Heavy neutral leptons from light scalar in fixed target and forward search experiments

Abstract

The observation of neutrino masses strongly motivates $U(1)_{B-L}$ extensions of the Standard Model, in which heavy neutral leptons acquire Majorana masses through spontaneous $U(1)_{B-L}$ symmetry breaking and generate light neutrino masses via the seesaw mechanism. In this framework, the singlet scalar responsible for symmetry breaking mixes with the SM Higgs boson, allowing it to be produced in rare meson decays. We investigate a scenario in which this light scalar promptly decays into a pair of long-lived heavy neutrinos that subsequently decay into visible charged leptons and hadrons through light-heavy neutrino mixing inside the proposed Forward Physics Facility (FPF) at the FCC-hh and the SHiP beam-dump experiment. Taking into account realistic detector geometries, decay probabilities, and visible branching fractions, we estimate the projected sensitivities to the scalar-Higgs mixing angle as a function of the scalar mass and to the light-heavy neutrino mixing as a function of the heavy neutrino mass. We find that FPF and SHiP can significantly extend the discovery reach for both light scalars and long-lived heavy neutrinos beyond existing experimental limits, providing powerful and complementary probes of neutrino-mass generation and hidden-sector physics.