Quantum Monte Carlo calculation of neutral-current ν -12C inclusive quasielastic scattering

Quasielastic neutrino scattering is an important aspect of the experimental program to study fundamental neutrino properties including neutrino masses, mixing angles, mass hierarchy, and charge-conjugation parity (CP)- violating phase. Proper interpretation of the experiments requires reliable theoretical calculations of neutrino-nucleus scattering. In this paper we present calculations of response functions and cross sections by neutral-current scattering of neutrinos off ¹²C. These calculations are based on realistic treatments of nuclear interactions and currents, the latter including the axial, vector, and vector-axial interference terms crucial for determining the difference between neutrino and antineutrino scattering and the CP-violating phase. We find that the strength and energy dependence of two-nucleon processes induced by correlation effects and interaction currents are crucial in providing the most accurate description of neutrino-nucleus scattering in the quasielastic regime.