Nuclear Commons^™

Mathematical Formulae For Neutron Self-Shielding Properties Of Media In An Isotropic Neutron Field, Elsayed Salama, Elsayed K. Elmaghraby, Ateia W. Mahmoud, A. Elghazaly, S. A. El-Fiki

Basic Science Engineering

In the current study, an ab initio derivation of the neutron self-shielding factor to solve the complex neutron transport problem of the decrease of the neutron flux as it penetrates into a material placed in an isotropic neutron field having equal flux in all directions. The theory of steady-state neutron transport was employed, starting from Stuart’s formula, to derive simple analytical formulae based on the integral cross-section parameters. The formulae could be adopted by the user according to various variables, such as the neutron flux distribution and geometry of the simulation at hand. The concluded formulae of the self-shielding factors …

Backgrounds Study And Ai-Powered Waveform Processing For Legend Experiment, Laxman Paudel

Dissertations and Theses

Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay (0$\nu \beta \beta $) is a presumed rare nuclear decay process and is considered the most promising way to prove the Majorana nature of neutrinos, that is, neutrinos are their own antiparticles. The discovery of \zero decay would also enhance our understanding of nuclear physics, astrophysical observations, and physical processes in the early Universe. The Large Enriched Germanium Experiment for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay (LEGEND) is a phased $^{\mathrm{76}}$Ge-based 0$\nu \beta \beta $ decay experimental program, aiming for the discovery potential of a half-life of 0$\nu \beta \beta $ beyond 10$^{\mathrm{28}}$ years. The first phase, LEGEND-200, comprises 200 …

Magnetic Spin Transport Coils For The N2edm Experiment, David C. Bowles

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

The n2EDM experiment is being construct at Paul Scherrer Institute to measure the electric dipole moment of the neutron (nEDM), in a search for new physics which could help explain the baryon asymmetry of the universe. To reach the experimental sensitivity goal of $d_n \sim 10^{-27}$, over an order of magnitude improvement from the current world limit, a spin polarization transfer efficiency of 99\% for ultracold neutrons entering or exiting the precession chamber is required, placing a stringent requirement on the adiabaticity of the magnetic field taper in the neutron guide system. The spin transport fields transition from 5~T (longitudinal) …

Qcd Analysis Of Flavor-Nonchanging Hadronic Weak Processes Through Next-To-Leading Order, Girish Lingadahalli Muralidhara

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

Studies in quantum chromodynamics (QCD), the fundamental theory of the strong interactions, of low-energy hadronic weak processes utilize an effective Hamiltonian framework. Below the weak-mass scale, an effective Hamiltonian contains a series of Wilson coefficients and four-quark operators that come from the operator product expansion in the Standard Model. The effective hadronic Hamiltonian pertinent to a weak process is then obtained via a renormalization group analysis in QCD from the weak-mass scale to the low-energy scale of O(2 GeV). In this thesis, the construction and phenomenological implications of such an effective Hamiltonian for flavor-conserving, parity-violating quark processes in the Standard …

Techniques For Optimizing Neutron Beta Decay Particle Detection, Austin W. Nelsen

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

Over the last couple decades, use of free neutron beta decay (n → p + e^- + ν_e) to extract the up-down quark transition element V_ud has become competitive with more conventional Fermi decays. Extraction of V_ud requires measurements of the vector to axial-vector coupling constant ratio λ and the free neutron lifetime τ_n. With a precise determination of V_ud, the 2.8σ departure from CKM unitarity can be addressed.

Nab, located at the Spallation Neutron Source at ORNL, will measure the electron-neutrino momentum correlation coefficient a (which couples quadratically …

Development Of A Source To Detector Simulation Of The Los Alamos National Lab Neutron Electric Dipole Moment Experiment, Dillon Buskirk

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) neutron electric dipole moment (nEDM) experiment is planning an increased precision measurement of the neutron’s permanent electric dipole moment. LANL nEDM expects to lower the statistical uncertainty to δd_LANL = 2 × 10−27 e cm after a year of live-time, which puts a more stringent upper bound on the nEDM. This statistical uncertainty is an order of magnitude less than the current best measurement set by nEDM at PSI. To reach this goal, the LANL nEDM collaboration requires a simulation tool that can tackle optimization problems, investigate systematic effects, and provide mock data …

Development Of A Novel Beam-Type Neutron Lifetime Experiment Using Ultracold Neutrons, Nicholas Floyd

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

Precision measurements of the neutron lifetime are critical to tests of the Standard Model. The CKM quark mixing matrix has recently been shown to deviate from unitarity in the top row, motivating the development of alternative extractions of the first element. Complementary measurements of the neutron’s lifetime and decay correlations can be used to accomplish this.

