Feasibility of a Next Generation Underground Water Cherenkov Detector: UNO

TL;DR

This paper explores the feasibility and presents a conceptual design for UNO, a next-generation underground water Cherenkov detector with significantly increased volume aimed at advancing neutrino and nucleon decay research.

Contribution

It introduces a new detector design with a 13-fold volume increase over Super-Kamiokande, enhancing physics sensitivity and detection capabilities.

Findings

Design demonstrates feasibility for large-scale detector construction.

Expected tenfold increase in nucleon decay search sensitivity.

Enhanced detection range for supernova neutrinos, reaching Andromeda galaxy.

Abstract

The feasibility of a next generation underground water Cherenkov detector is examined and a conceptual design (UNO) is presented. The design has a linear detector configuration with a total volume of 650 kton which is 13 times the total volume of the Super-Kamiokande detector. It corresponds to a 20 times increase in fiducial volume for physics analyses. The physics goals of UNO are to increase the sensitivity of the searches for nucleon decays about a factor of ten and to make precision measurements of the solar and atmospheric neutrino properties. In addition, the detection sensitivity for Supernova neutrinos will reach as far as the Andromeda galaxy.