{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/140949"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/140949","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Study on measuring Neutrino interactions with the ICARUS detector and addressing its cosmic ray background.","abstract":"The Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab is the world's most sensitive research environment where to search for sterile neutrinos at the electronvolt mass scale. The program makes use of three liquid argon time projection chambers sequentially positioned along the Booster Neutrino Beam, in this setup ICARUS serves as the far detector. The primary goal of the program is to prove or disprove anomalous results from previous experiments that imply the existence of sterile neutrinos. ICARUS was moved from its original deep underground location at LNGS in Italy to Fermilab. At Fermilab ICARUS is installed on the surface introducing a new challenge to its physics program in the form of cosmic ray contamination. To meet this challenge a Cosmic Ray Tagger (CRT) system was designed and implemented with a 4$pi$ coverage. This thesis presents a comprehensive examination of the CRT system design, implementation, and performance, demonstrating its critical role in enabling precision neutrino physics measurements in surface environments. The thesis also presents the application of the combined ICARUS detector and CRT system capabilities for neutrino-argon cross-section measurements using the off-axis NuMI neutrino beam, focusing on the muon neutrino charged-current inclusive channel. The integration of advanced cosmic ray rejection techniques with high-resolution liquid argon imaging technology establishes important precedents for future surface-based neutrino detectors and contributes essential measurements for understanding neutrino-nucleus interactions relevant to long-baseline oscillation experiments.","abstract_html":"The Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab is the world's most sensitive research environment where to search for sterile neutrinos at the electronvolt mass scale. The program makes use of three liquid argon time projection chambers sequentially positioned along the Booster Neutrino Beam, in this setup ICARUS serves as the far detector. The primary goal of the program is to prove or disprove anomalous results from previous experiments that imply the existence of sterile neutrinos. ICARUS was moved from its original deep underground location at LNGS in Italy to Fermilab. At Fermilab ICARUS is installed on the surface introducing a new challenge to its physics program in the form of cosmic ray contamination. To meet this challenge a Cosmic Ray Tagger (CRT) system was designed and implemented with a 4$pi$ coverage. This thesis presents a comprehensive examination of the CRT system design, implementation, and performance, demonstrating its critical role in enabling precision neutrino physics measurements in surface environments. The thesis also presents the application of the combined ICARUS detector and CRT system capabilities for neutrino-argon cross-section measurements using the off-axis NuMI neutrino beam, focusing on the muon neutrino charged-current inclusive channel. The integration of advanced cosmic ray rejection techniques with high-resolution liquid argon imaging technology establishes important precedents for future surface-based neutrino detectors and contributes essential measurements for understanding neutrino-nucleus interactions relevant to long-baseline oscillation experiments.","abstract_has_math":true,"creators":["Campos Benitez, Axel Manuel"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"doctoral","degree_discipline":"Physics","degree_department":"Physics","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Mariani, Camillo"],"committee_members":["Pitt, Mark L.","O'Donnell, Thomas","Huber, Patrick"],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-01-22","date_published":"2026-01-22","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:18:50Z","subjects":["Physics","Neutrinos","LArTPC","Cosmic Rays","Particle Physics"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45428"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:45428","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10919/140949","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Mariani, Camillo"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Pitt, Mark L.","O'Donnell, Thomas","Huber, Patrick"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Physics"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Campos Benitez, Axel Manuel"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2026-01-23T09:00:36Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-01-23T09:00:36Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2026-01-22"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Physics"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["doctoral"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Physics","Neutrinos","LArTPC","Cosmic Rays","Particle Physics"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45428"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/140949"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab is the world's most sensitive research environment where to search for sterile neutrinos at the electronvolt mass scale. The program makes use of three liquid argon time projection chambers sequentially positioned along the Booster Neutrino Beam, in this setup ICARUS serves as the far detector. The primary goal of the program is to prove or disprove anomalous results from previous experiments that imply the existence of sterile neutrinos. ICARUS was moved from its original deep underground location at LNGS in Italy to Fermilab. At Fermilab ICARUS is installed on the surface introducing a new challenge to its physics program in the form of cosmic ray contamination. To meet this challenge a Cosmic Ray Tagger (CRT) system was designed and implemented with a 4$pi$ coverage. This thesis presents a comprehensive examination of the CRT system design, implementation, and performance, demonstrating its critical role in enabling precision neutrino physics measurements in surface environments. The thesis also presents the application of the combined ICARUS detector and CRT system capabilities for neutrino-argon cross-section measurements using the off-axis NuMI neutrino beam, focusing on the muon neutrino charged-current inclusive channel. The integration of advanced cosmic ray rejection techniques with high-resolution liquid argon imaging technology establishes important precedents for future surface-based neutrino detectors and contributes essential measurements for understanding neutrino-nucleus interactions relevant to long-baseline oscillation experiments."