Future long baseline neutrino oscillation experiments like the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) rely on Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) detectors. The reconstruction of neutrino flavors and energy through interactions with Argon is a critical issue for assuring the DUNE success. The neutrino-Argon nuclear cross section is one of the biggest sources of uncertainty in measuring possible Charge-Parity Violation (CPV) in the neutrino (ν) sector and decoupling background like matter-effects. This thesis summarizes the exclusive electron scattering measurement of the Jefferson Lab E12-14-012 experiment. The E12-14-012 experiment goals are to explore the Ti(e,e′p) and Ar(e,e′p) reactions in a wide range of kinematics in order to determine the spectral function of protons and neutrons in Argon. The measurements made in E12-14-012 are the first of their kind in argon and are a pivotal step in understanding the electron-Argon interaction and its relation to neutrino scattering. Titanium was specifically chosen under an assumption that its protons can be a proxy for argon neutron spectral functions. The analysis of the exclusive electron scattering in titanium is described in detail in this thesis. / M.S. / While considerable progress has been made in understanding the power of the atom, nucleons (protons and neutrons) trapped in medium-to-heavy nuclei have properties that we still need to understand. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the nuclear investigation conducted at Jefferson Lab (JLab) in Newport News, Virginia. Specifically, we follow the data analysis of the JLab Hall A Experiment E12-14-012 which seeks to quantify the nuclear energy momentum distributions of nucleons in complex nuclei like titanium and argon. These measurements, the first of their kind experimentally, are done to provide a reliable model for lepton-nucleus interactions. Modeling lepton-nucleus interactions in argon is of paramount importance, as argon is the primary target medium in future long baseline neutrino oscillation experiments like DUNE. Neutrinos are notoriously difficult to measure; and therefore, when they interact, we only measure the interaction products as they come out of the nucleus. Sometimes the products of the primary interaction will not escape the nucleus and have to be modelled to accurately estimate the incoming neutrino energy. The analysis on titanium provided in this thesis is a bridge for argon interactions with leptons, where titanium is used to determine argon neutron momentum and energy distributions.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/115308 |
| Date | 26 May 2023 |
| Creators | Lanham, Clint A. |
| Contributors | Physics, Mariani, Camillo, O'Donnell, Thomas, Pitt, Mark, Takeuchi, Tatsu |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/pdf |
Page generated in 0.0024 seconds