The Qweak experiment has precisely determined the weak charge of the proton Qp w by measuring the parity-violating asymmetry in elastic electron-proton scattering at a low momentum transfer of Q2 = 0.0249 (GeV/c)2 . Qpw has a definite prediction in the Standard Model, and a value of sin2 θW can be extracted from it for comparison with other neutral current observables. Qweak measured the weak charge of the proton to be Qpw(P V ES) = 0.0719 ± 0.0045, which is consistent with the Standard Model value of Qp w(SM) = 0.0708 ± 0.0003. Qweak ran at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility for two and a half years and was installed in experimental Hall C. A 180µA beam of longitudinally polarized electrons at 1.16 GeV scattered off a liquid hydrogen target of unpolarized protons. The electrons were collimated to an acceptance of 5.8◦ to 11.6◦ and then passed through a magnetic spectrometer and onto quartz Čerenkov detector bars.
A detailed description of the theory and motivation behind the Qweak experiment is given. An overview of the Qweak apparatus and an in-depth discussion of the luminosity monitor performance is presented. A general overview of the Qweak analysis is also presented, with a focus on the beamline background correction, the nonlinearity measurement, and the simulation to constrain error for a rescattering effect. Also detailed here is the final, unblinded Qweak result, which determined Qpw to 6.2% and provided the highest precision measurement of sin2θW at low energy. / PHD
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/89476 |
| Date | 15 November 2017 |
| Creators | Duvall, Wade Sayer |
| Contributors | Physics, Pitt, Mark L., Huber, Patrick, Simonetti, John H., Piilonen, Leo E., Sharpe, Eric R. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/msword |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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