Conveners
Physics of Neutrinos
- D. Wark
- E. Fernandez Martinez (Scientific Secretary)
Description
The last CERN Strategy Process stated that it was essential to determine the value of theta13 to clarify the future experimental programme in neutrino physics. Experiments have continued to make rapid progress, and that clarity has now been achieved, with an experimentally-determined value of theta13 almost as large as the previous limit and now known to roughly the same absolute accuracy as the other angles. This opens the prospect to determine the mass hierarchy and search for CP violation with new "conventional" long-baseline experiments. After theoretical introduction on the importance of further measurements of the neutrino properties, in particular the oscillation parameters, the session will focus on a discussion of the proposed experiments and where the European effort should go. We will also discuss the longer-term strategy towards even more capable programmes and what R&D and other efforts are needed in the near term. We need input on what support experiments (neutrino cross-sections, hadron production measurements, etc.) we should be preparing. There is also the question of short-baseline indications of sterile neutrinos, where the experimental situation has become more complex since the last strategy. We will discuss proposed experiments to address these questions and, once again, where European effort should be focused. We will also discuss the important topic of absolute neutrino mass, which is coupled to the discussions in the astroparticle physics section.