While the reported neutron lifetime by the Particle Data Group is taken from ultracold neutron (UCN) measurements, a separate class of experiments suggest a value in four sigma disagreement, meriting further study. The goal of the UCNProBe experiment at Los Alamos National Laboratory is …

Precision Neutrino Interactions In And Beyond The Standard Model, Kaushik Borah

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

This dissertation investigates precision measurements of neutrino interactions within the framework of the Standard Model and explores potential extensions beyond it. Neutrinos, often referred to as ghostly particles due to their weak interactions and elusive nature, have long been a frontier in particle physics. Through detailed theoretical modeling and comparison with experimental data, this work focuses on improving our understanding of neutrino-nucleon cross-sections, nucleon form factors, and generalized neutrino interactions. The study begins with a comprehensive examination of the role of vector and axial-vector form factors in neutrino-nucleon scattering and their impact on the interpretation of neutrino oscillation data from …

Is Infrared-Collinear Safe Information All You Need For Jet Classification?, Dimitrios Athanasakos, Andrew J. Larkoski, James Mulligan, Mateusz Ploskoń, Felix Ringer

Physics Faculty Publications

Machine learning-based jet classifiers are able to achieve impressive tagging performance in a variety of applications in high-energy and nuclear physics. However, it remains unclear in many cases which aspects of jets give rise to this discriminating power, and whether jet observables that are tractable in perturbative QCD such as those obeying infrared-collinear (IRC) safety serve as sufficient inputs. In this article, we introduce a new classifier, Jet Flow Networks (JFNs), in an effort to address the question of whether IRC unsafe information provides additional discriminating power in jet classification. JFNs are permutation-invariant neural networks (deep sets) that take as …

Artificial Intelligence For The Electron Ion Collider (Ai4eic), C. Allaire, R. Ammendola, E.-C. Aschenauer, M. Balandat, M. Battaglieri, J. Bernauer, M. Bondì, N. Branson, T. Britton, A. Butter, I. Chahrour, P. Chatagnon, E. Cisbani, E. W. Cline, S. Dash, C. Dean, W. Deconinck, A. Deshpande, M. Diefenthaler, R. Ent, C. Fanelli, M. Finger, M. Finger Jr., E. Fol, S. Furletov, Y. Gao, J. Giroux, N. C. Gunawardhana Waduge, O. Hassan, P. L. Hegde, R. J. Hernandez-Pinto, A. Hiller Blin, T. Horn, J. Huang, A. Jalotra, D. Jayakodige, B. Joo, M. Junaid, N. Kalantarians, P. Karande, B. Kriesten, R. Kunnawalkam Elayavalli, Y. Li, M. Lin, F. Liu, S. Liuti, G. Matousek, M. Mceneaney, D. Mcspadden, T. Menzo, T. Miceli, V. Mikuni, R. Montgomery, B. Nachman, R. R. Nair, J. Niestroy, S. A. Ochoa Oregon, J. Oleniacz, J. D. Osborn, C. Paudel, C. Pecar, C. Peng, G. N. Perdue, W. Phelps, M. L. Purschke, H. Rajendran, K. Rajput, Y. Ren, D. F. Renteria-Estrada, D. Richford, B. J. Roy, D. Roy, A. Saini, N. Sato, T. Satogata, G. Sborlini, M. Schram, D. Shih, J. Singh, R. Singh, A. Siodmok, J. Stevens, P. Stone, L. Suarez, K. Suresh, A. -N. Tawfik, F. Torales Acosta, N. Tran, R. Trotta, F. J. Twagirayezu, R. Tyson, S. Volkova, A. Vossen, E. Walter, D. Whiteson, M. Williams, S. Wu, N. Zachariou, P. Zurita

