Measurements of protons and charged pions emitted from νμ charged-current interactions on iron at a mean neutrino energy of 1.49 GeV using a nuclear emulsion detector

This study conducted an analysis of muons, protons, and charged pions emitted from νμ charged-current interactions on iron using a nuclear emulsion detector. The emulsion detector with a 65 kg iron target was exposed to a neutrino beam corresponding to 4.0×1019 protons on target with a mean neutrino energy of 1.49 GeV. The measurements were performed at a momentum threshold of 200 (50) MeV/c for protons (pions), which are the lowest momentum thresholds attempted up to now. The measured quantities are the multiplicities, emission angles, and momenta of the muons, protons, and charged pions. In addition to these inclusive measurements, exclusive measurements such as the muon-proton emission-angle correlations of specific channels and the opening angle between the protons of CC0π2p events were performed. The data were compared to Monte Carlo predictions and some significant differences were observed. The results of the study demonstrate the capability of detailed measurements of neutrino-nucleus interactions using a nuclear emulsion detector to improve neutrino interaction models.18 MoreReceived 17 March 2022Accepted 11 August 2022DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.106.032016Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by SCOAP3.Published by the American Physical SocietyPhysics Subject Headings (PhySH)Research AreasNeutrino interactionsNeutrino oscillationsNucleus-neutrino interactionsPhysical SystemsNeutrinosParticles & Fields