A side-by-side comparison of Daya Bay antineutrino detectors

The Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment is designed to determine precisely the neutrino mixing angle $\theta_{13}$ with a sensitivity better than 0.01 in the parameter sin$^22\theta_{13}$ at the 90% confidence level. To achieve this goal, the collaboration will build eight functionally identical antineutrino detectors. The first two detectors have been constructed, installed and commissioned in Experimental Hall 1, with steady data-taking beginning September 23, 2011. A comparison of the data collected over the subsequent three months indicates that the detectors are functionally identical, and that detector-related systematic uncertainties exceed requirements.Comment: 24 pages, 36 figure

Observation of electron-antineutrino disappearance at Daya Bay

The Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment has measured a non-zero value for the neutrino mixing angle $\theta_{13}$ with a significance of 5.2 standard deviations. Antineutrinos from six 2.9 GW$_{\rm th}$ reactors were detected in six antineutrino detectors deployed in two near (flux-weighted baseline 470 m and 576 m) and one far (1648 m) underground experimental halls. With a 43,000 ton-GW_{\rm th}-day livetime exposure in 55 days, 10416 (80376) electron antineutrino candidates were detected at the far hall (near halls). The ratio of the observed to expected number of antineutrinos at the far hall is $R=0.940\pm 0.011({\rm stat}) \pm 0.004({\rm syst})$. A rate-only analysis finds $\sin^22\theta_{13}=0.092\pm 0.016({\rm stat})\pm0.005({\rm syst})$ in a three-neutrino framework.Comment: 5 figures. Version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Plasmon-phonon coupling in large-area graphene dot and antidot arrays

Nanostructured graphene on SiO2 substrates pave the way for enhanced light-matter interactions and explorations of strong plasmon-phonon hybridization in the mid-infrared regime. Unprecedented large-area graphene nanodot and antidot optical arrays are fabricated by nanosphere lithography, with structural control down to the sub-100 nanometer regime. The interaction between graphene plasmon modes and the substrate phonons is experimentally demonstrated and structural control is used to map out the hybridization of plasmons and phonons, showing coupling energies of the order 20 meV. Our findings are further supported by theoretical calculations and numerical simulations.Comment: 7 pages including 6 figures. Supporting information is available upon request to author

JUNO Conceptual Design Report

The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is proposed to determine the neutrino mass hierarchy using an underground liquid scintillator detector. It is located 53 km away from both Yangjiang and Taishan Nuclear Power Plants in Guangdong, China. The experimental hall, spanning more than 50 meters, is under a granite mountain of over 700 m overburden. Within six years of running, the detection of reactor antineutrinos can resolve the neutrino mass hierarchy at a confidence level of 3-4$\sigma$, and determine neutrino oscillation parameters $\sin^2\theta_{12}$, $\Delta m^2_{21}$, and $|\Delta m^2_{ee}|$ to an accuracy of better than 1%. The JUNO detector can be also used to study terrestrial and extra-terrestrial neutrinos and new physics beyond the Standard Model. The central detector contains 20,000 tons liquid scintillator with an acrylic sphere of 35 m in diameter. $\sim$17,000 508-mm diameter PMTs with high quantum efficiency provide $\sim$75% optical coverage. The current choice of the liquid scintillator is: linear alkyl benzene (LAB) as the solvent, plus PPO as the scintillation fluor and a wavelength-shifter (Bis-MSB). The number of detected photoelectrons per MeV is larger than 1,100 and the energy resolution is expected to be 3% at 1 MeV. The calibration system is designed to deploy multiple sources to cover the entire energy range of reactor antineutrinos, and to achieve a full-volume position coverage inside the detector. The veto system is used for muon detection, muon induced background study and reduction. It consists of a Water Cherenkov detector and a Top Tracker system. The readout system, the detector control system and the offline system insure efficient and stable data acquisition and processing.Comment: 328 pages, 211 figure

A New Look at the Scalar Meson f0(500)f_0(500) via D+→π+π−ℓ+νℓD^+\to \pi^+\pi^-\ell^+\nu_\ell Decays

