Measurement of the Free Neutron Lifetime using the Neutron Spectrometer on NASA's Lunar Prospector Mission

We use data from the Lunar Prospector Neutron Spectrometer to make the second space-based measurement of the free neutron lifetime finding \(\tau_n=887 \pm 14_\text{stat}{\:^{+7}_{-3\:\text{syst}}}\) s, which is within 1\(\sigma\) of the accepted value. This measurement expands the range of planetar...

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Published inarXiv.org
Main Authors Wilson, Jack T, Lawrence, David J, Peplowski, Patrick N, Eke, Vincent R, Kegerreis, Jacob A
Format Paper Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 04.08.2021
Subjects
Beta decay
Cosmic rays
Galactic cosmic rays
Laboratories
Lunar Prospector
Modelling
Moon
Neutrons
Physics - Nuclear Experiment
Spallation
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Summary:We use data from the Lunar Prospector Neutron Spectrometer to make the second space-based measurement of the free neutron lifetime finding \(\tau_n=887 \pm 14_\text{stat}{\:^{+7}_{-3\:\text{syst}}}\) s, which is within 1\(\sigma\) of the accepted value. This measurement expands the range of planetary bodies where the neutron lifetime has been quantified from space, and by extending the modeling to account for non-uniform elemental composition, we mitigated a significant source of systematic uncertainty on the previous space-based lifetime measurement. This modeling moves space-based neutron lifetime measurement towards the ultimate goal of reducing the magnitude of the systematics on a future space-measurement to the level of those seen in laboratory-based experiments.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.2011.07061