Applying Runs Tests to NOνA Data

The NuMI Off-Axis ν Appearance (NOνA) experiment has been in progress since 2014 to precisely measure neutrino characteristics including the mixing angle θ₂₃ . Special interest revolves around whether θ₂₃ is maximal, causing symmetry between the proportions of muon and tau neutrino flavors in the mass eigenstates. NOvA’s measurement of θ₂₃ uses a χ² calculation which estimates the likelihood for the data to have been drawn from parent distributions modeled with known values of θ₂₃ . The χ² test is independent of the signs of the differences between data and the parent distribution. This poster investigates the possibility of incorporating these differences by means of a Runs Test. The possible benefits of incorporating the Runs Test to NOvA’s θ₂₃ measurement through simulations was tested. Inclusion of the Runs Test increased the experiment’s ability to discern θ₂₃ = 40 from θ₂₃ = 45 by Δχ² = 1.13. This increase in Δχ² is equivalent to increasing the data size by 12%, allowing statistically significant results to be achieved faster. Using Runs Tests could also be helpful in determining the mass ordering of neutrinos.