The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) reconstructs each event's vertex and energy with OMILREC, a maximum-likelihood fit that scans all $17{,}612$ large photomultiplier tubes (LPMTs) in every Minuit function evaluation, about $470$ times per event. This inner loop dominates the reconstruction CPU cost. Profiling shows that the production algorithm is latency-bound, sustaining only $9.9%$ of scalar floating-point peak because of virtual-function dispatch, ROOT-histogram pointer chasing, and repeated computation. We apply staged \emph{equivalence-preserving} optimizations: flattened data layouts, vectorizable geometry, hoisting of Minuit-invariant work, per-event precomputation, fit-phase loop splitting and indexing, and reduced-precision fast paths. Each stage is checked against a frozen reference from the unmodified code. The optimized implementation achieves single-thread speedups of $8.06\times$ ($1524.8 \rightarrow 189.2$~ms/event) on an Intel Xeon Platinum~8358P and $5.22\times$ ($705.1 \rightarrow 134.9$~ms/event) on an AMD~EPYC~9654, increasing to $8.6\times$ ($177.7$~ms/event) after further optimization. The likelihood remains bit-identical through the first seven releases and later agrees within a relative drift of $1.3\times10^{-14}$, below the $10^{-13}$ contract. For typical events, reconstructed vertex and energy agree with the baseline within $4$~mm and $7$~keV; a few boundary cases reach different valid minima owing to an improved minimizer seed. An eight-metric physics-acceptance test also passes on about $861{,}000$ $^{68}$Ge calibration events. Developed with assistance from an AI coding agent operating under these verification gates, this workflow offers a transferable template for accelerating likelihood-based reconstruction in large neutrino and collider detectors without changing physics output.
The Review summarizes much of particle physics and cosmology. Using data from previous editions, plus 3,200 new measurements from 903 papers, we list, evaluate, and average measured properties of gauge bosons and the recently discovered Higgs boson, leptons, quarks, mesons, and baryons. We summarize searches for hypothetical particles such as supersymmetric particles, heavy bosons, axions, dark photons, etc. Particle properties and search limits are listed in Summary Tables. We give numerous tables, figures, formulae, and reviews of topics such as Higgs Boson Physics, Supersymmetry, Grand Unified Theories, Neutrino Mixing, Dark Energy, Dark Matter, Cosmology, Particle Detectors, Colliders, Probability and Statistics. Most of the 118 reviews are updated, including many that are heavily revised. The Review is divided into two volumes. Volume 1 includes the Summary Tables and 96 review articles. Volume 2 consists of the Particle Listings and contains also 22 reviews that address specific aspects of the data presented in the Listings. The complete Review (both volumes) is published online on the website of the Particle Data Group ( pdg.lbl.gov ) and in a journal. Volume 1 is available in print as the PDG Book. A Particle Physics Booklet with the Summary Tables and essential tables, figures, and equations from selected review articles is available in print, as a web version optimized for use on phones, and as an Android app. The PDG API (Application Programming Interface) provides access to the data published in the Review in machine-readable format.
The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) collaboration has completed the construction of the 20,000-ton liquid scintillator detector and the associated muon veto detector system. To meet the physics objectives, the materials used in the detector must exhibit low radioactive contamination. The single-event rate in the fiducial volume (R < 17.2 m) of the scintillator is required to be approximately 7 Hz for energies above 0.7 MeV, resulting in an accidental coincidence background of about 1 event per day for reactor neutrino physics analyses. Since the beginning of the construction phase, we have screened the natural radioactivity content of thousands of materials, to select those that meet the design background budget. The radioactive impurity concentrations of the materials ultimately used in the JUNO detector are summarized in this paper. The construction of the entire detector and the subsequent filling of the liquid scintillator were completed in August 2025. From the initial data, the total count rate of natural radioactivity within the detector's fiducial volume has met the requirements and is sufficient to support the reactor antineutrino analysis.
The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) aims to determine the neutrino mass ordering. As a satellite experiment of JUNO, the Taishan Antineutrino Observatory (TAO) is designed to precisely measure the reactor antineutrino energy spectrum at a near site, providing essential reference data for JUNO. TAO represents a novel cryogenic liquid scintillator experiment, utilizing Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs) for photon detection and operating at -50 ^∘ C to suppress SiPM dark noise. A full-size prototype of the central detector of TAO (approximately 2 ^∘ C, and using the surface flux of ground cosmic muons in the warm-up phase of the detector. The detector simulation software of TAO was adapted to the configuration of the prototype and the Monte Carlo prediction shows good agreement with the Co-60 data. A mild variation of the detector response was observed after correcting the temperature effect of the SiPM performance with the cosmic muon data.
