A study of systematic uncertainties in the Daya Bay Neutrino Experiment

The Daya Bay Experiment is designed to set a precise upper limit for, if not pin-point, the value of the $\theta _{13}$ neutrino oscillation parameter. As shown in the parameterized PMNS matrix, accurate knowledge of $\theta _{13}$ will enable the study of CP violation in the lepton sector, in addition to supporting the theory of neutrino oscillation. This experiment seeks great precision by utilizing four detector sites; each site will house two Ga-laced liquid scintillator anti-neutrino detectors which first measure a prompt signal from the electron-positron annihilation following the inverse beta decay of anti-neutrinos, and second, identify a delay signal created by the subsequent neutron capture. This method, and the interchangeability of the detectors, greatly decreases the systematic uncertainty; however, the critical nature of systematics in reactor neutrino experiments warrants careful study. This poster will examine Daya Bay from a systematics perspective, producing a comparison with the Double Chooz experiment and setting a precision level for measurements of $\theta _{13 }$as a function of run-time and mass, as well as for a variety of active detector combinations. This preliminary work, using GloBES, will serve as a starting point for a more thorough analysis of Daya Bay's sensitivity limit.