Resolving Neutrino Mass Hierarchy and CP Degeneracy by Two Identical Detectors with Different Baselines

Abstract

We explore the possibility of simultaneous determination of neutrino mass hierarchy and the CP violating phase by using two identical detectors placed at different baseline distances. We focus on a possible experimental setup using neutrino beam from J-PARC facility in Japan with beam power of 4MW and megaton (Mton)-class water Cherenkov detectors, one placed in Kamioka and the other at somewhere in Korea. We demonstrate, under reasonable assumptions of systematic uncertainties, that the two-detector complex with each fiducial volume of 0.27 Mton has potential of resolving neutrino mass hierarchy up to sin^2 2theta_{13} > 0.03 (0.055) at 2σ(3σ) CL for any values of delta and at the same time has the sensitivity to CP violation by 4 + 4 years running of nu_e and nu_e-bar appearance measurement. The significantly enhanced sensitivity is due to clean detection of modulation of neutrino energy spectrum, which is enabled by cancellation of systematic uncertainties between two identical detectors which receive the neutrino beam with the same energy spectrum in the absence of oscillations.