Abstract The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) started physics data taking on 26 August 2025. JUNO consists of a 20-kton liquid scintillator central detector, surrounded by a 35 kton water pool serving as a Cherenkov veto, and almost 1000 m2of plastic scintillator veto on top. The detector is located in a shallow underground laboratory with an overburden of 1800 m.w.e. This paper presents the performance results of the detector, extensively studied during the commissioning of the water phase, the subsequent liquid scintillator filling phase, and the first physics runs. The liquid scintillator achieved an attenuation length of 20.6 m at 430 nm, while the high coverage PMT system and scintillator together yielded about 1785 photoelectrons per MeV of energy deposit at the detector centre, measured using the 2.223 MeVγfrom neutron captures on hydrogen with an Am-C calibration source. The reconstructed energy resolution is 3.4% for two 0.511 MeVγat the detector centre and 2.9% for the 0.93 MeV quenched214Po alpha decays from natural radioactive sources. The energy non-linearity is calibrated to better than 1%. Intrinsic contaminations of238U and232Th in the liquid scintillator are below 10-16g/g, assuming secular equilibrium. The water Cherenkov detector achieves a muon detection efficiency better than 99.9% for muons traversing the liquid scintillator volume. During the initial science runs, the data acquisition duty cycle exceeded 97.8%, demonstrating the excellent stability and readiness of JUNO for high-precision neutrino physics.
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Detection of the 4.4-MeV gamma rays from 16O( ν, ν ′)16O(12.97 MeV, 2−) with a water Cherenkov detector in supernova neutrino bursts
Abstract We first discuss and determine the isospin mixing of the two 2− states (12.53 MeV and 12.97 MeV) of the16O nucleus using inelastic electron scattering data. We then evaluate the cross section of 4.4-MeV γ rays produced in the neutrino neutral-current (NC) reaction 16O(ν, ν′)16O(12.97 MeV, 2−) in a water Cherenkov detector at a low energy, below 100 MeV. The detection of γ rays for Eγ > 5 MeV from the NC reaction 16O(ν, ν′)16O(Ex > 16 MeV, T = 1) with a water Cherenkov detector in supernova neutrino bursts has been proposed and discussed by several authors previously. In this article, we discuss a new NC reaction channel from 16O(12.97 MeV, 2−) producing a 4.4-MeV γ ray, the cross section of which is more robust and even larger at low energy (Eν < 25 MeV) than the NC cross section from 16O(Ex > 16 MeV, T = 1). We also evaluate the number of such events induced by neutrinos from supernova explosion which can be observed by the Super-Kamiokande, an Earth-based 32-kton water Cherenkov detector.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1927130
- PAR ID:
- 10464914
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Progress of Theoretical and Experimental Physics
- Volume:
- 2023
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 2050-3911
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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