1201.6080 (C. A. Argüelles et al.)

Searching for cavities of various densities in the Earth's crust with a
low-energy electron-antineutrino beta-beam    [PDF]

C. A. Argüelles, M. Bustamante, A. M. Gago

We propose searching for deep underground cavities of different densities in
the Earth's crust using a long-baseline electron-antineutrino disappearance
experiment, realised through a low-energy beta-beam with highly enhanced
luminosity. We focus on four real-world cases: water-filled cavities,
iron-banded formations, heavier mineral deposits, and regions of abnormal
charge accumulation that, supposedly, appear prior to the occurrence of an
intense earthquake. The sensitivity to identify cavities attains confidence
levels higher than 3$\sigma$ and 5$\sigma$ for exposures times of 3 months and
1.5 years, respectively, and cavity densities below 1 g cm$^{-3}$ or above 5 g
cm$^{-3}$, with widths greater than 200 km. We reconstruct the cavity density,
width, and position, assuming one of them known while keeping the other two
free, in each of the aforementioned cases. Finally, we introduce an observable
to quantify the presence of a cavity by changing the orientation of the
electron-antineutrino beam.

View original: http://arxiv.org/abs/1201.6080