Using $2.93~\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ of $e^+e^-$ collision data collected with the BESIII detector at the center-of-mass energy of 3.773 GeV, we investigate the semileptonic decays $D^+\to \pi^+\pi^- \ell^+\nu_\ell$ ($\ell=e$ and $\mu$). The $D^+\to f_0(500)\mu^+\nu_\mu$ decay is observed for the first time. By analyzing simultaneously the differential decay rates of $D^+\to f_0(500) \mu^+\nu_\mu$ and $D^+\to f_0(500) e^+\nu_e$ in different $\ell^+\nu_\ell$ four-momentum transfer intervals, the product of the relevant hadronic form factor $f^{f_0}_{+}(0)$ and the magnitude of the $c\to d$ Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element $|V_{cd}|$ is determined to be $f_{+}^{f_0} (0)|V_{cd}|=0.0787\pm0.0060_{\rm stat}\pm0.0033_{\rm syst}$ for the first time. With the input of $|V_{cd}|$ from the global fit in the standard model, we determine $f_{+}^{f_0} (0)=0.350\pm0.027_{\rm stat}\pm0.015_{\rm syst}$. The absolute branching fractions of $D^+\to f_0(500)_{(\pi^+\pi^-)}\mu^+\nu_\mu$ and $D^+\to \rho^0_{(\pi^+\pi^-)} \mu^+\nu_\mu$ are determined as $(0.72\pm0.13_{\rm stat}\pm0.10_{\rm syst})\times10^{-3}$ and $(1.64\pm0.13_{\rm stat}\pm0.11_{\rm syst})\times 10^{-3}$. Combining these results with those of previous BESIII measurements on their semielectronic counterparts from the same data sample, we test lepton flavor universality by measuring the branching fraction ratios ${\mathcal B}_{D^+\to \rho^0 \mu^+\nu_\mu}/{\mathcal B}_{D^+\to \rho^0 e^+\nu_e}=0.88\pm0.10$ and ${\mathcal B}_{D^+\to f_0(500) \mu^+\nu_\mu}/{\mathcal B}_{D^+\to f_0(500) e^+\nu_e}=1.14\pm0.28$, which are compatible with the standard model expectation.Comment: Supplemental Materials added in this versio

Search for an axion-like particle in J/ψJ/\psi radiative decays

We search for an axion-like particle (ALP) $a$ through the process $\psi(3686)\rightarrow\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi$, $J/\psi\rightarrow\gamma a$, $a\rightarrow\gamma\gamma$ in a data sample with $(2708.1\pm14.5)\times10^6$ $\psi(3686)$ events collected by the BESIII detector. No significant ALP signal is observed over the expected background, and the upper limits on the branching fraction of the decay $J/\psi\rightarrow\gamma a$ and the ALP-photon coupling constant $g_{a\gamma\gamma}$ are set at the 95\% confidence level in the mass range of 0.165\leq m_a\leq2.84\,\mbox{GeV}/c^2. The limits on $\mathcal{B}(J/\psi\rightarrow\gamma a)$ range from $8.3\times10^{-8}$ to $1.8\times10^{-6}$ over the search region, and the constraints on the ALP-photon coupling are the most stringent to date for 0.165\leq m_a\leq1.468\,\mbox{GeV}/c^2.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure

Measurements of the branching fractions of the inclusive decays D0(D+)→π+π+π−X

Using eþe− annihilation data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.93 fb−1 taken at a center-of mass energy of 3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector, we report the first measurements of the branching fractions of the inclusive decays D0 → πþπþπ−X and Dþ → πþπþπ−X, where pions from K0 S decays have been excluded from the πþπþπ− system and X denotes any possible particle combination. The branching fractions of D0ðDþÞ → πþπþπ−X are determined to be BðD0 → πþπþπ−XÞ¼ð17.60 0.11 0.22Þ% and BðDþ → πþπþπ−XÞ¼ð15.25 0.09 0.18Þ%, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic

Measurements of the electric and magnetic form factors of the neutron for time-like momentum transfer

We present the first measurements of the electric and magnetic form factors of the neutron in the time-like (positive $q^2$) region as function of four-momentum transfer. We explored the differential cross sections of the reaction $e^+e^- \rightarrow \bar{n}n$ with data collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII accelerator, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 354.6 pb$^{-1}$ in total at twelve center-of-mass energies between $\sqrt{s} = 2.0 - 2.95$ GeV. A relative uncertainty of 18% and 12% for the electric and magnetic form factors, respectively, is achieved at $\sqrt{s} = 2.3935$ GeV. Our results are comparable in accuracy to those from electron scattering in the comparable space-like (negative $q^2$) region of four-momentum transfer. The electromagnetic form factor ratio $R_{\rm em}\equiv |G_E|/|G_M|$ is within the uncertainties close to unity. We compare our result on $|G_E|$ and $|G_M|$ to recent model predictions, and the measurements in the space-like region to test the analyticity of electromagnetic form factors.Comment: main paper: 9 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; supplement: 9 pages, 28 table

Production of doubly-charged Δ\Delta baryon in e+e−e^{+}e^{-} annihilation at energies from 2.3094 to 2.6464 GeV

The processes $e^{+}e^{-} \to \Delta^{++}\bar{\Delta}^{--}$ and $e^{+}e^{-}\to \Delta^{++} \bar{p} \pi^{-} + c.c.$ are studied for the first time with $179~{\rm pb}^{-1}$ of $e^{+}e^{-}$ annihilation data collected with the BESIII detector at center-of-mass energies from $2.3094$ GeV to $2.6464$ GeV. No significant signal for the $e^{+}e^{-}\to \Delta^{++}\bar{\Delta}^{--}$ process is observed and the upper limit of the Born cross section is estimated at each energy point. For the process $e^{+}e^{-} \to \Delta^{++} \bar{p} \pi^{-} + c.c.$, a significant signal is observed at center-of-mass energies near 2.6454 GeV and the corresponding Born cross section is reported.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure