Investigating nuclear modeling and progress in measuring the CCQE cross-section on hydrogen in MINERvA

Tejin Cai ( University of Rochester)


Abstract:
Next-generation accelerator neutrino oscillation experiments such as DUNE aim to distinguish neutrino mass hierarchy and discover CP-violation. To achieve this, however, systematic uncertainties must be reduced on all fronts of the experiment. One source of uncertainties comes from the nuclear model used for measurement. For example, the binding energy of a nucleus becomes ambiguous depending on the model used. GENIE, for example, derived its binding energy from non-relativistic formalism and did not take certain nuclear potentials into account. We analyzed electron-scattering data and formulated a correction to address the issue. Clever choice of observables allows irregularities in GENIE's binding energy implementation to become visible. Ultimately, these analyses provide important understandings on the modeling of carbon, the main component in MINERvA's CH scintillators, and the primary background in the antineutrino CCQE reaction on hydrogen. By reconstructing neutrons, the separation of carbon and hydrogen can be achieved and the cross-section measured. The signal reaction would provide a direct constraint on the axial form factor of the proton, a first since the hydrogen bubble chamber experiments at the beginning of 1980.