The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is a 20-kton liquid scintillator-based, low-radioactivity, multi-purpose neutrino detector located 693 meters (1800 m.w.e.) underground in the Guangdong province, China. To detect scintillation light produced in the target, the detector is equipped with 17,612 20-inch photomultipliers (PMTs), forming the Large PMT system (LPMT). In addition, 25,600 3-inch photomultipliers (the Small Photomultiplier System or SPMT) are deployed in the gaps between the LPMTs. This paper presents the design and performance of the underwater front-end electronics developed for the SPMT system. It details the individual electronics boards and their key components, the inter-board interfaces, the system-level design, and the firmware architecture that supports data acquisition and control. It also outlines mechanical and thermal integration, board validation procedures, and system performance metrics. The readout chain includes digitization of 128 PMT channels per unit, synchronized time-stamping, charge measurement, event packaging, and bandwidth management. Comprehensive validation confirms the system's readiness to meet JUNO's stringent physics goals. The underwater electronics achieve noise levels as low as 0.04 photoelectrons with minimal crosstalk (below 0.4
The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is a 20-kiloton liquid scintillator neutrino detector, located 650 meters (1800 m.w.e.) underground in Jiangmen, Guangdong, China. JUNO is primarily designed for reactor neutrino measurements and has been taking data since 2025. With the largest mass of its kind and an excellent energy resolution, JUNO is a leading observatory for high-precision measurements of MeV neutrinos. The standard global trigger system serves as the primary trigger for JUNO. We present a newly developed multi-messenger trigger system that extends the capabilities of the global trigger by providing a lower energy threshold and an independent monitoring capability. During the 2025 operation, it achieved an effective energy threshold of approximately 110 +/- 10 keV, providing a lower threshold configuration suitable for low-energy event analysis. The system shows the potential to further reduce the threshold to well below 100 keV. Based on the multi-messenger trigger system, an astrophysical monitor has been developed to receive and process external alerts from other messengers, such as gravitational-wave observations. A Transient Neutrino Burst Monitor is integrated to detect short-time-scale neutrino burst events and enables real-time monitoring of transient astrophysical phenomena. The system is sensitive to neutrino bursts from core-collapse supernovae within a distance of about 250 kpc.
Over 25,600 3-inch photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) have been instrumented for the central detector of the Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory. Each PMT is equipped with a high-voltage divider and a frontend cable with waterproof sealing. Groups of sixteen PMTs are connected to the underwater frontend readout electronics via specialized multi-channel waterproof connectors. This paper outlines the design and mass production processes for the high-voltage divider, the cable and connector, as well as the waterproof potting of the PMT bases. The results of the acceptance tests of all the integrated PMTs are also presented.
This paper presents an energy resolution study of the JUNO experiment, incorporating the latest knowledge acquired during the detector construction phase. The determination of neutrino mass ordering in JUNO requires an exceptional energy resolution better than 3% at 1 MeV. To achieve this ambitious goal, significant efforts have been undertaken in the design and production of the key components of the JUNO detector. Various factors affecting the detection of inverse beta decay signals have an impact on the energy resolution, extending beyond the statistical fluctuations of the detected number of photons, such as the properties of the liquid scintillator, performance of photomultiplier tubes, and the energy reconstruction algorithm. To account for these effects, a full JUNO simulation and reconstruction approach is employed. This enables the modeling of all relevant effects and the evaluation of associated inputs to accurately estimate the energy resolution. The results of this study reveal an energy resolution of 2.95% at 1 MeV. Furthermore, this study assesses the contribution of major effects to the overall energy resolution budget. This analysis serves as a reference for interpreting future measurements of energy resolution during JUNO data collection. Moreover, it provides a guideline for comprehending the energy resolution characteristics of liquid scintillator-based detectors.
