Silvia Pascoli

Theory of neutrinos: a white paper

This paper is a review of the present status of neutrino mass physics, which grew out of an APS sponsored study of neutrinos in 2004. After a discussion of the present knowledge of neutrino masses and mixing and some popular ways to probe the new physics implied by recent data, it summarizes what can be learned about neutrino interactions as well as the nature of new physics beyond the Standard Model from the various proposed neutrino experiments. The intriguing possibility that neutrino mass physics may be at the heart of our understanding of a long standing puzzle of cosmology, i.e. the origin of matter?antimatter asymmetry is also discussed.

The Search for Heavy Majorana Neutrinos

The Majorana nature of neutrinos can be experimentally verified only via lepton-number violating processes involving charged leptons. We study 36 lepton-number violating (LV ) processes from the decays of tau leptons and pseudoscalar mesons. These decays are absent in the Standard Model but, in presence of Majorana neutrinos in the mass range ∼ 100 MeV to 5 GeV, the rates for these processes would be enhanced due to their resonant contribution. We calculate the transition rates and branching fractions and compare them to the current bounds from direct experimental searches forL = 2 tau and rare meson decays. The experimental non-observation of such LV processes places stringent bounds on the Majorana neutrino mass and mixing and we summarize the existing limits. We also extend the search to hadron collider experiments. We find that, at the Tevatron with 8 fb −1 integrated luminosity, there could be 2σ (5σ) sensitivity for resonant production of a Majorana neutrino in the � ± � ± modes in the mass range of ∼ 10 − 180 GeV (10 − 120 GeV). This reach can be extended to ∼ 10 − 375 GeV (10 − 250 GeV) at the LHC of 14TeV with 100 fb −1 . The production cross section at the LHC of 10TeV is also presented for comparison. We study the � ± e ± modes as well and find that the signal could be large enough even taking into account the current bound from neutrinoless double-beta decay. The signal from the gauge boson fusion channel W + W + → l + l + at the LHC is found to be very weak given the rather small mixing parameters. We comment on the search strategy when a τ lepton is involved in the final state.

Physics at a future Neutrino Factory and super-beam facility

The conclusions of the Physics Working Group of the International Scoping Study of a future Neutrino Factory and super-beam facility (the ISS) are presented. The ISS was carried out by the international community between NuFact05, (the 7th International Workshop on Neutrino Factories and Super-beams, Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati, Rome, 21–26 June 2005) and NuFact06 (Ivine, CA, 24–30 August 2006). The physics case for an extensive experimental programme to understand the properties of the neutrino is presented and the role of high-precision measurements of neutrino oscillations within this programme is discussed in detail. The performance of second-generation super-beam experiments, beta-beam facilities and the Neutrino Factory are evaluated and a quantitative comparison of the discovery potential of the three classes of facility is presented. High-precision studies of the properties of the muon are complementary to the study of neutrino oscillations. The Neutrino Factory has the potential to provide extremely intense muon beams and the physics potential of such beams is discussed in the final section of the report.The conclusions of the Physics Working Group of the International Scoping Study of a future Neutrino Factory and super-beam facility (the ISS) are presented. The ISS was carried out by the international community between NuFact05, (the 7th International Workshop on Neutrino Factories and Superbeams, Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati, Rome, June 21-26, 2005) and NuFact06 (Irvine, California, 2430 August 2006). The physics case for an extensive experimental programme to understand the properties of the neutrino is presented and the role of high-precision measurements of neutrino oscillations within this programme is discussed in detail. The performance of second generation super-beam experiments, beta-beam facilities, and the Neutrino Factory are evaluated and a quantitative comparison of the discovery potential of the three classes of facility is presented. High-precision studies of the properties of the muon are complementary to the study of neutrino oscillations. The Neutrino Factory has the potential to provide extremely intense muon beams and the physics potential of such beams is discussed in the final section of the report. The ISS Physics Working Group Editors: S.F. King1, K. Long2, Y. Nagashima3, B.L. Roberts4, and O. Yasuda5.

