International Journal of Physics | Vol. 1, No. 9, September 2010 | pp. 65–72
Research Article
Title: Probing Neutrino Mass Hierarchies with Atmospheric Muon Decay Signatures at Deep-Core Detectors
Names of Authors: W. X. Yang¹, X. Y. Zhao²
Authors’ Affiliations: ¹Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, USA; ²Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe, Kashiwa, Japan
Abstract: Atmospheric neutrino oscillations traversing Earth's matter core undergo resonant flavor conversions governed by the Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein effect. We evaluate the sensitivity of multi-megaton ice/water Cherenkov detectors to resolve normal versus inverted neutrino mass hierarchies using multi-GeV muon neutrino event rates. Incorporating three-flavor mixing parameters including sin²(theta_13) = 0.025 and delta_cp phases, simulated cascade energy resolutions delta_E / E = 0.15 allow distinction of matter-induced asymmetries in the energy window E_v = 2 to 12 GeV. Baseline traversal path analysis reveals an enhanced electron appearance probability P(mu -> e) variance up to 14.5% near the zenith angle cos(theta_z) = -0.62. Systematic uncertainties related to the atmospheric flux ratio phi(nubar_mu) / phi(v_mu) are modeled using nuisance parameters, indicating a 3-sigma discovery potential for the mass hierarchy after 5 years of full detector exposure.
Keywords: Neutrino oscillation, Mass hierarchy, Atmospheric muons, Cherenkov detector, Matter effects
Manuscript Timeline: Received 01 June 2010, Revised 08 July 2010, Accepted 19 July 2010, Published 01 September 2010
Citation: Yang, W. X., & Zhao, X. Y. (2010). Probing Neutrino Mass Hierarchies with Atmospheric Muon Decay Signatures at Deep-Core Detectors. International Journal of Physics, 1(9), 65–72. DOI: 10.46882/2010/IJP/000009
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