arXiv subjects

Ferruccio Feruglio

Publications and source records attributed to Ferruccio Feruglio.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2013

Repressing Anarchy in Neutrino Mass Textures

The recent results that $θ_{13}$ is relatively large, of the order of the previous upper bound, and the indications of a sizable deviation of $θ_{23}$ from the maximal value are in agreement with the predictions of Anarchy in the lepton sector. The quark and charged lepton hierarchies can then be reproduced in a SU(5) GUT context by attributing non-vanishing $U(1)_{FN}$ charges, different for each family, only to the SU(5) tenplet states. The fact that the observed mass hierarchies are stronger for up quarks than for down quarks and charged leptons supports this idea. As discussed in the past, in the flexible context of $SU(5)\otimes U(1)_{FN}$, different patterns of charges can be adopted going from Anarchy to various types of hierarchy. We revisit this approach by also considering new models and we compare all versions to the present data. As a result we confirm that, by relaxing the extreme ansatz of equal $U(1)_{FN}$ charges for all SU(5) pentaplets and singlets, better agreement with the data than for Anarchy is obtained without increasing the model complexity. We also present the distributions obtained in the different models for the Dirac CP-violating phase. Finally we discuss the relative merits of these simple models.

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arXiv2013

Lepton Mixing Parameters from Discrete and CP Symmetries

We consider a scenario with three Majorana neutrinos in which a discrete, finite flavour group G_f is combined with a generalized CP transformation. We derive conditions for consistently defining such a setup. We show that in general lepton mixing angles and CP phases (Dirac as well as Majorana) only depend on one single parameter theta which can take values between 0 and pi, if the residual symmetries are G_e contained in G_f in the charged lepton and G_nu=Z_2 x CP in the neutrino sector. We perform a comprehensive study for G_f=S_4 and find five cases which are phenomenologically interesting. They naturally lead to a non-zero reactor mixing angle and all mixing parameters are strongly correlated. Some of the patterns predict maximal atmospheric mixing and maximal Dirac phase, while others predict trivial Dirac and Majorana phases.

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arXiv2011

Finite Modular Groups and Lepton Mixing

We study lepton mixing patterns which are derived from finite modular groups Gamma_N, requiring subgroups G_nu and G_e to be preserved in the neutrino and charged lepton sectors, respectively. We show that only six groups Gamma_N with N=3,4,5,7,8,16 are relevant. A comprehensive analysis is presented for G_e arbitrary and G_nu=Z2 x Z2, as demanded if neutrinos are Majorana particles. We discuss interesting patterns arising from both groups G_e and G_nu being arbitrary. Several of the most promising patterns are specific deviations from tri-bimaximal mixing, all predicting theta_13 non-zero as favoured by the latest experimental data. We also comment on prospects to extend this idea to the quark sector.

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arXiv2011

Discrete Flavour Symmetries in Light of T2K

We show that a non-vanishing angle theta_13 of order 0.1 can be predicted in the framework of discrete flavour symmetries. We assume that left-handed leptons transform as triplets under a group G_f which is broken in such a way that neutrino and charged lepton sectors remain invariant under the subgroups G_nu and G_e of G_f, respectively. In this limit mixing angles and the Dirac CP violating phase delta_CP are determined. By choosing G_f=Delta(6 n^2) (n=4,8), G_nu=Z_2 x Z_2 and G_e=Z_3 we find sin^2 theta_13=0.045(0.011) for n=4(8). At the same time theta_23 and theta_12 remain close to their experimental best fit values, particularly in the case n=8, where sin^2 theta_23 = 0.424 and sin^2 theta_12 = 0.337. delta_CP is predicted to be 0 or pi so that CP is conserved in our examples.

