Observation of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering

COHERENT Collaboration

doi:10.1126/science.aao0990

Observation of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering

COHERENT Collaboration

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

619 Scopus citations

Abstract

The coherent elastic scattering of neutrinos off nuclei has eluded detection for four decades, even though its predicted cross section is by far the largest of all low-energy neutrino couplings. This mode of interaction offers new opportunities to study neutrino properties and leads to a miniaturization of detector size, with potential technological applications. We observed this process at a 6.7s confidence level, using a low-background, 14.6-kilogram CsI[Na] scintillator exposed to the neutrino emissions from the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Characteristic signatures in energy and time, predicted by the standard model for this process, were observed in high signal-to-background conditions. Improved constraints on nonstandard neutrino interactions with quarks are derived from this initial data set.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1123-1126
Number of pages	4
Journal	Science
Volume	357
Issue number	6356
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aao0990
State	Published - Sep 15 2017

Funding

Supported by Alfred P. Sloan Foundation grant BR2014-037; Consortium for Nonproliferation Enabling Capabilities grant DE-NA0002576; Institute for Basic Science (Korea) grant IBS-R017-G1-2017-a00; NSF grants PHY-1306942, PHY-1506357, PHY-1614545, and HRD-1601174; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Directed Research and Development funds; Russian Foundation for Basic Research grant 17-02-01077_a; the Russian Science Foundation in the framework of MEPhI Academic Excellence Project (contract 02. a03.21.0005, 27.08.2013); Sandia National Laboratories Directed Research and Development Exploratory Express Funds; Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory; U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science grants DE-SC0009824 and DE-SC0010007 and Early Career Awards DE-SC0014249 and DE-SC0014558; DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration Office of Defense, Nuclear Nonproliferation Research, and Development; and University of Washington Royalty Research Fund grant FA124183. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc. for DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is operated by Battelle for DOE under contract DE-AC05-76RL01830, where work was supported through awards from the National Consortium for Measurement and Signature Intelligence Research Program and from the Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program. This work was supported in part by the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics at the University of Chicago through grant NSF PHY-1125897, and an endowment from the Kavli Foundation and its founder Fred Kavli. This work was sponsored by the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, managed by UT-Battelle, LLC, for DOE. It used resources of the Spallation Neutron Source, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility. This material is based on work supported by the DOE Office of Science, Office of High Energy Physics. This research used resources of the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility. Raw experimental data are archived at its High Performance Storage System, which provides 263 TB of COHERENT dedicated storage. We are grateful for additional resources provided by the research computing centers at the University of Chicago and Duke University.

Funders	Funder number
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
National Consortium for Measurement and Signature Intelligence Research Program
National Nuclear Security Administration Office of Defense
Nuclear Nonproliferation Research
Sandia National Laboratories Directed Research and Development Exploratory Express Funds
Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory
University of Washington Royalty Research Fund	FA124183
National Science Foundation	PHY-1506357, PHY-1614545, 1506357, 1461204, PHY-1306942, HRD-1601174, 1757783
U.S. Department of Energy
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation	DE-NA0002576, BR2014-037
Kavli Foundation
Office of Science	DE-SC0014249, DE-SC0014558, DE-SC0010007, DE-SC0009824
National Nuclear Security Administration	DE-NA0003525, DE-AC05-76RL01830
High Energy Physics
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Duke University
University of Chicago
Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program
Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, University of Chicago	PHY-1125897
Russian Foundation for Basic Research	17-02-01077_a
Russian Science Foundation
Institute for Basic Science	IBS-R017-G1-2017-a00

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10.1126/science.aao0990

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title = "Observation of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering",

abstract = "The coherent elastic scattering of neutrinos off nuclei has eluded detection for four decades, even though its predicted cross section is by far the largest of all low-energy neutrino couplings. This mode of interaction offers new opportunities to study neutrino properties and leads to a miniaturization of detector size, with potential technological applications. We observed this process at a 6.7s confidence level, using a low-background, 14.6-kilogram CsI[Na] scintillator exposed to the neutrino emissions from the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Characteristic signatures in energy and time, predicted by the standard model for this process, were observed in high signal-to-background conditions. Improved constraints on nonstandard neutrino interactions with quarks are derived from this initial data set.",

