Signals for strange quark contributions to the neutrino (antineutrino) scattering in quasi-elastic region

Strange quark contributions to the neutrino (antineutrino) scattering are investigated on the elastic neutrino-nucleon scattering and the neutrino-nucleus scattering for 12C target in the quasi-elastic region on the incident energy of 500 MeV, within the framework of a relativistic single particle model. For the neutrino-nucleus scattering, the effects of final state interaction for the knocked-out nucleon are included by a relativistic optical potential. In the cross sections we found some cancellations of the strange quark contributions between the knocked-out protons and neutrons. Consequently, the asymmetries between the incident neutrino and antineutrino which is the ratio of neutral current to charged current, and the difference between the asymmetries are shown to be able to yield more feasible quantities for the strangeness effects. In order to explicitly display importance of the cancellations, results of the exclusive reaction 16O(\nu, \nu' p) are additionally presented for detecting the strangeness effects.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phys. Lett.

Degeneracies at a beta-Beam and a Super-Beam Facility

The presence of degeneracies can considerably worsen the measure of the neutrino oscillation parameters $\theta_{13}$ and $\delta$. We study the physics reach of a specific ``CERN'' setup, using a standard $\beta$-Beam and Super-Beam facility. These facilities have a similar sensitivity in both parameters. Their combination does not provide any dramatic improvement as expected due to their almost identical L/E ratio. We analyse if adding the correspondent disappearance channels can help in reducing the effect of degeneracies in the $(\theta_{13},\delta)$ measure.Comment: 5 pages, 7 eps figure

Comparison between BNP values measured in capillary blood samples with a POCT method and those measured in plasma venous samples with an automated platform

Letter to the Editor. Our data suggest that it is possible to measure BNP in fresh finger-stick samples of capillary whole blood with an acceptable reproducibility, and within 10 – 20 min to obtain results close correlated to those measured by the automated platform in plasma blood samples collected from a vein. The measurement of BNP in fresh finger-stick samples of capillary whole blood with this POCT method is in particular indicated for the management of HF patients at home and for the BNP assay in neonates and children

The acceleration and storage of radioactive ions for a neutrino factory

The term beta-beam has been coined for the production of a pure beam of electron neutrinos or their antiparticles through the decay of radioactive ions circulating in a storage ring. This concept requires radioactive ions to be accelerated to a Lorentz gamma of 150 for 6He and 60 for 18Ne. The neutrino source itself consists of a storage ring for this energy range, with long straight sections in line with the experiment(s). Such a decay ring does not exist at CERN today, nor does a high-intensity proton source for the production of the radioactive ions. Nevertheless, the existing CERN accelerator infrastructure could be used as this would still represent an important saving for a beta-beam facility. This paper outlines the first study, while some of the more speculative ideas will need further investigations.Comment: Accepted for publication in proceedings of Nufact02, London, 200

Fracture mechanics of laser sintered cracked polyamide for a new method to induce cracks by additive manufacturing

This paper presents an experimental investigation on specimens manufactured by Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), with the purposes of giving designers advice when designing 3D printed parts, and laying the basis for a step forward in the field of fracture mechanics of 3D complex parts. The aim is to investigate the effect of building direction in Polyamide (PA) 3D printed samples and to assess whether a crack can be initiated directly from the sintering process for fracture mechanics study purposes. Six different configurations of Mode I Compact Tension (CT) specimens were manufactured and tested; the experiments were monitored by Digital Image Correlation (DIC) and fractured surfaces were analyzed using microscopy. Results showed that samples with better mechanical performance are those in which all the layers contain a portion of the crack. On the other hand, those with layers parallel to the crack plan offer a preferential pathway for the crack to propagate. DIC and fractography investigations showed that, under certain conditions, small-radius geometries, or too-close surfaces may glue depending on printer resolution. Experiments also showed that SLS is capable of printing specimens with internal cracks that can be used to study fracture mechanics of complex parts or parts with internal cracks

Physics reach of β\beta-beams and ν\nu-factories: the problem of degeneracies

We discuss the physics reach of $\beta$-Beams and $\nu$-Factories from a theoretical perspective, having as a guideline the problem of degeneracies. The presence of degenerate solutions in the measure of the neutrino oscillation parameters $\theta_{13}$ and $\delta$ is, in fact, the main problem that have to be addressed in planning future neutrino oscillation experiments. If degeneracies are not (at least partially) solved, it will be almost impossible to perform, at any future facility, precise measurements of $\theta_{13}$ and/or $\delta$. After a pedagogical introduction on why degenerate solutions arise and how we can get rid of them, we analyze the physics reach of current $\beta$-beam and $\nu$-factory configurations. The physics reach of the "standard" \BB is severely affected by degeneracies while a better result can be obtained by higher-$\gamma$ setups. At the \NF the combination of Golden and Silver channels can solve the eightfold degeneracy down to $\sin^2\theta_{13} \le 10^{-3}$Comment: 5 pages, 6 epsfig; NUFACT'05, 21-26 June 2005, Frascat

Neutrino tomography - Learning about the Earth's interior using the propagation of neutrinos

Because the propagation of neutrinos is affected by the presence of Earth matter, it opens new possibilities to probe the Earth's interior. Different approaches range from techniques based upon the interaction of high energy (above TeV) neutrinos with Earth matter, to methods using the MSW effect on the neutrino oscillations of low energy (MeV to GeV) neutrinos. In principle, neutrinos from many different sources (sun, atmosphere, supernovae, beams etc.) can be used. In this talk, we summarize and compare different approaches with an emphasis on more recent developments. In addition, we point out other geophysical aspects relevant for neutrino oscillations.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figures. Proceedings of ``Neutrino sciences 2005: Neutrino geophysics'', December 14-16, 2005, Honolulu, USA. Minor changes, some references added. Final version to appear in Earth, Moon, and Planet