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["Neutrinos are among the most abundant particles in the universe, however they rarely interact with matter and as such are very difficult to detect. With time, experiments grew more sophisticated and not only were they able to detect neutrinos but they were able to discover that neutrinos come in three different ``flavors'' and they can change from one flavor to another as they travel through space and time. This phenomenon is referred to as neutrino oscillation. It critically requires that neutrinos have mass while neutrinos are massless according to the Standard Model of Particle Physics. Neutrino experiments in the last 20 years stumbled upon puzzling results that could not be explained by the simple assumption that there are only three kind of neutrinos, suggesting there might be a fourth type of neutrino that is called sterile. The Short Baseline Neutrino program at Fermilab was designed to solve this mystery using a set of high resolution detectors known as Liquid Argon Time Projection Chambers (LArTPC's). The program uses three large detectors filled with liquid argon positioned at different distances along a neutrino beam. ICARUS-T600 is the largest of these detectors, containing 476 tons of liquid argon, and serves as the farthest detector from the neutrino source. ICARUS was originally built to operate deep underground in Italy, where the surrounding rock naturally blocked cosmic rays from space. When the detector was moved to Fermilab and placed near the surface, these cosmic rays became a large background for the experiment. To address this problem an advanced Cosmic Ray Tagger system that surrounds the detector and can identify when cosmic rays pass through was built, allowing researchers to distinguish between cosmic ray events and genuine neutrino interactions. This thesis describes the design and construction of this cosmic ray detection system and demonstrates how it enables precise measurements of neutrino interactions with argon nuclei. These measurements are important not only for searching for sterile neutrinos but also for understanding how neutrinos interact with matter, which is essential for future neutrino experiments. The successful operation of this surface-based detector establishes important techniques that will benefit the next generation of neutrino research facilities."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["ETD"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Study on measuring Neutrino interactions with the ICARUS detector and addressing its cosmic ray background."]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Mariani, Camillo"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Pitt, Mark L.","O'Donnell, Thomas","Huber, Patrick"],"dc:contributor.department":["Physics"],"dc:creator":["Campos Benitez, Axel Manuel"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-01-23T09:00:36Z"],"dc:date.available":["2026-01-23T09:00:36Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026-01-22"],"dc:description.abstract":["The Short Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program at Fermilab is the world's most sensitive research environment where to search for sterile neutrinos at the electronvolt mass scale. The program makes use of three liquid argon time projection chambers sequentially positioned along the Booster Neutrino Beam, in this setup ICARUS serves as the far detector. The primary goal of the program is to prove or disprove anomalous results from previous experiments that imply the existence of sterile neutrinos. ICARUS was moved from its original deep underground location at LNGS in Italy to Fermilab. At Fermilab ICARUS is installed on the surface introducing a new challenge to its physics program in the form of cosmic ray contamination. To meet this challenge a Cosmic Ray Tagger (CRT) system was designed and implemented with a 4$pi$ coverage. This thesis presents a comprehensive examination of the CRT system design, implementation, and performance, demonstrating its critical role in enabling precision neutrino physics measurements in surface environments. The thesis also presents the application of the combined ICARUS detector and CRT system capabilities for neutrino-argon cross-section measurements using the off-axis NuMI neutrino beam, focusing on the muon neutrino charged-current inclusive channel. The integration of advanced cosmic ray rejection techniques with high-resolution liquid argon imaging technology establishes important precedents for future surface-based neutrino detectors and contributes essential measurements for understanding neutrino-nucleus interactions relevant to long-baseline oscillation experiments."],"dc:description.abstractgeneral":["Neutrinos are among the most abundant particles in the universe, however they rarely interact with matter and as such are very difficult to detect. With time, experiments grew more sophisticated and not only were they able to detect neutrinos but they were able to discover that neutrinos come in three different ``flavors'' and they can change from one flavor to another as they travel through space and time. This phenomenon is referred to as neutrino oscillation. It critically requires that neutrinos have mass while neutrinos are massless according to the Standard Model of Particle Physics. Neutrino experiments in the last 20 years stumbled upon puzzling results that could not be explained by the simple assumption that there are only three kind of neutrinos, suggesting there might be a fourth type of neutrino that is called sterile. The Short Baseline Neutrino program at Fermilab was designed to solve this mystery using a set of high resolution detectors known as Liquid Argon Time Projection Chambers (LArTPC's). The program uses three large detectors filled with liquid argon positioned at different distances along a neutrino beam. ICARUS-T600 is the largest of these detectors, containing 476 tons of liquid argon, and serves as the farthest detector from the neutrino source. ICARUS was originally built to operate deep underground in Italy, where the surrounding rock naturally blocked cosmic rays from space. When the detector was moved to Fermilab and placed near the surface, these cosmic rays became a large background for the experiment. To address this problem an advanced Cosmic Ray Tagger system that surrounds the detector and can identify when cosmic rays pass through was built, allowing researchers to distinguish between cosmic ray events and genuine neutrino interactions. This thesis describes the design and construction of this cosmic ray detection system and demonstrates how it enables precise measurements of neutrino interactions with argon nuclei. These measurements are important not only for searching for sterile neutrinos but also for understanding how neutrinos interact with matter, which is essential for future neutrino experiments. The successful operation of this surface-based detector establishes important techniques that will benefit the next generation of neutrino research facilities."],"dc:description.degree":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"dc:format.medium":["ETD"],"dc:identifier.other":["vt_gsexam:45428"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/140949"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["Physics","Neutrinos","LArTPC","Cosmic Rays","Particle Physics"],"dc:title":["Study on measuring Neutrino interactions with the ICARUS detector and addressing its cosmic ray background."],"dc:type":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Physics"],"thesis:degree_level":["doctoral"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:18:50Z"}