Particle Physics Seminar

The past few years have brought several remarkable neutrino-related discoveries and experimental anomalies indicating that these elusive particles might hold clues to some of the most profound questions in particle physics such as matter-antimatter asymmetry and the possibility of additional low-mass neutrino states. Further exploration of these clues require technological advances in neutrino detection. Liquid Argon Time Projection Chambers (LArTPCs) are imaging detectors that present neutrino interactions with the detail of bubble chambers, but with an electronic data acquisition and processing. Various efforts are ongoing at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) to develop this intriguing technology. MicroBooNE is a 170 ton LArTPC which recently started collecting data with Fermilab's Booster Neutrino Beam. In addition to addressing the recent low-energy electromagnetic anomaly observed by the MiniBooNE experiment, the exceptional particle identification capability of MicroBooNE will make it possible for the first time to measure low-energy (~1 GeV) neutrino cross-sections in argon with high precision thereby providing invaluable inputs to develop nuclear models needed for future long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. MicroBooNE is also leading the way for an extensive short-baseline neutrino physics program at Fermilab and also serves as a R&D project towards a long-baseline multi-kiloton scale LArTPC detector. This talk will start by giving a brief overview of LArTPC efforts at Fermilab, followed by a description of the MicroBooNE experiment, its current status and first physics results along with some future projections.