UCNA/UCNA+

Research output: Contribution to conferencePresentation

Abstract

The neutron provides a simple yet dynamic nuclear system to study the Standard Model of Particle Physics. The process of transforming a neutron into a proton, an electron, and an anti-neutrino contains a wealth of information in the decay rate and the kinematics of the emitted particles. Precision measurements of angular correlations in neutron β-decay can lend insight to the structure of the weak interaction and probe for physics beyond the Standard Model. The UCNA experiment at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center is the only experiment to use ultracold neutrons to perform such a measurement, determining the β-asymmetry parameter A 0 = -0.12054(44) stat (68) sys . The β-asymmetry describes the correlation between the neutron's spin and the emission direction of the out-going electron. To leading order A 0 is defined by the ratio of the axial-vector and vector weak couplings constants λ ≡ g A / g V . In this presentation I will discuss the final results from UCNA, their implications for searches of beyond the standard model physics, and prospects for a future UCNA+ experiment capable of a ≤0.2% precision.

Original languageAmerican English
StatePublished - Nov 10 2018
EventSouth East Section of the American Physical Society -
Duration: Nov 10 2018 → …

Conference

ConferenceSouth East Section of the American Physical Society
Period11/10/18 → …

Keywords

  • UCNA
  • UCNA+
  • physics

Disciplines

  • Physics

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