2014/12/31 by S. Gariazzo, C. Giunti, M. Laveder · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #astro-ph.CO #hep-ex #hep-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/1475-7516/2015/04/023
19 pages; corrected Fig.4 and added Ref.[35]
arxiv created 2015/02/18 · arxiv updated 2015/06/23
We perform a cosmological analysis in which we allow the primordial power spectrum of scalar perturbations to assume a shape that is different from the usual power-law predicted by the simplest models of cosmological inflation. We parameterize the free primordial power spectrum with a "piecewise cubic Hermite interpolating polynomial" (PCHIP). We consider a 3+1 neutrino mixing model with a sterile neutrino having a mass at the eV scale, which can explain the anomalies observed in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We find that the freedom of the primordial power spectrum allows to reconcile the cosmological data with a fully thermalized sterile neutrino in the early Universe. Moreover, the cosmological analysis gives us some information on the shape of the primordial power spectrum, which presents a feature around the wavenumber k=0.002 Mpc-1.