keV right-handed neutrinos from type II seesaw mechanism in a 3-3-1 model

We adapt the type II seesaw mechanism to the framework of the 3-3-1 model with right-handed neutrinos. We emphasize that the mechanism is capable of generating small masses for the left-handed and right-handed neutrinos and the structure of the model allows that both masses arise from the same Yukawa coupling. For typical values of the free parameters of the model we may obtain at least one right-handed neutrino with mass in the keV range. Right-handed neutrino with mass in this range is a viable candidate for the warm component of the dark matter existent in the universe.     

The νMSM,inflation, and dark matter

We show how to enlarge the νMSM (the minimal extension of the Standard Model by three right-handed neutrinos) to incorporate inflation and provide a common source for electroweak symmetry breaking and for right-handed neutrino masses. In addition to inflation, the resulting theory can explain simultaneously dark matter and the baryon asymmetry of the Universe; it is consistent with experiments on neutrino oscillations and with all astrophysical and cosmological constraints on sterile neutrino as a dark matter candidate. The mass of inflaton can be much smaller than the electroweak scale.     

Light neutrinos from a mini-seesaw mechanism in warped space

The seesaw mechanism provides a simple explanation for the lightness of the known neutrinos. Under the standard assumption of a weak scale Dirac mass and a heavy sterile Majorana scale the neutrino mass is naturally suppressed below the weak scale. However, Nature may employ Dirac and Majorana scales that are much less than typically assumed, possibly even far below the weak scale. In this case the seesaw mechanism alone would not completely explain the lightness of the neutrinos. In this work we consider a warped framework that realizes this possibility by combining naturally suppressed Dirac and Majorana scales together in a mini-seesaw mechanism to generate light neutrino masses. Via the AdS/CFT correspondence the model is dual to a 4D theory with a hidden strongly coupled sector containing light composite right-handed neutrinos.     

Constraints on composite Dirac neutrinos from observations of galaxy clusters

Recently, to explain the origin of neutrino masses a model based on confining some hidden fermionic bound states into right-handed chiral neutrinos has been proposed. One of the consequences of condensing the hidden sector fields in this model is the presence of sterile composite Dirac neutrinos of keV mass, which can form viable warm dark matter particles. We have analyzed constraints on this model from the observations of satellite based telescopes to detect the sterile neutrinos in clusters of galaxies.     

Can sterile neutrinos be the dark matter?

We use the Ly-alpha forest power spectrum measured by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and high-resolution spectroscopy observations in combination with cosmic microwave background and galaxy clustering constraints to place limits on a sterile neutrino as a dark matter candidate in the warm dark matter scenario. Such a neutrino would be created in the early Universe through mixing with an active neutrino and would suppress structure on scales smaller than its free-streaming scale. We ran a series of high-resolution hydrodynamic simulations with varying neutrino masses to describe the effect of a sterile neutrino on the Ly-alpha forest power spectrum. We find that the mass limit is m(s) >13 keV at 95% C.L. (9 keV at 99.9%), which is above the upper limit allowed by x-ray constraints, excluding this candidate from being all of the dark matter in this model.     

Leptogenesis and dark matter unified in a non-SUSY model for neutrino masses

We propose a unified explanation for the origin of dark matter and baryon number asymmetry on the basis of a non-supersymmetric model for the neutrino masses. Neutrino masses are generated in two distinct ways, that is, a tree-level seesaw mechanism with a single right-handed neutrino, and one-loop radiative effects by a new additional doublet scalar. A spontaneously broken U(1)^′ brings about a Z₂ symmetry which restricts couplings of this new scalar and controls the neutrino masses. It also guarantees the stability of a CDM candidate. We examine two possible candidates for the CDM. We also show that the decay of a heavy right-handed neutrino related to the seesaw mechanism can generate baryon number asymmetry through leptogenesis.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">SU</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">L</Emphasis></Subscript>(4)×<Emphasis Type="Italic">U</Emphasis>(1) model for electroweak unification and sterile neutrinos

Some of the basic problems in neutrino physics, such as new energy scales, the enormous gap between the neutrino masses and the lightest charged fermion mass, and the possible existence of sterile neutrinos in the eV mass range are studied in the local gauge group SU _L (4)×U(1) for electroweak unification, which does not contain fermions with exotic electric charges. It is shown that the neutrino mass spectrum can be decoupled from that of the other fermions. The further normal seesaw mechanism for neutrinos, with right-handed neutrino Majorana masses of order M≫M _weak as well a new eV-scale can be accommodated. The eV-scale seesaw may manifest itself in experiments like the Liquid Scintillation Neutrino Detector (LSND) and MiniBooNE (MB) experimental results and future neutrino experiments.     

