Quantum Decoherence Effects in Neutrino Oscillations at DUNE

TL;DR

This paper investigates quantum decoherence effects in neutrino oscillations using the DUNE experiment, providing sensitivity limits on decoherence parameters and interpreting a new peak in the appearance probability.

Contribution

It introduces a framework for analyzing quantum decoherence in neutrino oscillations considering matter effects and offers new sensitivity bounds for decoherence parameters at DUNE.

Findings

Sensitivity limits for decoherence parameters: 1.2^{-23} GeV and 2.7^{-25} GeV.

Identification of a new peak in  appearance probability due to decoherence.

Physical interpretation of the new peak in the context of open quantum systems.

Abstract

In this work we analyze quantum decoherence in neutrino oscillations considering the Open Quantum System framework and oscillations through matter for three neutrino families. Taking DUNE as a case study we performed sensitivity analyses for two neutrino flux configurations finding limits for the decoherence parameters. We also offer a physical interpretation for a new peak which arises at the $\nu_{e}$ appearance probability with decoherence. The best sensitivity regions found for the decoherence parameters are $\Gamma_{21}\le 1.2\times10^{-23}\,\text{GeV}$ and $\Gamma_{32}\le 7.7\times10^{-25}\,\text{GeV}$ at $90\%$ C. L.