arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to M. B. Gavela.
We discuss the one-loop electroweak renormalization of the leptonic mixing matrix in the case of Majorana neutrinos, and establish its relationship with the renormalization group evolution of the dimension five operator responsible for the light Majorana neutrino masses. We compare our results in the effective theory with those in the full seesaw theory.
The seesaw model of heavy and light Majorana neutrinos and its low-energy effective theory are studied, when the number of heavy neutrinos is equal to or less than the number of light lepton generations. We establish a general relationship between the high-energy parameters and the low-energy observables involving only the light fields. It is shown how low-energy measurements of the properties of light neutrinos suffice a priori to determine all couplings of the unobserved heavy neutrinos. CP violation is present in low-energy processes if seesaw-model leptogenesis creates the matter-antimatter asymmetry of the universe.
Superbeams (SB) and Neutrino Factories (NF) are not alternative facilities for exploring neutrino oscillation physics, but successive steps. The correct strategy is to contemplate the combination of their expected physics results. We show its important potential on the disappearance of fake degenerate solutions in the simultaneous measurement of $θ_{13}$ and leptonic CP violation. Intrinsic, sign($Δm_{13}^2$) and $θ_{23}$ degeneracies are shown to be extensively eliminated when the results from one NF baseline and a SB facility are combined. A key point is the different average neutrino energy and baseline of the facilities. For values of $θ_{13}$ near its present limit, the short NF baseline, e.g. L=732 km,becomes, after such a combination, a very interesting distance. For smaller $θ_{13}$, an intermediate NF baseline of $O(3000$km) is still required.
We show that the simultaneous determination of the leptonic CP-odd phase $δ$ and the angle $θ_{13}$ from the subleading transitions $ν_e\toν_μ$ and ${\barν}_e\to{\barν}_μ$ results generically, at fixed neutrino energy and baseline, in two degenerate solutions. In light of this, we refine a previous analysis of the sensitivity to leptonic CP violation at a neutrino factory, in the LMA-MSW scenario, by exploring the full range of $δ$ and $θ_{13}$. Furthermore, we take into account the expected uncertainties on the solar and atmospheric oscillation parameters and in the average Earth matter density along the neutrino path. An intermediate baseline of O(3000) km is still the best option to tackle CP violation, although a combination of two baselines turns out to be very important in resolving degeneracies.
The precision and discovery potential of a neutrino factory based on muon storage rings is studied. For three-family neutrino oscillations, we analyse how to measure or severely constraint the angle $θ_{13}$, CP violation, MSW effects and the sign of the atmospheric mass difference $Δm^2_{23}$. We present a simple analytical formula for the oscillation probabilities in matter, with all neutrino mass differences non-vanishing, which clarifies the subtleties involved in disentangling the unknown parameters. The appearance of ``wrong-sign muons'' at three reference baselines is considered: 732 km, 3500 km, and 7332 km. We exploit the dependence of the signal on the neutrino energy, and include as well realistic background estimations and detection efficiencies. The optimal baseline turns out to be ${\cal O}(3000$ km). Analyses combining the information from different baselines are also presented.
The prospects of measuring the leptonic angles and CP-odd phases at a {\em neutrino factory} are discussed in the scenario of three active plus one sterile neutrino, motivated by the $ν_μ\raw ν_e$ LSND signal. Sensitivity to the MNS mixing matrix angles at $O (10^{-3})$ is achieved with a 1 T detector at $\sim 1$ km from the source, whereas leptonic CP-violation can be measured through tau detection with a 1 kT detector at $\sim 100$ km.
The precision and discovery potential of a neutrino factory based on muon storage rings is summarized. For three-family neutrino oscillations, we analyze how to measure or severely constraint the angle $θ_{13}$, CP violation, MSW effects and the sign of the atmospheric mass difference $Δm^2_{23}$. The appearance of ``wrong-sign muons'' at three reference baselines is considered: 732 km, 3500 km and 7332 km. We exploit the dependence of the signal on the neutrino energy, and include as well realistic background estimations and detection efficiencies. The optimal baseline turns out to be $O$(3000 km).
The prospects of measuring the leptonic angles and CP-odd phases at a {\em neutrino factory} are discussed in the scenario of three active plus one sterile neutrino. We consider the $ν_μ\raw ν_e$ LSND signal. Its associated large mass difference leads to observable neutrino oscillations at short ($\sim 1$ km) baseline experiments. Sensitivities to the leptonic angles down to $10^{-3}$ can be easily achieved with a 1 Ton detector. Longer baseline experiments ($\sim 100$ km) with a 1 Kton detector can provide very clean tests of CP-violation especially through tau lepton detection.
Gravitons could permeate extra space dimensions inaccessible to all other particles, which would be confined to ``branes''. We point out that these branes could be ``fat'' and have a non-vanishing width in the dimensions reserved for gravitons. In this case the other particles, confined within a finite width, should have ``branon'' excitations. Chiral fermions behave differently from bosons under dimensional reduction, and they may --or may not-- be more localized than bosons. All these possibilities are in principle testable and distinguishable, they could yield spectacular signatures at colliders, such as the production of the first branon excitation of $γ$'s or $Z$'s, decaying into their ground state plus a quasi-continuum of graviton recurrences. We explore these ideas in the realm of a future lepton collider and we individuate a {\it dimensiometer}: an observable that would cleanly diagnose the number of large ``extra'' dimensions.
