Work

Joint analysis of reactor and accelerator CE ν NS data on germanium: implications for the standard model and nuclear physics

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This work presents the first comprehensive joint analysis of all available Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering (CE ν NS) data on germanium: those observed at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) by the COHERENT collaboration and those of the nuclear reactors revealed by the CONUS+ experiment using germanium detectors. In addition to COHERENT and CONUS+, we incorporate reactor data from TEXONO and ν GeN, thereby enhancing both the statistical significance and the systematic reliability of our study. We provide state-of-the-art determinations of key nuclear physics and Standard Model parameters, including the neutron root-mean-square (rms) radius of germanium nuclei, the weak mixing angle, and the neutrino charge radius. The observed tension of about 2 σ between the COHERENT germanium measurement and the Standard Model prediction motivates a detailed reassessment of the theoretical cross-section. In particular, we examine the impact of nuclear form factors and uncertainties in the nuclear radius, as well as the potential influence of a systematic shift in the neutrino flux normalisation at the SNS. Our results highlight the reliability of CE ν NS as a precision tool, reinforced by the complementarity of different experimental inputs, and lay the groundwork for future advances in the field.

Source: Physics Letters B

DOI: 10.1016/j.physletb.2025.139856

Authors: M. Atzori Corona, M. Cadeddu, N. Cargioli, G. Co’, F. Dordei, C. Giunti