LowNu: Solar neutrinos below 1 MeV
On the day preceeding the opening session of Neutrino2000, Thursday, June 15, there will be a one-day workshop on experimental problems and techniques related to detecting solar neutrinos below 1 MeV. The purpose of this workshop is to provide an informal atmosphere in which common experimental challenges can be discussed informally, information can be exchanged, and future collaborations can be stimulated.
The workshop will take place on the campus of Laurentian University in Sudbury.
If you plan to participate, and we hope very much that you will, you should make your travel arrangements right away and notify the co-hosts John Bahcall (jnb@ias.edu) and Yoichiro Suzuki (suzuki@suketto.icrr.u-tokyo.ac.jp).
Here is the motivation for the workshop.
According to BP98, more than 97% of the solar neutrino flux is predicted to lie below 1 MeV. The solar model predictions for the pp flux and the 7Be flux are rather precise (1% and 9%, respectively). Moreover, currently allowed oscillation solutions indicate that much of the energy dependence and the time dependence of the survival probabilities occurs below 1 MeV.
The gallium measurements provide crucial and accurate results, but they only specify that the events occur somewhere above 0.2 MeV. We do not yet have measurements of solar neutrino events with energies that we know are below 4 MeV.
The fundamental predictions of the solar models and the oscillation solutions deserve to be tested in the low energy region, less than 1 MeV, in which the predictions are accurate and the the oscillation effects can be large.
Low energy solar neutrino experiments are difficult. Some of the problems are common to all techniques. Therefore, it will be useful to get together for a day to discuss proposed experiments and techniques.
Who will participate?
We hope that there will be presentations from all of the groups that are planning or considering solar neutrino experiments below 1 MeV, including BOREXINO, HELLAZ, HERON, KAMLAND, LENS, NEON, and perhaps others. In addition, we hope to have participation and perhaps contributions from representatives of chlorine, GNO, SAGE, SNO, and SuperKamiokande, since their experience is very relevant for future experiments.
The worshop is open to anyone with an interest in the experimental challenges. Theorists are not absolutely excluded, but are warned that the discussion will focus on techniques, on hardware, and on background problems.
Participants are responsible for their own travel arangements, but should notify both John Bahcall and Yoichiro Suzuki of their plans to attend. One month before the workshop, a tenative agenda will be posted on John Bahcall's home page and on the SuperKamiokande home page. We will also include a list of participants who have notified us of there intention to attend.
John Bahcall and Yoichiro Suzuki
Back to LowNu