English

Is Large Lepton Mixing Excluded?

High Energy Physics - Phenomenology 2009-10-22 v2

Abstract

The original \bnum -(or νˉτ\bar{\nu}_{\tau}-) energy spectrum from the gravitational collapse of a star has a larger average energy than the spectrum for \bnue since the opacity of \bnue exeeds that of \bnum (or ντ\nu_{\tau}). Flavor neutrino conversion, \bnue \leftrightarrow \bnum, induced by lepton mixing results in partial permutation of the original \bnue and \bnum spectra. An upper bound on the permutation factor, p0.35p \leq 0.35 (99%\% CL) is derived using the data from SN1987A and the different models of the neutrino burst. The relation between the permutation factor and the vacuum mixing angle is established, which leads to the upper bound on this angle. The excluded region, sin22θ>0.70.9\sin^2 2\theta > 0.7 - 0.9, covers the regions of large mixing angle solutions of the solar neutrino problem: ``just-so" and, partly, MSW, as well as part of region of νeνμ\nu_{e} - \nu_{\mu} oscillation space which could be responsible for the atmospheric muon neutrino deficit. These limits are sensitive to the predicted neutrino spectrum and can be strengthened as supernova models improve.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.hep-ph/9305204,
  title  = {Is Large Lepton Mixing Excluded?},
  author = {Alexei Yu. Smirnov and David N. Spergel and John N. Bahcall},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:hep-ph/9305204},
  year   = {2009}
}

Comments

20 pages, TeX file. For hardcopy with figures contact [email protected]. Institute for Advanced Study number AST 93/15