Large-scale organic liquid scintillator detectors are highly efficient in the detection of MeV-scale electron antineutrinos. These signal events can be detected through inverse beta decay on protons, which produce a positron accompanied by a neutron. A noteworthy background for antineutrinos coming from nuclear power reactors and from the depths of the Earth (geoneutrinos) is generated by ( $$\alpha ,\,n$$ α , n ) reactions. In organic liquid scintillator detectors, $$\alpha $$ α particles emitted from intrinsic contaminants such as $$^{238}$$ 238 U, $$^{232}$$ 232 Th, and $$^{210}$$ 210 Pb/ $$^{210}$$ 210 Po, can be captured on $$^{13}$$ 13 C nuclei, followed by the emission of a MeV-scale neutron. Three distinct interaction mechanisms can produce prompt energy depositions preceding the delayed neutron capture, leading to a pair of events correlated in space and time within the detector. Thus, ( $$\alpha ,\,n$$ α , n ) reactions represent an indistinguishable background in liquid scintillator-based antineutrino detectors, where their expected rate and energy spectrum are typically evaluated via Monte Carlo simulations. This work presents results from the open-source SaG4n software, used to calculate the expected energy depositions from the neutron and any associated de-excitation products. Also simulated is a detailed detector response to these interactions, using a dedicated Geant4-based simulation software from the JUNO experiment. An expected measurable $$^{13}$$ 13 C $$(\alpha ,\,n)^{16}$$ ( α , n ) 16 O event rate and reconstructed prompt energy spectrum with associated uncertainties, are presented in the context of JUNO, however, the methods and results are applicable and relevant to other organic liquid scintillator neutrino detectors.
The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is a multi-purpose neutrino experiment under construction in South China. This paper presents an updated estimate of JUNO's sensitivity to neutrino mass ordering using the reactor antineutrinos emitted from eight nuclear reactor cores in the Taishan and Yangjiang nuclear power plants. This measurement is planned by studying the fine interference pattern caused by quasi-vacuum oscillations in the oscillated antineutrino spectrum at a baseline of 52.5 km and is completely independent of the CP violating phase and neutrino mixing angle theta(23). The sensitivity is obtained through a joint analysis of JUNO and Taishan Antineutrino Observatory (TAO) detectors utilizing the best available knowledge to date about the location and overburden of the JUNO experimental site, local and global nuclear reactors, JUNO and TAO detector responses, expected event rates and spectra of signals and backgrounds, and systematic uncertainties of analysis inputs. We find that a 3 sigma median sensitivity to reject the wrong mass ordering hypothesis can be reached with an exposure of about 6.5 years x 26.6 GW thermal power.
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 m$^2$ of 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 MeV $γ$ from neutron captures on hydrogen with an Am-C calibration source. The reconstructed energy resolution is 3.4% for two 0.511 MeV $γ$ at the detector centre and 2.9% for the 0.93 MeV quenched Po-214 alpha decays from natural radioactive sources. The energy nonlinearity is calibrated to better than 1%. Intrinsic contaminations of U-238 and Th-232 in the liquid scintillator are below 10$^{-16}$ g/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.
Neutrino oscillations, a quantum effect manifesting at macroscopic scales, are governed by lepton flavor mixing angles and neutrino mass-squared differences that are fundamental parameters of particle physics, representing phenomena beyond the Standard Model. Precision measurements of these parameters are essential for testing the completeness of the three-flavor framework, determining the mass ordering of neutrinos, and probing possible new physics. The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is a 20 kton liquid-scintillator detector located 52.5 km from multiple reactor cores, designed to resolve the interference pattern of reactor neutrinos with sub-percent precision. Here we report, using the first 59.1 days of data collected since detector completion in August 2025, the first simultaneous high-precision determination of two neutrino oscillation parameters, $\sin^2 θ_{12} = 0.3092\,\pm\,0.0087$ and $Δm^2_{21} = (7.50\,\pm\,0.12)\times10^{-5}\;{\rm eV}^2$ for the normal mass ordering scenario, improving the precision by a factor of 1.6 relative to the combination of all previous measurements. These results advance the basic understanding of neutrinos, validate the detector's design, and confirm JUNO's readiness for its primary goal of resolving the neutrino mass ordering with a larger dataset. The rapid achievement with a short exposure highlights JUNO's potential to push the frontiers of precision neutrino physics and paves the way for its broad scientific program.
Abstract We explore the decay of bound neutrons in the JUNO liquid scintillator detector into invisible particles (e.g., $$n\rightarrow 3 \nu $$ n → 3 ν or $$nn \rightarrow 2 \nu $$ n n → 2 ν ), which do not produce an observable signal. The invisible decay includes two decay modes: $$ n \rightarrow { inv} $$ n → inv and $$ nn \rightarrow { inv} $$ n n → inv . The invisible decays of s-shell neutrons in $$^{12}\textrm{C}$$ 12 C will leave a highly excited residual nucleus. Subsequently, some de-excitation modes of the excited residual nuclei can produce a time- and space-correlated triple coincidence signal in the JUNO detector. Based on a full Monte Carlo simulation informed with the latest available data, we estimate all backgrounds, including inverse beta decay events of the reactor antineutrino $${\bar{\nu }}_e$$ ν ¯ e , natural radioactivity, cosmogenic isotopes and neutral current interactions of atmospheric neutrinos. Pulse shape discrimination and multivariate analysis techniques are employed to further suppress backgrounds. With two years of exposure, JUNO is expected to give an order of magnitude improvement compared to the current best limits. After 10 years of data taking, the JUNO expected sensitivities at a 90% confidence level are $$\tau /B( n \rightarrow { inv} ) > 5.0 \times 10^{31} \, \textrm{years}$$ τ / B ( n → inv ) > 5.0 × 10 31 years and $$\tau /B( nn \rightarrow { inv} ) > 1.4 \times 10^{32} \, \textrm{years}$$ τ / B ( n n → inv ) > 1.4 × 10 32 years .
