First Directional Measurement of Sub-MeV Solar Neutrinos with Borexino

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftForschungsartikelBeigetragenBegutachtung

Beitragende

  • Borexino Collaboration - (Autor:in)
  • Professur für Kernphysik
  • Technische Universität München
  • University College London
  • Russian Research Centre Kurchatov Institute
  • Forschungszentrum Jülich
  • National Institute for Nuclear Physics
  • Princeton University
  • Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  • Lomonosov Moscow State University
  • RAS - Saint Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute
  • Joint Institute for Nuclear Research
  • Université Paris Cité
  • Gran Sasso Science Institute
  • Jagiellonian University in Kraków
  • Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen
  • Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz
  • National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
  • Royal Holloway University of London
  • Institute for Nuclear Research
  • Moscow Engineering Physics Institute
  • Technische Universität Dresden

Abstract

We report the measurement of sub-MeV solar neutrinos through the use of their associated Cherenkov radiation, performed with the Borexino detector at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso. The measurement is achieved using a novel technique that correlates individual photon hits of events to the known position of the Sun. In an energy window between 0.54 to 0.74 MeV, selected using the dominant scintillation light, we have measured 10 887-2103+2386(stat)±947(syst) (68% confidence interval) solar neutrinos out of 19 904 total events. This corresponds to a Be7 neutrino interaction rate of 51.6-12.5+13.9 counts/(day·100 ton), which is in agreement with the standard solar model predictions and the previous spectroscopic results of Borexino. The no-neutrino hypothesis can be excluded with >5σ confidence level. For the first time, we have demonstrated the possibility of utilizing the directional Cherenkov information for sub-MeV solar neutrinos, in a large-scale, high light yield liquid scintillator detector. This measurement provides an experimental proof of principle for future hybrid event reconstruction using both Cherenkov and scintillation signatures simultaneously.

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
Aufsatznummer091803
FachzeitschriftPhysical review letters
Jahrgang128
Ausgabenummer9
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 4 März 2022
Peer-Review-StatusJa

Externe IDs

PubMed 35302807

Schlagworte

ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete