Constraining Muon Internal Bremsstrahlung as a Contribution to the MiniBooNE Low Energy Excess

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that muon internal bremsstrahlung does not significantly contribute to the low energy excess of electron-like events in MiniBooNE, refuting prior claims of it being a major background.

Contribution

It provides a data-driven analysis that conclusively rules out muon internal bremsstrahlung as a significant source of background in MiniBooNE's low energy excess.

Findings

Mis-identification rate accurately simulated

Muon bremsstrahlung ruled out as major background

Refutes previous claims of bremsstrahlung contribution

Abstract

Using a cleanly tagged data sample of $\nu_\mu$ charged current events, it is demonstrated that the rate at which such events are mis-identified as $\nu_e$'s is accurately simulated in the MiniBooNE $\nu_\mu \to \nu_e$ analysis. Such mis-identification, which could arise from muon internal bremsstrahlung, is decisively ruled out as a source of the low energy electron-like events reported in the MiniBooNE search for $\nu_\mu \to \nu_e$ oscillations. This refutes the conclusions of a recent paper which postulates that hard bremsstrahlung could form a substantial background to the MiniBooNE $\nu_e$ sample.