We consider a pattern of neutrino masses in which there is an approximate mass degeneracy between the two mass eigenstates most coupled to the $ν_μ$ and $ν_τ$ flavour eigenstates. Earth-matter effects can lift this degeneracy and induce an effectively maximal mixing between these two generations. This occurs if $ν_e$'s contain comparable admixtures of the degenerate eigenstates, even rather small ones. This provides an explanation of the atmospheric neutrino anomaly in which the {\it ab initio} introduction of a large mixing angle is not required. To test this possibility we perform a novel and detailed analysis of the 52 kiloton-year SuperKamiokande data, and we find that in a large region of parameter space the corresponding confidence levels are excellent. The most recent results from the Chooz reactor experiment, however, severely curtail this region, so that the conventional scenario with nearly maximal mixing angles --which we also analyse in detail-- is supported by the data.
The prospects of measuring the leptonic angles and CP-odd phases at a neutrino factory are discussed in two scenarios: 1) three active neutrinos as indicated by the present ensemble of atmospheric plus solar data; 2) three active plus one sterile neutrino when the LSND signal is also taken into account. For the latter we develop one and two mass dominance approximations. The appearance of wrong sign muons in long baseline experiments and tau leptons in short baseline ones provides the best tests of CP-violation in scenarios 1) and 2), respectively.
Data from atmospheric and solar neutrinos indicate that there are at least three neutrino types involved in oscillation phenomena. Even if the corresponding neutrino mass scales are very different, the inevitable reference to mixing between more than two neutrino types has profound consequences on the planning of the accelerator experiments suggested by these results. We discuss the measurement of mixing angles and CP phases in the context of the neutrino beam emanating from a {\it neutrino factory}: the straight sections of a muon storage ring. We emphasize the importance of charge identification. The appearance of wrong sign muons in a long baseline experiment may provide a powerful test of neutrino oscillations in the mass-difference range indicated by atmospheric-neutrino observations.
We study the effects of quenching in Super-Yang-Mills theory. While supersymmetry is broken, the lagrangian acquires a new flavour $U(1 \mid 1)$ symmetry. The anomaly structure thus differs from the unquenched case. We derive the corresponding low-energy effective lagrangian. As a consequence, we predict the mass splitting expected in numerical simulations for particles belonging to the lowest-lying supermultiplet.
The fate of symmetries at high temperature determines the dynamics of the very early universe. It is conceivable that temperature effects favor symmetry breaking instead of restoration. Concerning global symmetries, the non-linear sigma model is analyzed in detail. For spontaneously broken gauge symmetries, we propose the gauge boson magnetic mass as a ``flag'' for symmetry (non)-restoration. We consider several cases: the standard model with one and two Higgs doublets in the perturbative regime, and the case of a strongly interacting Higgs sector. The latter is done in a model independent way with the tools provided by chiral Lagrangians. Our results clearly point towards restoration, a pattern consistent with recent lattice computations for global symmetries. In addition, we explicitly verify $BRST$ invariance for gauge theories at finite temperature.
Massless neutrinos are exchanged in a neutron star, leading to long range interactions. Many body forces of this type follow and we resum them. Their net contribution to the total energy is negligible as compared to the star mass. The stability of the star is not in danger, contrary to recent assertions.
The thermal average of the Polyakov line is non-zero at high temperature. It has been suggested that its phase could be relevant for baryogenesis within the standard model, providing a source of spontaneously broken CP violation. This scenario suffers from a causal domain problem which cannot be cured by inflation: quantum fluctuations in de Sitter space overwhelm the periodicity of the potential.
Simply on CP arguments, we argue against a Standard Model explanation of baryogenesis via the charge transport mechanism. A CP-asymmetry is found in the reflection coefficients of quarks hitting the electroweak phase boundary created during a first order phase transition. The problem is analyzed both in an academic zero temperature case and in the realistic finite temperature one. At finite temperature, a crucial role is played by the damping rate of quasi-quarks in a hot plasma, which induces loss of spatial coherence and suppresses reflection on the boundary even at tree-level. The resulting baryon asymmetry is many orders of magnitude below what observation requires. We comment as well on related works.
We consider the scattering of quasi-particles off the boundary created during a first order electroweak phase transition. Spatial coherence is lost due to the quasi-quark damping rate, and we show that reflection on the boundary is suppressed, even at tree-level. Simply on CP considerations, we argue against electroweak baryogenesis in the Standard Model via the charge transport mechanism. A CP asymmetry is produced in the reflection properties of quarks and antiquarks hitting the phase boundary. An effect is present at order $α_W^2$ in rate and a regular GIM behaviour is found, which can be expressed in terms of two unitarity triangles. A crucial role is played by the damping rate of quasi-particles in a hot plasma, which is a relevant scale together with $M_W$ and the temperature. The effect is many orders of magnitude below what observation requires.