Computer Science Faculty Publications

The Electron-Ion Collider (EIC), a state-of-the-art facility for studying the strong force, is expected to begin commissioning its first experiments in 2028. This is an opportune time for artificial intelligence (AI) to be included from the start at this facility and in all phases that lead up to the experiments. The second annual workshop organized by the AI4EIC working group, which recently took place, centered on exploring all current and prospective application areas of AI for the EIC. This workshop is not only beneficial for the EIC, but also provides valuable insights for the newly established ePIC collaboration at EIC. …

Evolution Of Efimov States, Sebastian M. Dawid, Md Habib E. Islam, Raúl A. Briceño, Andrew W. Jackura

Physics Faculty Publications

The Efimov phenomenon manifests itself as an emergent discrete scaling symmetry in the quantum three-body problem. In the unitarity limit, it leads to an infinite tower of three-body bound states with energies forming a geometric sequence. In this work, we study the evolution of these so-called Efimov states using relativistic scattering theory. We identify them as poles of the three-particle 𝑆 matrix in the complex energy plane, and we study how they transform from virtual states through bound states to resonances when we change the interaction strength. We dial the scattering parameters toward the unitarity limit and observe the emergence …

Novel Measurement Of The Neutron Magnetic Form Factor From A=3 Mirror Nuclei, S. N. Sentiesteban, S. Li, D. Abrams, S. Alsalmi, D. Androic, K. Aniol, J. Arrington, T. Averett, C. Ayerbe Gayoso, J. Bane, S. Barcus, J. Barrow, A. Beck, V. Bellini, H. Bhatt, D. Bhetuwal, D. Biswas, A. Camsonne, J. Castellanos, J. Chen, J. P. Chen, D. Chrisman, M. E. Christy, C. Clarke, S. Covrig, R. Cruz-Torres, D. Day, D. Dutta, E. Fuchey, C. Gal, F. Garibaldi, T. N. Gautam, T. Gogami, J. Gomez, P. Guèye, T. J. Hague, J. O. Hansen, F. Hauenstein, W. Henry, D. W. Higinbotham, R. J. Holt, C. Hyde, K. Itabashi, M. Kaneta, A. Karki, A. T. Katramatou, C. E. Keppel, P. M. King, L. Kurbany, T. Kutz, N. Lashley-Colthirst, W. B. Li, H. Liu, N. Liyange, E. Long, A. Lovato, J. Mammei, P. Markowitz, R. E. Mcclellan, F. Meddi, D. Meekins, R. Michaels, M. Mihovilovič, A. Moyer, S. Nagao, D. Nguyen, M. Nycz, M. Olson, L. Ou, V. Owen, C. Palatchi, B. Pandey, A. Papadopoulou, S. Park, T. Petkovic, S. Premathilake, V. Punjabi, R. D. Ransome, P. E. Reimer, J. Reinhold, S. Riordan, N. Rocco, V.M. Rodriguez, A. Schmidt, B. Schmookler, E. P. Segarra, A. Shahinyan, S. Širca, K. Slifer, P. Solvignon, T. Su, R. Suleiman, L. Tang, Y. Tian, W. Tireman, F. Tortorici, Y. Toyama, K Uehara, G. M. Urciuoli, D. Votaw, J. Williamson, B. Wojtsekhowski, S. Wood, Z. H. Ye, J. Zhang, X. Zheng

Physics Faculty Publications

The electromagnetic form factors of the proton and neutron encode information on the spatial structure of their charge and magnetization distributions. While measurements of the proton are relatively straightforward, the lack of a free neutron target makes measurements of the neutron’s electromagnetic structure more challenging and more sensitive to experimental or model-dependent uncertainties. Various experiments have attempted to extract the neutron form factors from scattering from the neutron in deuterium, with different techniques providing different, and sometimes large, systematic uncertainties. We present results from a novel measurement of the neutron magnetic form factor using quasielastic scattering from the mirror nuclei …

