double electron capture
2021
[EN] Double electron capture by proton-rich nuclei is a second-order nuclear process analogous to double beta decay. Despite their similarities, the decay signature is quite di erent, potentially providing a new channel to measure the hypothesized neutrinoless mode of these decays. The Standard-Model-allowed two-neutrino double electron capture has been predicted for a number of isotopes, but only observed in 78Kr, 130Ba and, recently, 124Xe. The sensitivity to this decay establishes a benchmark for the ultimate experimental goal, namely the potential to discover also the lepton-number-violating neutrinoless version of this process. Here we report on the current sensitivity of the NEXT-Whit…
Search for two-neutrino double electron capture of $^{124}$Xe with XENON100
2017
Two-neutrino double electron capture is a rare nuclear decay where two electrons are simultaneously captured from the atomic shell. For $^{124}$Xe this process has not yet been observed and its detection would provide a new reference for nuclear matrix element calculations. We have conducted a search for two-neutrino double electron capture from the K-shell of $^{124}$Xe using 7636 kg$\cdot$d of data from the XENON100 dark matter detector. Using a Bayesian analysis we observed no significant excess above background, leading to a lower 90 % credibility limit on the half-life $T_{1/2}>6.5\times10^{20}$ yr. We also evaluated the sensitivity of the XENON1T experiment, which is currently bein…
Low-diffusion Xe-He gas mixtures for rare-event detection: electroluminescence yield
2020
[EN] High pressure xenon Time Projection Chambers (TPC) based on secondary scintillation (electroluminescence) signal amplification are being proposed for rare event detection such as directional dark matter, double electron capture and double beta decay detection. The discrimination of the rare event through the topological signature of primary ionisation trails is a major asset for this type of TPC when compared to single liquid or double-phase TPCs, limited mainly by the high electron diffusion in pure xenon. Helium admixtures with xenon can be an attractive solution to reduce the electron diffu- sion significantly, improving the discrimination efficiency of these optical TPCs. We have m…