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arXiv2011

The Golden Ratio Prediction for the Solar Angle from a Natural Model with A5 Flavour Symmetry

We formulate a consistent model predicting, in the leading order approximation, maximal atmospheric mixing angle, vanishing reactor angle and tan θ_12 = 1/ϕ where ϕ is the Golden Ratio. The model is based on the flavour symmetry A5 \times Z5 \times Z3, spontaneously broken by a set of flavon fields. By minimizing the scalar potential of the theory up to the next-to-leading order in the symmetry breaking parameter, we demonstrate that this mixing pattern is naturally achieved in a finite portion of the parameter space, through the vacuum alignment of the flavon fields. The leading order approximation is stable against higher-order corrections. We also compare our construction to other models based on discrete symmetry groups.

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arXiv2010

Discrete Flavor Symmetries and Models of Neutrino Mixing

We review the application of non abelian discrete groups to the theory of neutrino masses and mixing, which is strongly suggested by the agreement of the Tri-Bimaximal mixing pattern with experiment. After summarizing the motivation and the formalism, we discuss specific models, based on A4, S4 and other finite groups, and their phenomenological implications, including lepton flavor violating processes, leptogenesis and the extension to quarks. In alternative to Tri-Bimaximal mixing the application of discrete flavor symmetries to quark-lepton complementarity and Bimaximal Mixing is also considered.

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arXiv2010

Rare muon and tau decays in A4 Models

We analyze the most general dimension six effective Lagrangian, invariant under the flavour symmetry A4 x Z3 x U(1) proposed to reproduce the near tri-bimaximal lepton mixing observed in neutrino oscillations. The effective Lagrangian includes four-lepton operators that violate the individual lepton numbers in the limit of exact flavor symmetry and allow unsuppressed processes satisfying the rule |Delta L_e x Delta L_mu x Delta L_tau| = 2. The most stringent bounds on the strength of the new interactions come from the observed universality of leptonic muon and tau decays, from the agreement between the Fermi constant measured in the muon decay and that extracted from the mW/mZ ratio, and from the limits on the rare decays tau^- -> mu^+ e^- e^- and tau^- -> e^+ mu^- mu^-. We also investigate these effects in a specific supersymmetric (SUSY) realization of the flavour symmetry and we find large suppression factors for all the processes allowed by the selection rule. We explain why this rule is violated in the SUSY context and we provide a complete picture of lepton flavour violation in the SUSY version of A4 x Z_3 x U(1).

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arXiv2010

Tri-bimaximal Neutrino Mixing and Quark Masses from a Discrete Flavour Symmetry

We build a supersymmetric model of quark and lepton masses based on the discrete flavour symmetry group T', the double covering of A_4. In the lepton sector our model is practically indistinguishable from recent models based on A_4 and, in particular, it predicts a nearly tri-bimaximal mixing, in good agreement with present data. In the quark sector a realistic pattern of masses and mixing angles is obtained by exploiting the doublet representations of T', not available in A_4. To this purpose, the flavour symmetry T' should be broken spontaneously along appropriate directions in flavour space. In this paper we fully discuss the related vacuum alignment problem, both at the leading order and by accounting for small effects coming from higher-order corrections. As a result we get the relations: \sqrt{m_d/m_s}\approx |V_{us}| and \sqrt{m_d/m_s}\approx |V_{td}/V_{ts}|.

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arXiv2010

Vacuum Alignment in SUSY A4 Models

In this note we discuss the vacuum alignment in supersymmetric models with spontaneously broken flavour symmetries in the presence of soft supersymmetry (SUSY) breaking terms. We show that the inclusion of soft SUSY breaking terms can give rise to non-vanishing vacuum expectation values (VEVs) for the auxiliary components of the flavon fields. These non-zero VEVs can have an important impact on the phenomenology of this class of models, since they can induce an additional flavour violating contribution to the sfermion soft mass matrix of right-left (RL) type. We carry out an explicit computation in a class of SUSY A4 models predicting tri-bimaximal mixing in the lepton sector. The flavour symmetry breaking sector is described in terms of flavon and driving supermultiplets. We find non-vanishing VEVs for the auxiliary components of the flavon fields and for the scalar components of the driving fields which are of order m_{SUSY} x and m_{SUSY}, respectively. Thereby, m_{SUSY} is the generic soft SUSY breaking scale which is expected to be around 1 TeV and is the VEV of scalar components of the flavon fields. Another effect of these VEVs can be the generation of a mu term.