A = 3(E,E') 𝑥B ≥ 1 Cross-Section Ratios And The Isospin Structure Of Short-Range Correlations, A. Schmidt, A. W. Denniston, E. M. Seroka, N. Barnea, D. W. Higinbotham, I. Korover, G. A. Miller, E. Piasetzky, M. Strikman, L. B. Weinstein, R. Weiss, O. Hen

Physics Faculty Publications

We study the relation between measured high-𝑥_𝐵, high-𝑄², helium-3 to tritium, (𝑒,𝑒′) inclusive-scattering cross-section ratios and the relative abundance of high-momentum neutron-proton (𝑛⁢𝑝) and proton-proton (𝑝⁢𝑝) short-range correlated nucleon pairs in three-body (𝐴=3) nuclei. Analysis of these data using a simple pair-counting cross-section model suggested a much smaller 𝑛⁢𝑝/𝑝⁢𝑝 ratio than previously measured in heavier nuclei, questioning our understanding of 𝐴 = 3 nuclei and, by extension, all other nuclei. Here, we examine this finding using spectral-function-based cross-section calculations, with both an ab initio 𝐴 = 3 spectral function and effective generalized contact formalism spectral functions …

The Present And Future Of Qcd, P. Achenbach, D. Adhikari, A. Afanasev, F. Afzal, C. A. Aidala, A. Al-Bataineh, D. K. Almaalol, M. Amaryan, D. Androić, W. R. Armstrong, M. Arratia, J. Arrington, A. Asaturyan, E. C. Aschenauer, H. Atac, H. Avakian, T. Averett, C. Ayerbe Gayoso, X. Bai, M. Zurek, Et. Al.

Physics Faculty Publications

This White Paper presents an overview of the current status and future perspective of QCD research, based on the community inputs and scientific conclusions from the 2022 Hot and Cold QCD Town Meeting. We present the progress made in the last decade toward a deep understanding of both the fundamental structure of the sub-atomic matter of nucleon and nucleus in cold QCD, and the hot QCD matter in heavy ion collisions. We identify key questions of QCD research and plausible paths to obtaining answers to those questions in the near future, hence defining priorities of our research over the coming …

Field, Frequency, And Temperature Dependencies Of The Surface Resistance Of Nitrogen Diffused Niobium Superconducting Radio Frequency Cavities, P. Dhakal, B. D. Khanal, A. Gurevich, G. Ciovati

Physics Faculty Publications

We investigate the rf performance of several single-cell superconducting radio-frequency cavities subjected to low temperature heat treatment in nitrogen environment. The cavities were treated at temperature 120–165 °C for an extended period of time (24–48 h) either in high vacuum or in a low partial pressure of ultrapure nitrogen. The improvement in 𝑄0 with a 𝑄 rise was observed when nitrogen gas was injected at ∼300 °C during the cavity cooldown from 800 °C and held at 165 °C, without any degradation in accelerating gradient over the baseline performance. The treatment was applied to several elliptical cavities with frequency ranging …

Search For Axion-Like Particles Through Nuclear Primakoff Production Using The Gluex Detector, J. R. Pybus, T. Kolar, B. Devkota, P. Sharp, B. Yu, O. Hen, E. Piasetzky, S. N. Santiesteban, A. Schmidt, A. Somov, Y. Soreq, H. Szumila-Vance, S. Adhikari, C. S. Akondi, C. Ayerbe Gayoso, V. V. Berdnikov, H. Bhatt, D. Bhetuwal, M. M. Dalton, A. Deur, R. Dotel, C. Fanelli, J. Guo, T. J. Hague, D. W. Higinbotham, N. D. Hoffman, P. Hurck, I. Jaegle, A. Karki, W. Li, V. Lyubovitskij, H. Marukyan, M. D. Mccaughan, M. E. Mccracken, S. Oresic, Z. Papandreou, C. Paudel, S. Ratliff, E. M. Seroka, S. Somov, I. Strakovsky, K. Suresh, A. Thiel, B. Zihlmann

