Apeksha Singhal M.Sc.

Apeksha Singhal M.Sc.
  • PhD student, joined December 2020 (previously as a master student from November 2019)
  • Thesis Title: Solar neutrinos and next generation neutrino experiments

Contact:
  • Phone: +49 2461 61 4123
  • E-mail: apeksha.singhal_AT_rwth-aachen.de

Education

Research Activity: Borexino

Spectroscopy of CNO solar neutrinos

My work concentrates towards the preparation of data and Monte Carlo inputs for the final fit, performing the spectral fits and the determination of 210Bi constraint parameters for the improved CNO solar neutrinos measurement. The contributions are used for this publication.

During my Master's thesis, I was involved in the first experimental evidence of CNO solar neutrinos. The contributions from the thesis were used for the publication in Nature.

Directionality of solar neutrinos

For the first time, the directional measurement of sub-MeV solar neutrinos has been achieved in a liquid scintillator detector, using first few hits due to Cherenkov light emission from an event with the Borexino Experiment, using the "Correlated and Integrated Directionality" (CID) technique. My work regarding this analysis includes the optimisation of fit parameters, the study of directional distribution of backgrounds using the toy Monte Carlo simulations and the evaluation of associated systematic contributions. These contributions were used for these publications: short letter and a long article.

Recently, the measurement of CNO solar neutrinos using CID technique without using a constraint on 210Bi background rate has been performed. The results on CNO using CID is then applied as external constraint to the spectral fit. I have collaborated with Johann Martyn from JGU Mainz group in performing CID analysis for CNO neutrinos measurement. My contribution involves preparation and optimisation of fit inputs, doing the fits for calibrating group velocity of Cherenkov photons and for extracting CNO solar neutrinos, performing the checks, evaluation of systematic uncertainties and co-writing the article. These contributions were used for this publication.

Research Activity: JUNO

I joined JUNO collaboration in September 2021. I was involved in the JUNO's sensitivity towards the measurement of Be7, pep and CNO solar neutrinos. My contributions are the estimation of reactor anti-neutrino background rate, doing the spectral fits to estimate the precision of rates of Be7, pep and CNO solar neutrinos that can be reached in the presence of different level of background contaminations in JUNO detector and co-writing the article. These contributions were used for this publication.

Furthermore, the estimation of JUNO's sensitivity towards the measurement of solar neutrinos using combined CID technique and the spectral fit is currently in investigation.

Teaching

Tutor for Elementary Particle Physics II for Master Students, RWTH Aachen University (2021): Neutrino Physics

Selected Publications

Borexino

  • D. Basilico et al. (Borexino Collaboration), "Final results of Borexino on CNO solar neutrinos", accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. D and selected as Editor's Suggestion.

  • S. Appel et al. (Borexino Collaboration), "Improved measurement of solar neutrinos from the Carbon-Nitrogen-Oxygen cycle by Borexino and its implications for the Standard Solar Model", Phys. Rev. Lett. 129 (2022) 252701 and selected as Editor's Suggestion.

  • M. Agostini et al. (Borexino Collaboration), "First Directional Measurement of sub-MeV Solar Neutrinos with Borexino", Phys. Rev. Lett. 128 (2022) 091803.

  • M. Agostini et al. (Borexino Collaboration), "Correlated and Integrated Directionality for sub-MeV solar neutrinos in Borexino", Phys. Rev. D 105 (2022) 052002 and selected as Editor's Suggestion.

  • M. Agostini et al. (Borexino Collaboration), "Experimental evidence of neutrinos produced in the CNO fusion cycle in the Sun", Nature 587, p 577–582(2020).

    • JUNO

  • A. Abusleme et al. (JUNO Collaboration), "JUNO sensitivity to 7Be, pep, and CNO solar neutrinos", JCAP 10 (2023) 022.

    • Proceedings

  • A. Singhal et al. (Borexino Collaboration), Understanding the systematic effects for the directional detection of sub-MeV solar neutrinos with Borexino, J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. (TAUP 2021) 2156 012202

    • ResearchGate
    ORCID

    Talks and Posters

  • XX International Workshop on Neutrino Telescopes, Venice, Italy: 23-27 October, 2023
    Parallel Talk: JUNO's sensitivity to 7Be, pep and CNO solar neutrinos

  • EPS-HEP 2023, Hamburg, Germany: 21-25 August, 2023
    Parallel Talk: Combined directional and spectral analysis of solar neutrinos from Carbon-Nitrogen-Oxygen fusion cycle with Borexino Experiment
    • Poster: JUNO's sensitivity to 7Be, pep and CNO solar neutrinos

  • DPG Spring Meeting 2023, Dresden, Germany: 20-24 March, 2023
    Parallel Talk: JUNO's sensitivity to 7Be, pep and CNO solar neutrinos and strategy for directional analysis of CNO solar neutrinos in JUNO

  • Matter and the Universe 2022, Darmstadt, Germany: 20-21 October, 2022
    Flash talk: Recent results from Borexino: measurement of CNO solar neutrinos and directionality of sub-MeV solar neutrinos

  • IKP-Seminar, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany: July 18, 2022
    Seminar talk: Update on ongoing CNO analysis with Borexino

  • International Research Network Neutrino meeting, Annecy, France: 29-30 June, 2022
    Parallel talk: Recent results from Borexino: measurement of CNO solar neutrinos and directionality of sub-MeV solar neutrinos

  • IKP-Seminar, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany: June 27, 2022
    Seminar talk: Updated CNO solar neutrino measurement with Borexino: analysis strategy and implication on solar physics

  • Neutrino 2022, Seoul, South Korea (online): 30 May - 4 June, 2022
    Poster: First directional measurement of sub-MeV solar neutrinos in the liquid scintillator detector by Borexino

  • DPG Spring Meeting 2022, Heidelberg, Germany (online): 20-25 March, 2022
    Parallel talk: Analysis strategies used in the directional analysis of sub-MeV solar neutrinos in a liquid scintillator detector

  • IKP-Seminar, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany: October 11, 2021
    Seminar talk: First directional measurement of sub-MeV solar neutrinos in a liquid scintillator detector

  • LXXI International conference "NUCLEUS – 2021. Nuclear physics and elementary particle physics. Nuclear physics technologies", St. Petersburg, Russia (online): 20-25 September, 2021:
    Plenary talk: First experimental proof of CNO fusion cycle in Sun with the Borexino Experiment

  • Physics in Collision 2021, Aachen, Germany: 14-17 September, 2021:
    Poster: First directional detection of sub-MeV solar neutrinos in the liquid scintillator detector by Borexino

  • 17th International Conference on Topics in Astroparticle and Underground Physics (TAUP) 2021, Valencia, Spain (online): 26 August - 3 September, 2021
    Poster: Understanding the systematic effects for the directional measurement of Be-7 solar neutrinos with Borexino

  • DPG Spring Meeting 2021, Dortmund, Germany (online): 15-19 March, 2021:
    Parallel talk: Strategy used in CNO solar neutrinos analysis with the Borexino Experiment

    • Schools

  • INFN School of Statistics 2022, Paestum, Italy: 15-30 May, 2022.