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arXiv2009

Lepton Flavour Violation in a Supersymmetric Model with A4 Flavour Symmetry

We compute the branching ratios for mu-> e gamma, tau-> mu gamma and tau -> e gamma in a supersymmetric model invariant under the flavour symmetry group A4 X Z3 X U(1)_{FN}, in which near tri-bimaximal lepton mixing is naturally predicted. At leading order in the small symmetry breaking parameter u, which is of the same order as the reactor mixing angle theta_{13}, we find that the branching ratios generically scale as u^2. Applying the current bound on the branching ratio of mu -> e gamma shows that small values of u or tan(beta) are preferred in the model for mass parameters m_{SUSY} and m_{1/2} smaller than 1000 GeV. The bound expected from the on-going MEG experiment will provide a severe constraint on the parameter space of the model either enforcing u approx 0.01 and small tan(beta) or m_{SUSY} and m_{1/2} above 1000 GeV. In the special case of universal soft supersymmetry breaking terms in the flavon sector a cancellation takes place in the amplitudes and the branching ratios scale as u^4, allowing for smaller slepton masses. The branching ratios for tau -> mu gamma and tau -> e gamma are predicted to be of the same order as the one for mu -> e gamma, which precludes the possibility of observing these tau decays in the near future.

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arXiv2008

Theory of the Neutrino Mass

Theoretical aspects of neutrino physics are reviewed, with emphasis on possible explanations of the smallness of neutrino masses and of the peculiar mixing pattern observed in the lepton sector. Some theoretically motivated frameworks, such as those based on spontaneously broken discrete flavour symmetries, are discussed, stressing the importance of low-energy observables, like anomalous magnetic moments, electric dipole moments and lepton flavour violating transitions, to test further features of these models.

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arXiv2008

Lepton Flavour Violation in Models with A4 Flavour Symmetry

We analyze lepton flavour violating transitions, leptonic magnetic dipole moments (MDMs) and electric dipole moments (EDMs) in a class of models characterized by the flavour symmetry A4 x Z3 x U(1)_{FN}, whose choice is motivated by the approximate tri-bimaximal mixing observed in neutrino oscillations. We construct the relevant low-energy effective Lagrangian where these effects are dominated by dimension six operators, suppressed by the scale M of new physics. All the flavour breaking effects are universally described by the vacuum expectation values of a set of spurions. We separately analyze both a supersymmetric and a general case. While the observed discrepancy delta a_mu in the anomalous MDM of the muon suggests M of order of a few TeV, several data require M above 10 TeV, in particular the limit on EDM of the electron. In the general case also the present limit on BR(mu -> e gamma) requires M >10 TeV, at least. The branching ratios for mu -> e gamma, tau -> mu gamma and tau -> e gamma are all expected to be of the same order. In the supersymmetric case the constraint from mu -> e gamma is softened and it can be satisfied by a smaller scale M. In this case both the observed delta a_mu and the current bound on BR(mu -> e gamma) can be satisfied, at the price of a rather small value for | |, of the order of a few percents, that reflects on a similar value for theta_{13}.

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arXiv2008

A SUSY SU(5) Grand Unified Model of Tri-Bimaximal Mixing from A4

We discuss a grand unified model based on SUSY SU(5) in extra dimensions and on the flavour group A4xU(1) which, besides reproducing tri-bimaximal mixing for neutrinos with the accuracy required by the data, also leads to a natural description of the observed pattern of quark masses and mixings.

