A SHIFT of Perspective: Observing Neutrinos at CMS and ATLAS

Abstract

The SHIFT@LHC proposal introduced a novel shifted gaseous fixed-target concept at the LHC to search for exotic particles. In this letter, we explore an entirely different physics opportunity enabled by this setup: the observation of neutrinos in general-purpose LHC detectors. Using simulations of proton-gas collisions, hadron propagation, and neutrino interactions, we estimate that $O(10^4)$ muon-neutrino and $O(10^3)$ electron-neutrino interactions, with energies from 20 GeV to 1 TeV, would occur in the CMS and ATLAS detectors with 1% of the LHC Run 4 integrated luminosity ($\approx4\cdot10^{25}$ protons-on-target). This unique configuration provides access to hadron production in the pseudorapidity range $5<η<8$, complementary to existing LHC detectors. If realized, this would mark the first detection of neutrinos in a hadron collider detector, demonstrating the feasibility of such measurements in this experimental environment.