Kathrin A. Hochmuth

Large underground, liquid based detectors for astro-particle physics in Europe: Scientific case and prospects

This document reports on a series of experimental and theoretical studies conducted to assess the astro-particle physics potential of three future large scale particle detectors proposed in Europe as next generation underground observatories. The proposed apparatuses employ three different and, to some extent, complementary detection techniques: GLACIER (liquid argon TPC), LENA (liquid scintillator) and MEMPHYS (water Cherenkov), based on the use of large mass of liquids as active detection media. The results of these studies are presented along with a critical discussion of the performance attainable by the three proposed approaches coupled to existing or planned underground laboratories, in relation to open and outstanding physics issues such as the search for matter instability, the detection of astrophysical neutrinos and geo-neutrinos and to the possible use of these detectors in future high intensity neutrino beams.

Low and high energy phenomenology of quark-lepton complementarity scenarios

We conduct a detailed analysis of the phenomenology of two predictive seesaw scenarios leading to quark-lepton complementarity. In both cases we discuss the neutrino mixing observables and their correlations, neutrinoless double beta decay and lepton flavor violating decays such as

Effects of Axion-Photon Mixing on Gamma-Ray Spectra from Magnetized Astrophysical Sources

\ensuremath{\mu}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}e\ensuremath{\gamma}

Detection potential for the diffuse supernova neutrino background in the large liquid-scintillator detector LENA

. We also comment on leptogenesis. The first scenario is disfavored on the level of one to two standard deviations, in particular, due to its prediction for

Search for the proton decay p{yields}K{sup +}{nu} in the large liquid scintillator low energy neutrino astronomy detector LENA

|{U}_{e3}|

Imaging the Earth’s Interior: the Angular Distribution of Terrestrial Neutrinos

. There can be resonant leptogenesis with quasidegenerate heavy and light neutrinos, which would imply sizable cancellations in neutrinoless double beta decay. The decays

On Symmetric Lepton Mixing Matrices

\ensuremath{\mu}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}e\ensuremath{\gamma}

Lepton flavor violation, leptogenesis and neutrino mixing in quark-lepton complementarity scenarios

and

U_{PMNS} = U_ell^dagger U_nu

\ensuremath{\tau}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\mu}\ensuremath{\gamma}

U(PMNS) = U(ell)**dagger U(nu)

are typically observable unless the SUSY masses approach the TeV scale. In the second scenario leptogenesis is impossible. It is, however, in perfect agreement with all oscillation data. The prediction for