The Beishan Orogenic Belt, situated along the southern margin of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, represents a critical tectonic domain that archives the prolonged subduction–accretion processes and Paleo-Asian Ocean closure from the Early Paleozoic to the Mesozoic. Early Permian magmatism, exhibiting the most extensive spatial-temporal distribution in this belt, remains controversial in its geodynamic context: whether it formed in a persistent subduction regime or was associated with mantle plume activity or post-collisional extension within a rift setting. This study presents an integrated analysis of petrology, zircon U-Pb geochronology, in situ Hf isotopes, and whole-rock geochemistry of Early Permian granites from the Tiancang area in the southern Beishan Orogenic Belt, complemented by regional comparative studies. Tiancang granites comprise biotite monzogranite, monzogranite, and syenogranite. Zircon U-Pb dating of four samples yields crystallization ages of 279.3–274.1 Ma. These granites are classified as high-K calc-alkaline to calc-alkaline, metaluminous to weakly peraluminous I-type granites. Geochemical signatures reveal the following: (1) low total rare earth element (REE) concentrations with light REE enrichment ((La/Yb)N = 3.26–11.39); (2) pronounced negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* = 0.47–0.71) and subordinate Ce anomalies; (3) enrichment in large-ion lithophile elements (LILEs: Rb, Th, U, K) coupled with depletion in high-field-strength elements (HFSEs: Nb, Ta, P, Zr, Ti); (4) zircon εHf(t) values ranging from −10.5 to −0.1, corresponding to Hf crustal model ages (TDMC) of 1.96–1.30 Ga. These features collectively indicate that the Tiancang granites originated predominantly from partial melting of Paleoproterozoic–Mesoproterozoic crustal sources with variable mantle contributions, followed by extensive fractional crystallization. Regional correlations demonstrate near-synchronous magmatic activity across the southern/northern Beishan and eastern Tianshan Orogenic belts. The widespread Permian granitoids, combined with post-collisional magmatic suites and rift-related stratigraphic sequences, provide compelling evidence for a continental rift setting in the southern Beishan during the Early Permian. This tectonic regime transition likely began with lithospheric delamination after the Late Carboniferous–Early Permian collisional orogeny, which triggered asthenospheric upwelling and crustal thinning. These processes ultimately led to the terminal closure of the Paleo-Asian Ocean’s southern branch, followed by intracontinental evolution.
Large-scale organic liquid scintillator detectors are highly efficient in the detection of MeV-scale electron antineutrinos. These signal events can be detected through inverse beta decay on protons, which produce a positron accompanied by a neutron. A noteworthy background for antineutrinos coming from nuclear power reactors and from the depths of the Earth (geoneutrinos) is generated by (alpha, n) reactions. In organic liquid scintillator detectors, alpha particles emitted from intrinsic contaminants such as U-238, Th-232, and Pb-210/Po-210, can be captured on C-13 nuclei, followed by the emission of a MeV-scale neutron. Three distinct interaction mechanisms can produce prompt energy depositions preceding the delayed neutron capture, leading to a pair of events correlated in space and time within the detector. Thus, (alpha, n) reactions represent an indistinguishable background in liquid scintillator-based antineutrino detectors, where their expected rate and energy spectrum are typically evaluated via Monte Carlo simulations. This work presents results from the open-source SaG4n software, used to calculate the expected energy depositions from the neutron and any associated de-excitation products. Also simulated is a detailed detector response to these interactions, using a dedicated Geant4-based simulation software from the JUNO experiment. An expected measurable C-13(alpha, n)O-16 event rate and reconstructed prompt energy spectrum with associated uncertainties, are presented in the context of JUNO, however, the methods and results are applicable and relevant to other organic liquid scintillator neutrino detectors.