Minimal supergravity scalar neutrino dark matter and inverse seesaw neutrino masses

We show that within the inverse seesaw mechanism for generating neutrino masses, minimal supergravity naturally provides the scalar neutrino as the lightest superparticle. We also demonstrate that such schemes naturally reconcile the small neutrino masses with the correct relic scalar neutrino dark matter abundance and accessible direct detection rates in nuclear recoil experiments. This way, inverse seesaw minimal supergravity offers a common solution to the generation of the neutrino mass and to the origin of dark matter.     

R-parity breaking via type II seesaw,decaying gravitino dark matter and PAMELA positron excess

We propose a new class of R-parity violating extension of MSSM with type II seesaw mechanism for neutrino masses where an unstable gravitino is the dark matter of the Universe. It decays predominantly into three leptons final states, thereby providing a natural explanation of the positron excess but no antiproton excess in the PAMELA experiment. The model can explain neutrino masses without invoking any high scale physics while keeping the pre-existing baryon asymmetry of the universe in tact.     

Majorana neutrinos from inverse seesaw in warped extra dimension

We propose the inverse seesaw mechanism as a way to understand small Majorana masses for neutrinos in warped extra dimension models with seesaw scale in the TeV range. The ultra-small lepton number violation needed in implementing inverse seesaw mechanism in 4D models is explained in this model as a consequence of lepton number breaking occurring on the Planck brane. We construct realistic models based on this idea that fit observed neutrino oscillation data for both normal and inverted mass patterns. We compute the corrections to light neutrino masses from the Kaluza-Klein modes and show that they are small in the parameter range of interest. Another feature of the model is that the absence of global parity anomaly implies the existence of at least one light sterile neutrino with sterile and active neutrino mixing in the range suggested by the LSND and MiniBooNE observations.     

Masses of active neutrinos in the νMSM from x-ray astronomy

In an extension of the Standard Model by three relatively light right-handed neutrinos (the νMSM model) the role of the dark matter particle is played by the lightest sterile neutrino. We demonstrate that the observations of the extragalactic x-ray background allow us to put a strong upper bound on the mass of the lightest active neutrino and predict the absolute values of the mass of the two heavier active neutrinos in the νMSM provided that the mass of the dark matter sterile neutrino is larger than 1.8 keV. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Neutrino mass models and dark matter

We discuss a possibility to relate neutrino mass to dark matter. If we suppose that neutrino masses are generated through a radiative seesaw mechanism, dark matter may be identified with a stable field which is relevant to the neutrino mass generation. The model is severely constrained by lepton flavor violating processes. We show some solutions to this constraint.     

Neutrinoless double beta decay and heavy sterile neutrinos

The experimental rate of neutrinoless double beta decay can be saturated by the exchange of virtual sterile neutrinos, that mix with the ordinary neutrinos and are heavier than 200 MeV. Interestingly, this hypothesis is subject only to marginal experimental constraints, because of the new nuclear matrix elements. This possibility is analyzed in the context of the Type I seesaw model, performing also exploratory investigations of the implications for heavy neutrino mass spectra, rare decays of mesons as well as neutrino-decay search, LHC, and lepton flavor violation. The heavy sterile neutrinos can saturate the rate only when their masses are below some 10 TeV, but in this case, the suppression of the light-neutrino masses has to be more than the ratio of the electroweak scale and the heavy-neutrino scale; i.e., more suppressed than the naive seesaw expectation. We classify the cases when this condition holds true in the minimal version of the seesaw model, showing its compatibility (1) with neutrinoless double beta rate being dominated by heavy neutrinos and (2) with any light neutrino mass spectra. The absence of excessive fine-tunings and the radiative stability of light neutrino mass matrices, together with a saturating sterile neutrino contribution, imply an upper bound on the heavy neutrino masses of about 10 GeV. We extend our analysis to the Extended seesaw scenario, where the light and the heavy sterile neutrino contributions are completely decoupled, allowing the sterile neutrinos to saturate the present experimental bound on neutrinoless double beta decay. In the models analyzed, the rate of this process is not strictly connected with the values of the light neutrino masses, and a fast transition rate is compatible with neutrinos lighter than 100 meV.     