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arXiv2007

Fermion Mass Hierarchies and Flavour Mixing from a Minimal Discrete Symmetry

We construct a simple model of fermion masses based on a spontaneously broken S3 X Z3 flavour group. At the leading order, in the neutrino sector S3 is broken down to a ν_μ-ν_τparity subgroup that enforces a maximal atmospheric mixing angle and a vanishing θ_{13}. In the charged lepton sector the ν_μ-ν_τparity is maximally broken and the resulting mass matrix is nearly diagonal. The charged lepton mass hierarchy is automatically reproduced by the S3 symmetry breaking parameter alone. A careful analysis shows that, after the inclusion of all relevant subleading effects, the model predicts θ_{23}=π/4+O(λ_c^2) and θ_{13}=O(λ_c^2), λ_c denoting the Cabibbo angle. A simple extension to the quark sector is also illustrated, where the mass spectrum and the mixing angles are naturally reproduced, with the exception of the mixing angle between the first two generations, that requires a small accidental enhancement.

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arXiv2006

Tri-bimaximal Neutrino Mixing from Orbifolding

We show that the A4 discrete symmetry that naturally leads to tri-bimaximal neutrino mixing can be simply obtained as a result of an orbifolding starting from a model in 6 dimensions. This particular orbifolding has four fixed points where 4 dimensional branes are located and the tetrahedral symmetry of A4 connects these branes. In this approach A4 appears after the reduction from six to four dimensions as a remnant of the 6D space-time symmetry. A previously discussed supersymmetric version of A4 is reinterpreted along these lines.

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arXiv2006

Fermion masses and proton decay in a minimal five-dimensional SO(10) model

We propose a minimal SO(10) model in 5 space-time dimensions. The single extra spatial dimension is compactified on the orbifold S^1/(Z_2 x Z_2') reducing the gauge group to that of Pati-Salam. The breaking down to the standard model group is obtained through an ordinary Higgs mechanism taking place at the Pati-Salam brane, giving rise to a proper gauge coupling unification. We achieve a correct description of fermion masses and mixing angles by describing first and second generations as bulk fields, and by embedding the third generation into four multiplets located at the Pati-Salam brane. The Yukawa sector is simple and compact and predicts a neutrino spectrum of normal hierarchy type. Concerning proton decay, dimension five operators are absent and the essentially unique localization of matter multiplets implies that the minimal couplings between the super-heavy gauge bosons and matter fields are vanishing. Non-minimal interactions are allowed but the resulting dimension six operators describing proton decay are too suppressed to produce observable effects, even in future, super-massive detectors.

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arXiv2006

Tri-Bimaximal Neutrino Mixing, A4 and the Modular Symmetry

We formulate and discuss a 4-dimensional SUSY version of an A4 model for tri-bimaximal neutrino mixing which is completely natural. We also study the next-to-the-leading corrections and show that they are small, once the ratios of A4 breaking VEVs to the cutoff are fixed in a specified interval. We also point out an interesting way of presenting the A4 group starting from the modular group. In this approach, which could be interesting in itself as an indication on a possible origin of A4, the lagrangian basis where the symmetry is formulated coincides with the basis where the charged leptons are diagonal. If the same classification structure in A4 is extended from leptons to quarks, the CKM matrix coincides with the unit matrix in leading order and a study of non leading corrections shows that the departures from unity of the CKM matrix are far too small to accomodate the observed mixing angles.

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arXiv2005

Maximal Neutrino Mixing from Discrete Symmetry in Extra Dimensions

I review the construction of a model for lepton masses based on the flavour symmetry group A4 x U(1) reproducing the so-called tri-bimaximal lepton mixing scheme, in eccelent agreement with current data. The model predicts a neutrino spectrum of normal hierarchy type, not far from degenerate. A testable relation between neutrino masses is obtained. I shortly discuss also general requirements for models based on spontaneously broken flavour symmetries, in order to get a maximal atmospheric mixing angle.

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