36 research outputs found
Light Dark Matter in the NO{}A Near Detector: First Look at the New Data
No full textThe neutrino oscillations experiment NO{}A is the flagship of Fermi National Laboratory. The neutrino source NuMI is delivering record numbers of protons-on-target surpassing the most stringent dark matter production upper limits of current models in the under-10 GeV mass range. We take advantage of the sophisticated particle identification algorithms of the experiment to interrogate the data from the 300-ton, off-axis, low-Z, Near Detector of NOvA during the first physics runs. We search for signatures of sub-GeV or Light Dark Matter (LDM), Axion-like-particles, and Heavy or Sterile Neutrinos that may scatter or decay in the volume of the detector
Reflections on the Physics and Astronomy Student Reading Society (PhASRS) at San Jose State University
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic imposed profound changes on the way we think about
undergraduate physics education. Online courses became mainstream. Exam formats
were reimagined. Digital whiteboards replaced face-to-face discussions.
Laboratory classes were outfitted with home-delivered supply kits. And all of
us developed a more intimate knowledge of Greek letters and symbols (delta,
omicron, etc.) than we might have comfortably liked to admit. Having weathered
these transformations from the point of view of both an undergraduate student
(S.L.J.) and classroom instructors (A.H. and C.L.S.), we have found that among
the most challenging aspects of the in-person learning experience to replicate
in an online environment have been the relational ones. To highlight some of
the ways in which these issues can be mitigated, we report here on the
activities of the San Jose State University (SJSU) Physics and Astronomy
Student Reading Society (PhASRS), which was an online reading group at SJSU
founded by ourselves and others running from the summer of 2020 until the end
of the fall 2020 semester. Elements of the reading group's structure and
guiding principles are described, as well as student and faculty reflections on
what worked well and what did not. The manuscript underlines the power of
astronomy- and physics-themed journal clubs as vehicles for learning and more
generally emphasizes the importance of community-building initiatives in the
discipline. Our hope is that this summary of activities will inspire faculty
members and students at colleges and perhaps high schools to imagine new
possibilities for developing communities of people in science that might not
otherwise be able to exist.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figure
Probing neutrino magnetic moments at the Spallation Neutron Source facility
No full text24 pages.- 8 figuresMajorana neutrino electromagnetic properties are studied through neutral current coherent neutrinonucleus scattering. We focus on the potential of the recently planned COHERENT experiment at the Spallation Neutron Source to probe muon-neutrino magnetic moments. The resulting sensitivities are determined on the basis of chi(2) analysis employing realistic nuclear structure calculations in the context of the quasiparticle random phase approximation. We find that they can improve existing limits by half an order of magnitude. In addition, we show that these facilities allow for standard model precision tests in the low energy regime, with a competitive determination of the weak mixing angle. Finally, they also offer the capability to probe other electromagnetic neutrino properties, such as the neutrino charge radius. We illustrate our results for various choices of experimental setup and target material.This work was supported by Spanish MINECO under Grants FPA2014-58183-P and MULTIDARK CSD2009-00064 (Consolider-Ingenio 2010 Programme), EPLANET, the CONACyT Grant No. 166639 (Mexico), and the Generalitat Valenciana Grant No. PROMETEOII/2014/084. D. K. P. was supported by "Prometeu per a grups d' investigacio d' Excel lencia de la Conselleria d' Educacio, Cultura i Esport, CPI-14-289" (Grant No. GVPROMETEOII2014-084). D. K. P. is grateful to Dr. Athanasios Hatzikoutelis for stimulating discussions. M. T. is also supported by a Ramony Cajal contract of the Spanish MINECO.Peer reviewe
