English

Analysis of Light Neutrino Exchange and Short-Range Mechanisms in $0\nu\beta\beta$ Decay

High Energy Physics - Phenomenology 2020-12-01 v2 Nuclear Experiment Nuclear Theory

Abstract

Neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ0\nu\beta\beta) is a crucial test for lepton number violation. Observation of this process would have fundamental implications for neutrino physics, theories beyond the Standard Model and cosmology. Focussing on so called short-range operators of 0νββ0\nu\beta\beta and their potential interplay with the standard light Majorana neutrino exchange, we present the first complete calculation of the relevant nuclear matrix elements, performed within the interacting boson model (IBM-2). Furthermore, we calculate the relevant phase space factors using exact Dirac electron wavefunctions, taking into account the finite nuclear size and screening by the electron cloud. The obtained numerical results are presented together with up-to-date limits on the standard mass mechanism and effective 0νββ0\nu\beta\beta short-range operators in the IBM-2 framework. Finally, we interpret the limits in the particle physics scenarios incorporating heavy sterile neutrinos, Left-Right symmetry and R-parity violating supersymmetry.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2009.10119,
  title  = {Analysis of Light Neutrino Exchange and Short-Range Mechanisms in $0\nu\beta\beta$ Decay},
  author = {Frank F. Deppisch and Lukas Graf and Francesco Iachello and Jenni Kotila},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2009.10119},
  year   = {2020}
}

Comments

54 pages, 10 figures, 14 tables, including appendix, v2 matches published version