Majorana neutrinos, neutrino mass spectrum, CP violation and neutrinoless double beta decay. 1. The Three neutrino mixing case

Assuming three-neutrino mixing and massive Majorana neutrinos, we study the implications of the neutrino oscillation solutions of the solar and atmospheric neutrino problems and of the results of the CHOOZ experiment for the predictions of the eective Majorana mass in neutrinoless double beta (()0-)decay, j j . The general case of CP-nonconservation is investigated. The predicted values of j j , which determines the magnitude of the ()0decay rate, depend strongly on the type of the neutrino mass spectrum, on the solution of the solar neutrino problem, as well as on the values of the two Majorana CP-violating phases, present in the lepton mixing matrix. We nd that i) j j j jm in the case of three quasi-degenerate neutrinos, m> 0 being the common neutrino mass scale which is limited by the bounds from the 3 H decay experiments, m j are reached in the cases i), ii) and iii) respectively, for the large mixing angle (LMA) MSW solution, the small mixing angle (SMA) MSW, and for all current solutions, of the solar neutrino problem. If CP-invariance holds, j j is very sensitive to the values of the relative CP-parities of the massive Majorana neutrinos. The cases of neutrino mass spectra which interpolate between the hierarchical or inverted hierarchy type and the quasi-degenerate one are also studied. The observation of the ()0-decay with a rate corresponding to j j > 0:02 eV can provide unique information on the neutrino mass spectrum and on the CP-violation in the lepton sector, and if CP-invariance holds - on the relative CP-parities of the massive Majorana neutrinos.

Leptogenesis and Low Energy CP Violation in Neutrino Physics

Abstract Taking into account the recent progress in the understanding of the lepton flavor effects in leptogenesis, we investigate in detail the possibility that the CP-violation necessary for the generation of the baryon asymmetry of the Universe is due exclusively to the Dirac and/or Majorana CP-violating phases in the PMNS neutrino mixing matrix U, and thus is directly related to the low energy CP-violation in the lepton sector (e.g., in neutrino oscillations, etc.). We first derive the conditions of CP-invariance of the neutrino Yukawa couplings λ in the see-saw Lagrangian, and of the complex orthogonal matrix R in the “orthogonal” parametrization of λ. We show, e.g. that under certain conditions (i) real R and specific CP-conserving values of the Majorana and Dirac phases can imply CP-violation, and (ii) purely imaginary R does not necessarily imply breaking of CP-symmetry. We study in detail the case of hierarchical heavy Majorana neutrino mass spectrum, presenting results for three possible types of light neutrino mass spectrum: (i) normal hierarchical, (ii) inverted hierarchical, and (iii) quasi-degenerate. Results in the alternative case of quasi-degenerate in mass heavy Majorana neutrinos, are also derived. The minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard theory with right-handed Majorana neutrinos and see-saw mechanism of neutrino mass generation is discussed as well. We illustrate the possible correlations between the baryon asymmetry of the Universe and (i) the rephasing invariant J CP controlling the magnitude of CP-violation in neutrino oscillations, or (ii) the effective Majorana mass in neutrinoless double beta decay, in the cases when the only source of CP-violation is respectively the Dirac or the Majorana phases in the neutrino mixing matrix.

Pulsar kicks from a dark-matter sterile neutrino

We show that a sterile neutrino with mass in the 1-20 keV range and a small mixing with the electron neutrino can simultaneously explain the origin of the pulsar motions and the dark matter in the universe. An asymmetric neutrino emission from a hot nascent neutron star can be the explanation of the observed pulsar velocities. In addition to the pulsar kick mechanism based on resonant neutrino transitions, we point out a new possibility: an asymmetric off-resonant emission of sterile neutrinos. The two cases correspond to different values of the masses and mixing angles. In both cases we identify the ranges of parameters consistent with the pulsar kick, as well as cosmological constraints.

Modelling redshift space distortions in hierarchical cosmologies

Galaxy redshift surveys allow us to study the 3D spatial distribution of galaxies and clusters. In a homogeneous universe, redshift measurements would probe only the Hubble flow and would provide accurate radial distances for galaxies. In reality, peculiar velocities are gravitationally induced by inhomogeneous structure and distort the measured distances.

Connecting low energy leptonic CP violation to leptogenesis

It was commonly thought that the observation of low energy leptonic

The Absolute neutrino mass scale, neutrino mass spectrum, majorana CP-violation and neutrinoless double-beta decay

CP

Nonlinear structure formation in the cubic Galileon gravity model

-violating phases would not automatically imply the existence of a baryon asymmetry in the leptogenesis scenario. This conclusion does not generically hold when the issue of flavor is relevant and properly taken into account in leptogenesis. We illustrate this point with various examples studying the correlation between the baryon asymmetry and the