EURONU · A High Intensity Neutrino Oscillation Facility in Europe

The recent discovery that the neutrino changes type (or flavour) as it travels through space, a phenomenon referred to as neutrino oscillations, implies that neutrinos have a tiny, but non-zero mass. This implies that the Standard Model of particle physics is incomplete. The implications are far reaching: e.g neutrino interactions may be responsible for the removal of all the anti-matter created in the Big Bang from the early Universe and that the neutrino may have played a crucial role in the birth of the Universe itself. Knowledge of the contribution of neutrinos in these areas requires precise measurements of parameters governing neutrino oscillations, which will require new high intensity neutrino oscillation facilities in which neutrino beams are generated using new and highly challenging concepts. The construction of such a facility in Europe would reassert Europe’s position as the lead region for high energy particle physics and it would be in line with the strategy for the future of European particle physics, as recommended by the CERN Scientific Policy Committee. The design study will review the three currently accepted methods to realize such a neutrino facility (the so-called neutrino Superbeams, Beta Beams and Neutrino Factories) and do detailed studies of potential show stoppers, it will define the detector options necessary to measure the neutrino oscillation parameters and it will perform a critical physics evaluation of these facilities. The design study will also perform a cost assessment, that coupled with the physics performance, will permit the European research authorities to make a timely decision on the lay-out and construction of the future European neutrino oscillation facility. Doing this work now will enable Europe to secure the lead in this field. The study gathers some of the top specialists in the field, working at some of the leading institutes in European high energy physics, to assure results within the given time and cost framework.