Degeneracies in long-baseline neutrino experiments from nonstandard interactions

We study parameter degeneracies that can occur in long-baseline neutrino appearance experiments due to nonstandard interactions (NSI) in neutrino propagation. For a single off-diagonal NSI parameter, and neutrino and antineutrino measurements at a single L/E, there exists a continuous four-fold degeneracy (related to the mass hierarchy and $θ_{23}$ octant) that renders the mass hierarchy, octant, and CP phase unknowable. Even with a combination of NO$ν$A and T2K data, which in principle can resolve the degeneracy, both NSI and the CP phase remain unconstrained because of experimental uncertainties. A wide-band beam experiment like DUNE will resolve this degeneracy if the nonzero off-diagonal NSI parameter is $ε_{eμ}$. If $ε_{eτ}$ is nonzero, or the diagonal NSI parameter $ε_{ee}$ is O(1), a wrong determination of the mass hierarchy and of CP violation can occur at DUNE. The octant degeneracy can be further complicated by $ε_{eτ}$, but is not affected by $ε_{ee}$.

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