Entangled Neutrinos at DUNE Could Unlock Secrets of Stellar Explosions

Scientists investigate the potential of using quantum entanglement to determine the neutrino mass ordering using data anticipated from the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). Adikiran Johny (Central University of Karnataka), Athulkrishna R, and Rudra Majhi (Department of Physics, Nabarangpur College) et al. present a novel approach, framing supernova neutrino oscillations as an effective multipartite quantum state and quantifying flavour correlations via entanglement measures. This research is significant because establishing the neutrino mass ordering remains a fundamental challenge in particle physics, and their analysis demonstrates DUNE’s capability to determine this ordering for supernovae up to approximately 10 kpc, utilising charged current and neutral current detection channels. The team’s findings highlight entanglement-based observables as a complementary and robust method for studying supernova neutrino oscillations and resolving the long-standing mystery of neutrino mass ordering.

This work demonstrates that analysing neutrino flavour correlations through quantum entanglement offers a complementary and robust framework for probing supernova neutrino oscillations.

Researchers have quantified these flavour correlations using entanglement of formation, concurrence, and negativity, directly relating these measures to neutrino survival and transition probabilities. Benchmark scenarios, defined by variations in electron neutrino survival probability, were constructed to evaluate the sensitivity of DUNE to the neutrino mass ordering.
Event rates and fluences were computed for a supernova located at 10 kpc, utilising detector-level simulations performed with the SNOwGLoBES framework. These simulations incorporated the Garching supernova flux model and focused on dominant detection channels in liquid argon, namely νe and νe charged-current interactions on argon and elastic scattering on electrons.

The analysis considered both individual and combined detection channels, incorporating 5% normalization and energy calibration systematic uncertainties to refine the accuracy of the results. Results indicate that DUNE can achieve a 5σ determination of the neutrino mass ordering for a supernova at distances of approximately 20 kpc when analysing the νe charged current channel.

Sensitivity extends to approximately 2 kpc for the νe channel, with the precise reach dependent on the specific entanglement scenario considered. This study establishes that entanglement-based observables provide a novel approach to understanding supernova neutrino oscillations and resolving the long-standing question of neutrino mass ordering. The research quantifies flavour correlations amongst neutrinos by employing the formation, concurrence, and negativity measures, directly relating these to neutrino survival and transition probabilities.

Benchmark scenarios were constructed, varying the electron neutrino survival probability to assess the impact on each entanglement measure. Event rates and neutrino fluences were computed for a supernova located at a distance of 10 kpc, utilising the Garching supernova flux model. Detector-level simulations were performed with the \texttt{SNOwGLoBES} framework, incorporating dominant detection channels in liquid argon, namely charged-current interactions on argon and elastic scattering on electrons.

The analysis considered both individual and combined detection channels, alongside normalization and energy calibration systematic uncertainties, assessed at 5% for both parameters. The study determined that DUNE can achieve a neutrino mass ordering determination for supernovae at distances of approximately 8 kpc for the charged current channel and 14 kpc for the electron neutrino channel, with the achievable reach contingent upon the specific scenario considered.

Fluence curves for νe and νe were generated as a function of energy, revealing that non-zero values of the entanglement parameter, ∆p, induce noticeable deviations from the ∆p = 0 case across all entanglement measures. Event rates were then calculated as a function of neutrino energy for both Channel A (νe-40Ar) and Channel B (νe-40Ar), demonstrating that increasing ∆p shifts the peak event rate towards lower energies. Sensitivity extends to approximately 2 kpc for the νe channel, with the precise reach contingent upon the entanglement scenario considered.

The work quantifies flavour correlations using entanglement of formation, concurrence, and negativity, all expressed in terms of flavour survival and transition probabilities. Event rates and fluences were computed for a supernova located at 10 kpc, and the mass ordering sensitivity was evaluated using detector-level simulations performed with the SNOwGLoBES framework.

These simulations employed the Garching supernova flux model and incorporated dominant detection channels in liquid argon, namely νe and νe charged-current interactions on argon and elastic scattering on electrons. Analyses incorporated both individual and combined detection channels, alongside 5% normalization and energy calibration systematic uncertainties.

The study treats the three flavour neutrino system as an effective multipartite state, providing a framework for probing supernova neutrino oscillations and the neutrino mass ordering. Benchmark scenarios were constructed, defined by representative variations of the electron neutrino survival probability for each measure of entanglement.

DUNE’s enhanced sensitivity to electron neutrinos, through charged current interactions on argon, enables observation of the early neutronization burst of a supernova, a feature dependent on the neutrino mass ordering. The large detector mass and low energy threshold allow for high statistics neutrino signal recording from a Galactic supernova, facilitating detailed studies of the time and energy evolution of the burst.

These results demonstrate that entanglement-based observables offer a complementary and robust framework for investigating supernova neutrino oscillations and establishing the neutrino mass ordering. The research quantified neutrino entanglement through the entanglement of formation, concurrence, and negativity, relating these measures to variations in electron neutrino survival probability.

Event rates and fluences were calculated for a supernova located ten kiloparsecs away, incorporating detector-level simulations and realistic systematic uncertainties to evaluate sensitivity to the neutrino mass ordering. Results indicate that DUNE can determine the neutrino mass ordering for supernovae up to approximately eight kiloparsecs using charged current interactions and up to approximately six kiloparsecs using electron scattering, with the precise reach dependent on the degree of neutrino entanglement.

Analysis of neutrino fluences revealed that the inverted hierarchy consistently exhibits a higher electron neutrino fluence than the normal hierarchy, aiding in discrimination, although this distinction can diminish with increased entanglement. Event rate analysis showed that charged current interactions on argon dominate event statistics, with higher rates observed for the normal hierarchy scenario.

The authors acknowledge limitations related to the employed Garching supernova flux model and the simplification of complex neutrino interactions. Future research could focus on refining these models and exploring the impact of more sophisticated treatments of neutrino flavour mixing and matter effects. These findings establish a framework for leveraging entanglement-based observables as a complementary and robust method for investigating supernova neutrino phenomena and resolving the neutrino mass ordering.