Speaker
Description
The NuMI Off-Axis Appearance (NOvA) experiment is a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment based at Fermilab, consisting of two functionally identical liquid-scintillator detectors positioned slightly off-axis from the NuMI beam. It aims to probe CP violation in the lepton sector and determine the neutrino mass ordering by comparing the oscillation rates between the detectors. Given the energy dependence of oscillations, energy reconstruction is essential. A key limitation in the precision and accuracy of this kinematic variable is an understanding of primary neutron-related uncertainties since many may go undetected. While recent improvements have reduced discrepancies, NOvA's simulation still overpredicts neutron-linked activity by about 20\%, particularly for neutrons between 5–200 MeV. We present ongoing progress toward a measurement of neutron multiplicity in the NOvA Near Detector using spatially displaced and delayed energy deposits associated with neutron interactions, aiming to constrain neutron-related systematic uncertainties and improve neutrino energy reconstruction in future oscillation analyses.