Uncertainties in neutrino oscillation parameter sensitivity due to resonance processes at NO$\nu$A

TL;DR

This paper investigates how resonance interaction processes affect neutrino oscillation measurements in NO, highlighting the importance of accurate modeling of nuclear effects for precise parameter extraction.

Contribution

It compares two models of resonance interactions to assess their impact on neutrino cross sections, event rates, and oscillation sensitivity in NO, emphasizing the need for careful modeling.

Findings

RES processes significantly affect neutrino cross sections and sensitivity.

The choice of RES model influences the precision of oscillation parameter measurements.

Inclusion of RES effects is crucial for reducing systematic uncertainties.

Abstract

The long baseline (LBL) neutrino experiments use heavy nuclear targets for neutrino scattering in which nuclear effects give rise to complications in measuring the neutrino oscillation parameters up to high precision. These nuclear effects are not yet fully understood and therefore need to be quantified as they contribute to the systematic uncertainties. Precision reconstruction of neutrino energy is one of the main components in measuring the oscillation parameters, and it is required that the neutrino energy is reconstructed with very high precision. In this work, we investigate the effects of the resonance (RES) interaction process using two models for carbon target for $\nu_{\mu}\rightarrow\nu_{\mu}$ disappearance channel of the NO$\nu$A experiment, on neutrino-nucleus scattering cross section, events, and neutrino oscillation parameter sensitivity. We also incorporate the realistic detector specifications of NO$\nu$A. To quantify the systematic uncertainties due to RES interactions, we compare the cross-sections, events, and sensitivity analysis for two models of RES processes - Rein-Sehgal and Berger-Sehgal, and comment on which model produces more precision. We observe that RES processes contribute significantly, and should be included carefully in models while extracting neutrino oscillation parameters.