Neutron-Multiplicity Measurement in Muon Capture on Oxygen Nuclei in the Gadolinium-Loaded Super-Kamiokande Detector

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: In recent neutrino detectors, neutrons produced in neutrino reactions play an important role. Muon capture on oxygen nuclei is one of the processes that produce neutrons in water Cherenkov detectors. We measured neutron multiplicity in the process using cosmic ray muons that stop in the gadolinium-loaded Super-Kamiokande detector. For this measurement, neutron detection efficiency is obtained with the muon capture events followed by gamma rays to be 50.2_{-2.1}^{+2.0}%. By fitting the observed multiplicity considering the detection efficiency, we measure neutron multiplicity in muon capture as P(0)=24±3%, P(1)=70_{-2}^{+3}%, P(2)=6.1±0.5%, P(3)=0.38±0.09%. This is the first measurement of the multiplicity of neutrons associated with muon capture on oxygen without neutron energy threshold.

Source: Physical Review Letters

DOI: 10.1103/pmyx-jn3s

Authors: S. Miki, K. Abe, S. Abe, Y. Asaoka, C. Bronner, M. Harada, Y. Hayato, K. Hiraide, K. Hosokawa, K. Ieki, M. Ikeda, J. Kameda, Y. Kanemura, R. Kaneshima, Y. Kashiwagi, Y. Kataoka, S. Mine, M. Miura, S. Moriyama, M. Nakahata, S. Nakayama, Y. Noguchi, K. Okamoto, G. Pronost, K. Sato, H. Sekiya, H. Shiba, K. Shimizu, M. Shiozawa, Y. Sonoda, Y. Suzuki, A. Takeda, Y. Takemoto, A. Takenaka, H. Tanaka, S. Watanabe, T. Yano, T. Kajita, K. Okumura, T. Tashiro, T. Tomiya, X. Wang, S. Yoshida, G. D. Megias, P. Fernandez, L. Labarga, N. Ospina, B. Zaldivar, B. W. Pointon, C. Yanagisawa, E. Kearns, J. L. Raaf, L. Wan, T. Wester, J. Bian, B. Cortez, N. J. Griskevich, S. Locke, M. B. Smy, H. W. Sobel, V. Takhistov, A. Yankelevich, J. Hill, M. C. Jang, S. H. Lee, D. H. Moon, R. G. Park, B. S. Yang, B. Bodur, K. Scholberg, C. W. Walter, A. Beauchêne, O. Drapier, A. Ershova, A. Giampaolo, Th. A. Mueller, A. D. Santos, P. Paganini, C. Quach, B. Quilain, R. Rogly, T. Nakamura, J. S. Jang, R. P. Litchfield, L. N. Machado, F. J. P. Soler, J. G. Learned, K. Choi, N. Iovine, S. Cao, L. H. V. Anthony, D. Martin, N. W. Prouse, M. Scott, A. A. Sztuc, Y. Uchida, V. Berardi, N. F. Calabria, M. G. Catanesi, E. Radicioni, N. F. Calabria, A. Langella, G. De Rosa, G. Collazuol, M. Feltre, F. Iacob, M. Lamoureux, M. Mattiazzi, L. Ludovici, M. Gonin, L. Périssé, B. Quilain, C. Fujisawa, S. Horiuchi, M. Kobayashi, Y. M. Liu, Y. Maekawa, Y. Nishimura, R. Okazaki, R. Akutsu, M. Friend, T. Hasegawa, T. Ishida, T. Kobayashi, M. Jakkapu, T. Matsubara, T. Nakadaira, K. Nakamura, Y. Oyama, A. Portocarrero Yrey, K. Sakashita, T. Sekiguchi, T. Tsukamoto, N. Bhuiyan, G. T. Burton, F. Di Lodovico, J. Gao, A. Goldsack, T. Katori, J. Migenda, R. M. Ramsden, Z. Xie, S. Zsoldos, Y. Kotsar, H. Ozaki, A. T. Suzuki, Y. Takagi, Y. Takeuchi, H. Zhong, J. Feng, L. Feng, S. Han, J. R. Hu, Z. Hu, M. Kawaue, T. Kikawa, M. Mori, T. Nakaya, T. V. Ngoc, R. A. Wendell, K. Yasutome, S. J. Jenkins, N. McCauley, P. Mehta, A. Tarrant, M. J. Wilking, Y. Fukuda, Y. Itow, H. Menjo, K. Ninomiya, Y. Yoshioka, J. Lagoda, M. Mandal, P. Mijakowski, Y. S. Prabhu, J. Zalipska, M. Jia, J. Jiang, C. K. Jung, W. Shi, M. J. Wilking, Y. Hino, H. Ishino, H. Kitagawa, Y. Koshio, F. Nakanishi, S. Sakai, T. Tada, T. Tano, T. Ishizuka, G. Barr, D. Barrow, L. Cook, S. Samani, D. Wark, A. Holin, F. Nova, S. Jung, B. S. Yang, J. Y. Yang, J. Yoo, J. E. P. Fannon, L. Kneale, M. Malek, J. M. McElwee, T. Peacock, P. Stowell, M. D. Thiesse, L. F. Thompson, S. T. Wilson, H. Okazawa, S. M. Lakshmi, S. B. Kim, E. Kwon, M. W. Lee, J. W. Seo, I. Yu, A. K. Ichikawa, K. D. Nakamura, S. Tairafune, K. Nishijima, A. Eguchi, S. Goto, Y. Mizuno, T. Muro, K. Nakagiri, Y. Nakajima, S. Shima, N. Taniuchi, E. Watanabe, M. Yokoyama, P. de Perio, S. Fujita, C. Jesús-Valls, K. Martens, Ll. Marti, K. M. Tsui, M. R. Vagins, J. Xia, M. Kuze, S. Izumiyama, R. Matsumoto, K. Terada, R. Asaka, M. Ishitsuka, H. Ito, T. Kinoshita, Y. Ommura, N. Shigeta, M. Shinoki, T. Suganuma, K. Yamauchi, T. Yoshida, J. F. Martin, H. A. Tanaka, T. Towstego, Y. Nakano, F. Cormier, R. Gaur, V. Gousy-Leblanc, M. Hartz, A. Konaka, X. Li, B. R. Smithers, S. Chen, Y. Wu, B. D. Xu, A. Q. Zhang, B. Zhang, M. Girgus, P. Govindaraj, M. Posiadala-Zezula, S. B. Boyd, R. Edwards, D. Hadley, M. Nicholson, M. O’Flaherty, B. Richards, A. Ali, B. Jamieson, S. Amanai, A. Minamino, G. Pintaudi, S. Sano, R. Shibayama, R. Shimamura, S. Suzuki, K. Wada

