A1 Journal article (refereed)
Combined sensitivity to the neutrino mass ordering with JUNO, the IceCube Upgrade, and PINGU (2020)

IceCube-Gen2 Collaboration, JUNO Collaboration. (2020). Combined sensitivity to the neutrino mass ordering with JUNO, the IceCube Upgrade, and PINGU. Physical Review D, 101(3), Article 032006. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.101.032006

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: IceCube-Gen2 Collaboration; JUNO Collaboration

Journal or series: Physical Review D

ISSN: 2470-0010

eISSN: 2470-0029

Publication year: 2020

Volume: 101

Issue number: 3

Article number: 032006

Publisher: American Physical Society

Publication country: United States

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.101.032006

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Partially open access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/68286

Publication is parallel published: https://publikationen.bibliothek.kit.edu/1000106012

Web address of parallel published publication (pre-print): https://arxiv.org/abs/1911.06745

Abstract

The ordering of the neutrino mass eigenstates is one of the fundamental open questions in neutrino physics. While current-generation neutrino oscillation experiments are able to produce moderate indications on this ordering, upcoming experiments of the next generation aim to provide conclusive evidence. In this paper we study the combined performance of the two future multi-purpose neutrino oscillation experiments JUNO and the IceCube Upgrade, which employ two very distinct and complementary routes toward the neutrino mass ordering. The approach pursued by the 20 kt medium-baseline reactor neutrino experiment JUNO consists of a careful investigation of the energy spectrum of oscillated (nu) over bar (e) produced by ten nuclear reactor cores. The IceCube Upgrade, on the other hand, which consists of seven additional densely instrumented strings deployed in the center of IceCube DeepCore, will observe large numbers of atmospheric neutrinos that have undergone oscillations affected by Earth matter. In a joint fit with both approaches, tension occurs between their preferred mass-squared differences Delta m(31)(2) = m(3)(2) - m(1)(2) in within the wrong mass ordering. In the case of JUNO and the IceCube Upgrade, this allows to exclude the wrong ordering at > 5 sigma on a timescale of 3-7 years-even under circumstances that are unfavorable to the experiments individual sensitivities. For PINGU, a 26-string detector array designed as a potential low-energy extension to IceCube, the inverted ordering could be excluded within 1.5 years (3 years for the normal ordering) in a joint analysis.

Keywords: particle physics; neutrinos; mass (physics)

Contributing organizations

Ministry reporting: Yes

VIRTA submission year: 2020

JUFO rating: 2