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 m^2 of 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 MeV γ from neutron captures on hydrogen with an Am-C calibration source. The reconstructed energy resolution is 3.4
The full data set of the Daya Bay reactor neutrino experiment is used to probe the effect of the charged current non-standard interactions (CC-NSI) on neutrino oscillation experiments. Two different approaches are applied and constraints on the corresponding CC-NSI parameters are obtained with the neutrino flux taken from the Huber-Mueller model with a $5\%$ uncertainty. For the quantum mechanics-based approach (QM-NSI), the constraints on the CC-NSI parameters $\epsilon_{e\alpha}$ and $\epsilon_{e\alpha}^{s}$ are extracted with and without the assumption that the effects of the new physics are the same in the production and detection processes, respectively. The approach based on the weak effective field theory (WEFT-NSI) deals with four types of CC-NSI represented by the parameters $[\varepsilon_{X}]_{e\alpha}$. For both approaches, the results for the CC-NSI parameters are shown for cases with various fixed values of the CC-NSI and the Dirac CP-violating phases, and when they are allowed to vary freely. We find that constraints on the QM-NSI parameters $\epsilon_{e\alpha}$ and $\epsilon_{e\alpha}^{s}$ from the Daya Bay experiment alone can reach the order $\mathcal{O}(0.01)$ for the former and $\mathcal{O}(0.1)$ for the latter, while for WEFT-NSI parameters $[\varepsilon_{X}]_{e\alpha}$, we obtain $\mathcal{O}(0.1)$ for both cases.
The physics potential of detecting B-8 solar neutrinos will be exploited at the Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO), in a model independent manner by using three distinct channels of the charged-current (CC), neutral-current (NC) and elastic scattering (ES) interactions. Due to the largest-ever mass of C-13 nuclei in the liquid-scintillator detectors and the {expected} low background level, B-8 solar neutrinos would be observable in the CC and NC interactions on C-13 for the first time. By virtue of optimized event selections and muon veto strategies, backgrounds from the accidental coincidence, muon-induced isotopes, and external backgrounds can be greatly suppressed. Excellent signal-to-background ratios can be achieved in the CC, NC and ES channels to guarantee the B-8 solar neutrino observation. From the sensitivity studies performed in this work, we show that JUNO, with ten years of data, can reach the {1 sigma} precision levels of 5%, 8% and 20% for the B-8 neutrino flux, sin(2)theta(12), and Delta m(21)(2), respectively. It would be unique and helpful to probe the details of both solar physics and neutrino physics. In addition, when combined with SNO, the world-best precision of 3% is expected for the B-8 neutrino flux measurement.
Daya Bay presents the first measurement of cosmogenic He-8 isotope production in liquid scintillator, using an innovative method for identifying cascade decays of He-8 and its child isotope, Li-8. We also measure the production yield of Li-9 isotopes using well-established methodology. The results, in units of 10(-8)mu-1g(-1) cm(2), are 0.307 +/- 0.042, 0.341 +/- 0.040, and 0.546 +/- 0.076 for He-8, and 6.73 +/- 0.73, 6.75 +/- 0.70, and 13.74 +/- 0.82 for 9Li at average muon energies of 63.9 GeV, 64.7 GeV, and 143.0 GeV, respectively. The measured production rate of He-8 isotopes is more than an order of magnitude lower than any other measurement of cosmogenic isotope production. It replaces the results of previous attempts to determine the ratio of He-8 to Li-9 production that yielded a wide range of limits from 0% to 30%. The results provide future liquid-scintillator-based experiments with improved ability to predict cosmogenic backgrounds.
This Letter reports the first measurement of the oscillation amplitude and frequency of reactor antineutrinos at Daya Bay via neutron capture on hydrogen using 1958 days of data. With over 3.6 million signal candidates, an optimized candidate selection, improved treatment of backgrounds and efficiencies, refined energy calibration, and an energy response model for the capture-on-hydrogen sensitive region, the relative ν[over ¯]_{e} rates and energy spectra variation among the near and far detectors gives sin^{2}2θ_{13}=0.0759_{-0.0049}^{+0.0050} and Δm_{32}^{2}=(2.72_{-0.15}^{+0.14})×10^{-3} eV^{2} assuming the normal neutrino mass ordering, and Δm_{32}^{2}=(-2.83_{-0.14}^{+0.15})×10^{-3} eV^{2} for the inverted neutrino mass ordering. This estimate of sin^{2}2θ_{13} is consistent with and essentially independent from the one obtained using the capture-on-gadolinium sample at Daya Bay. The combination of these two results yields sin^{2}2θ_{13}=0.0833±0.0022, which represents an 8% relative improvement in precision regarding the Daya Bay full 3158-day capture-on-gadolinium result.