Physics Faculty Publications

We report on the results of the first search for the production of axion-like particles (ALPs) via Primakoff production on nuclear targets, ᵧA → aA, in the "SRC-CT" experiment using the GlueX detector at Jefferson Lab. This search uses an integrated luminosity of 100 pb^-1 center dot nucleon on a C-12 target with a real photon beam of energies 6 < Eᵧ < 10.8 GeV, and explores the mass region of 200 < m(a) < 450 MeV via the decay a → ᵧᵧ. This mass range is between the pi⁰ and η meson masses, which enables the use of the measured η meson production rate to obtain absolute bounds on the ALP production with reduced sensitivity to …

Diffusion Model Approach To Simulating Electron-Proton Scattering Events, Peter Devlin, Jian-Wei Qiu, Felix Ringer, Nobuo Sato

Physics Faculty Publications

Generative artificial intelligence is a fast-growing area of research offering various avenues for exploration in high-energy nuclear physics. In this work, we explore the use of generative models for simulating electron-proton collisions relevant to experiments like the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility and the future Electron-Ion Collider (EIC). These experiments play a critical role in advancing our understanding of nucleons and nuclei in terms of quark and gluon degrees of freedom. The use of generative models for simulating collider events faces several challenges such as the sparsity of the data, the presence of global or eventwide constraints, and steeply falling …

The Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility At 12 Gev, P. A. Adderly, S. Ahmed, T. Allison, R. Bachimanchi, K. Baggett, M. Bastaninejad, B. Bevins, M. Bevins, M. Bickley, R. M. Bodenstein, S. A. Bogacz, M. Bruker, A. Burrill, L. Cardman, J. Creel, Y. -C. Chao, G. Cheng, G. Ciovati, S. Chattopadhyay, Y. Zhang, Et Al.

Physics Faculty Publications

This review paper describes the energy-upgraded Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) accelerator. This superconducting linac has achieved 12 GeV beam energy by adding 11 new high-performance cryomodules containing 88 superconducting cavities that have operated cw at an average accelerating gradient of 20 MV/m. After reviewing the attributes and performance of the previous 6 GeV CEBAF accelerator, we discuss the upgraded CEBAF accelerator system in detail with particular attention paid to the new beam acceleration systems. In addition to doubling the acceleration in each linac, the upgrade included improving the beam recirculation magnets, adding more helium cooling capacity to …

Phenomenology Of Tmd Parton Distributions In Drell-Yan And Z⁰ Boson Production In A Hadron Structure Oriented Approach, F. Aslan, M. Boglione, J. O. Gonzalez-Hernandez, T. Rainaldi, T. C. Rogers, A. Simonelli

Physics Faculty Publications

We present a first practical implementation of a recently proposed hadron structure oriented (HSO) approach to transverse momentum dependent (TMD) phenomenology applied to Drell-Yan-like processes, including lepton pair production at moderate Q² and Z⁰ boson production. We compare and contrast general features of our methodology with other common practices and emphasize aspects that we view as improvements. Separately, we discuss the importance of treatments that preserve various theoretical properties of the nonperturbative parts of TMD parametrizations for future applications that have the extraction of hadron structure as a primary goal. These include the HSO’s preservation of a basic TMD parton-model-like …

New Spin Structure Constraints On Hyperfine Splitting And Proton Zemach Radius, David Ruth, Karl Slifer, Jian-Ping Chen, Carl E. Carlson, Franziska Hagelstein, Vladimir Pasculutsa, Alexandre Deur, Sebastian Kuhn, Marco Ripani, Xiaochao Zheng, Ryan Zielinski, Chao Gu

Physics Faculty Publications

The 1S hyperfine splitting in hydrogen is measured to an impressive ppt precision and will soon be measured to ppm precision in muonic hydrogen. The latter measurement will rely on theoretical predictions, which are limited by knowledge of the proton polarizability effect Δ_pol. Data-driven evaluations of Δ_pol have long been in significant tension with baryon chiral perturbation theory. Here we present improved results for Δ_pol driven by new spin structure data, reducing the long-standing tension between theory and experiment and halving the dominating uncertainty in hyperfine splitting calculations.