A New Generation of Neutrino Cross Section Experiments: Challenges and Opportunities

TL;DR

This paper discusses the need for a new generation of neutrino cross section experiments to improve precision, address current uncertainties, and enhance the physics potential of upcoming neutrino oscillation experiments like DUNE and HyperKamiokande.

Contribution

It identifies key scientific goals, theoretical challenges, and experimental priorities for future neutrino cross section measurements at the GeV scale.

Findings

Current cross-section knowledge has 10% uncertainty affecting experiments.

New experiments can significantly reduce systematic uncertainties.

Priorities include improving theoretical models and experimental techniques.

Abstract

Our knowledge of neutrino cross sections at the GeV scale, instrumental to test CP symmetry violation in the leptonic sector, has grown substantially in the last two decades. Still, their precision and understanding are far from the standard needed in contemporary neutrino physics. Nowadays, the knowledge of the neutrino cross-section at $O(10\%)$ causes the main systematic uncertainty in oscillation experiments and jeopardizes their physics reach. In this paper, we envision the opportunities for a new generation of cross section experiments to be run in parallel with DUNE and HyperKamiokande. We identify the most prominent physics goals by looking at the theory and experimental limitations of the previous generation of experiments. We highlight the priorities in the theoretical understanding of GeV cross-sections and the experimental challenges of this new generation of facilities.