Neffin low-scale seesaw models versus the lightest neutrino mass

2014/06/30 by Pilar Hernández, P. Hernandez, M. Kekic +2
Mathematics · Physics and Astronomy · #Algorithm #Astrophysics and Cosmic Phenomena #Computer science #Mathematics #Neutrino Physics Research #Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies #Physics #Scale (ratio) #astro-ph.CO #hep-ph

paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevd.90.065033

published as Phys. Rev. D 90, 065033 (2014) · 27 pages, 8 figures

openalex publication_date 2014/09/25 · arxiv created 2014/09/30 · arxiv updated 2014/10/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

We evaluate the contribution to N_eff of the extra sterile states in low-scale type I seesaw models (with three extra sterile states). We explore the full parameter space and find that at least two of the heavy states always reach thermalization in the early Universe, while the third one might not thermalize provided the lightest neutrino mass is below O(10^\ensuremath-3 eV). Constraints from cosmology therefore severely restrict the spectra of heavy states in the range 1 eV--100 MeV. The implications for neutrinoless double beta decay are also discussed.

Citations

• Reactor antineutrino anomaly
• How Self-Interactions can Reconcile Sterile Neutrinos with Cosmology
• Nine-Year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) Observations: Cosmological Parameter Results
• Sterile neutrinos as dark matter
• Detection ofB-Mode Polarization at Degree Angular Scales by BICEP2
• Evidence for neutrino oscillations from the observation ofν¯eappearance in aν¯μbeam