Institutions: Institute for Cosmic Ray Research, Kamioka Observatory, The University of Tokyo, University of California System, University of Toronto, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, TRIUMF, British Columbia Institute of Technology, New York University, Stony Brook University, Boston University, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization, California State University System, Chonnam National University, Seoul National University, Duke University, Laboratoire Leprince-Ringuet, Gifu University, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, University of Glasgow, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, University of Hawaii System, Institute for Basic Science, Imperial College London, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Bari, Polytechnic University of Bari, University of Padua, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Padova, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Napoli, International Laboratory for Astrophysics, Neutrino and Cosmology Experiments, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Roma I, Sapienza University of Rome, Keio University, Tohoku University, King's College London, Kobe University, Kyoto University, University of Liverpool, University of Minnesota, Miyagi University of Education, Nagoya University, National Centre for Nuclear Research, Okayama University, Osaka Electro-Communication University, University of Oxford, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, University of Sheffield, Shizuoka University of Welfare, University of Silesia in Katowice, Sungkyunkwan University, Tokai University, Institute of Science Tokyo, Tokyo University of Science, University of Toyama, Tsinghua University, University of Warsaw, University of Warwick, The University of Winnipeg, Yokohama National University

Language: English

Topic: Neutrino Physics Research

Subfield: Nuclear and High Energy Physics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,750

OpenAlex ID: W4414847351