author = "{COHERENT Collaboration} and D. Akimov and Albert, {J. B.} and P. An and C. Awe and Barbeau, {P. S.} and B. Becker and V. Belov and A. Brown and A. Bolozdynya and B. Cabrera-Palmer and M. Cervantes and Collar, {J. I.} and Cooper, {R. J.} and Cooper, {R. L.} and C. Cuesta and Dean, {D. J.} and Detwiler, {J. A.} and A. Eberhardt and Y. Efremenko and Elliott, {S. R.} and Erkela, {E. M.} and L. Fabris and M. Febbraro and Fields, {N. E.} and W. Fox and Z. Fu and A. Galindo-Uribarri and Green, {M. P.} and M. Hai and Heath, {M. R.} and S. Hedges and D. Hornback and Hossbach, {T. W.} and Iverson, {E. B.} and Kaufman, {L. J.} and S. Ki and Klein, {S. R.} and A. Khromov and A. Konovalov and M. Kremer and A. Kumpan and C. Leadbetter and L. Li and W. Lu and K. Mann and Markoff, {D. M.} and K. Miller and H. Moreno and J. Newby and Yu, {C. H.}",

year = "2017",

month = sep,

day = "15",

doi = "10.1126/science.aao0990",

language = "English",

volume = "357",

pages = "1123--1126",

journal = "Science",

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T1 - Observation of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering

AU - COHERENT Collaboration

AU - Akimov, D.

AU - Albert, J. B.

AU - An, P.

AU - Awe, C.

AU - Barbeau, P. S.

AU - Becker, B.

AU - Belov, V.

AU - Brown, A.

AU - Bolozdynya, A.

AU - Cabrera-Palmer, B.

AU - Cervantes, M.

AU - Collar, J. I.

AU - Cooper, R. J.

AU - Cooper, R. L.

AU - Cuesta, C.

AU - Dean, D. J.

AU - Detwiler, J. A.

AU - Eberhardt, A.

AU - Efremenko, Y.

AU - Elliott, S. R.

AU - Erkela, E. M.

AU - Fabris, L.

AU - Febbraro, M.

AU - Fields, N. E.

AU - Fox, W.

AU - Fu, Z.

AU - Galindo-Uribarri, A.

AU - Green, M. P.

AU - Hai, M.

AU - Heath, M. R.

AU - Hedges, S.

AU - Hornback, D.

AU - Hossbach, T. W.

AU - Iverson, E. B.

AU - Kaufman, L. J.

AU - Ki, S.

AU - Klein, S. R.

AU - Khromov, A.

AU - Konovalov, A.

AU - Kremer, M.

AU - Kumpan, A.

AU - Leadbetter, C.

AU - Li, L.

AU - Lu, W.

AU - Mann, K.

AU - Markoff, D. M.

AU - Miller, K.

AU - Moreno, H.

AU - Newby, J.

AU - Yu, C. H.

PY - 2017/9/15

Y1 - 2017/9/15

N2 - The coherent elastic scattering of neutrinos off nuclei has eluded detection for four decades, even though its predicted cross section is by far the largest of all low-energy neutrino couplings. This mode of interaction offers new opportunities to study neutrino properties and leads to a miniaturization of detector size, with potential technological applications. We observed this process at a 6.7s confidence level, using a low-background, 14.6-kilogram CsI[Na] scintillator exposed to the neutrino emissions from the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Characteristic signatures in energy and time, predicted by the standard model for this process, were observed in high signal-to-background conditions. Improved constraints on nonstandard neutrino interactions with quarks are derived from this initial data set.

AB - The coherent elastic scattering of neutrinos off nuclei has eluded detection for four decades, even though its predicted cross section is by far the largest of all low-energy neutrino couplings. This mode of interaction offers new opportunities to study neutrino properties and leads to a miniaturization of detector size, with potential technological applications. We observed this process at a 6.7s confidence level, using a low-background, 14.6-kilogram CsI[Na] scintillator exposed to the neutrino emissions from the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Characteristic signatures in energy and time, predicted by the standard model for this process, were observed in high signal-to-background conditions. Improved constraints on nonstandard neutrino interactions with quarks are derived from this initial data set.

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U2 - 10.1126/science.aao0990

DO - 10.1126/science.aao0990

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SN - 0036-8075

VL - 357

SP - 1123

EP - 1126

JO - Science

JF - Science

IS - 6356

ER -

Observation of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering

Abstract

Funding

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