Seesaw neutrino masses and mixing with extended democracy

In the context of a minimal extension of the Standard Model with three extra heavy right-handed neutrinos, we propose a model for neutrino masses and mixing based on the hipothesis of a complete alignment of the lepton mass matrices in flavour space. Considering a uniform quasi-democratic structure for these matrices, we show that, in the presence of a highly hierarchical right-handed neutrino mass spectrum, the effective neutrino mass matrix, obtained through the seesaw mechanism, can reproduce all the solutions of the solar neutrino problem.     

Consequences of a Pati–Salam unification of the electroweak-scale active model

If right-handed neutrinos are not singlets under the electroweak gauge group as it was proposed in a recent model, they can acquire electroweak scale masses and are thus accessible experimentally in the near future. When this idea is combined with quark–lepton unification à la Pati–Salam, one is forced to introduce new neutral particles which are singlets under the Standard Model (SM). These “sterile neutrinos” which exist in both helicities and which are different in nature from the popular particles with the same name can have their own seesaw with masses in the keV range for the lighter of the two eigenstates. The keV sterile neutrinos have been discussed in the literature as warm dark matter candidates with wide ranging astrophysical consequences such as structure formation, supernova asymmetries, pulsar kicks, etc. In addition, the model contains W-like and Z-like heavy gauge bosons which might be accessible at the LHC or the ILC. An argument is presented on why, in this model, it is natural to have four families which can obey existing constraints.     

Sneutrino dark matter in gauged inverse seesaw models for neutrinos

Extending the minimal supersymmetric standard model to explain small neutrino masses via the inverse seesaw mechanism can lead to a new light supersymmetric scalar partner which can play the role of inelastic dark matter (IDM). It is a linear combination of the superpartners of the neutral fermions in the theory (the light left-handed neutrino and two heavy standard model singlet neutrinos) which can be very light with mass in ~5-20 GeV range, as suggested by some current direct detection experiments. The IDM in this class of models has keV-scale mass splitting, which is intimately connected to the small Majorana masses of neutrinos. We predict the differential scattering rate and annual modulation of the IDM signal which can be testable at future germanium- and xenon-based detectors.     

Neutrino properties from maximally-predictive GUT models and the structure of the heavy Majorana sector

Starting from a complete set of possible parametrisations of the quark-mass matrices that have the maximum number of texture zeros at the grand unification scale, and the Georgi-Jarlskog mass relations, we classify the neutrino spectra with respect to the unknown structure of the heavy Majorana sector. The results can be casted into a small number of phenomenologically distinct classes of neutrino spectra, characterised by universal mass-hierarchy and oscillation patterns. One finds that the neutrino masses reflect the natural hierarchy among the three generations and obey the quadratic seesaw, for most GUT models that contain a rather “unsophisticated” Majorana sector. A scenario withv _τ as the missing hot dark matter component andv _e ?v _µ oscillations accounting for the solar neutrino deficit comes naturally out of this type of models and is very close to the experimental limit of confirmation or exclusion. In contrast, in the presence of a strong hierarchy of heavy scales or/and some extra symmetries in the Majorana mass matrix, this natural hierarchy gets distorted or even reversed. This fact can become a link between searches for neutrino oscillations and searches for discrete symmetries close to the Planck scale.     

Inverse decays and the relic density of the sterile sneutrino

We consider a weak scale supersymmetric seesaw model where the higgsino is the next-to-lightest supersymmetric particle and the right-handed sneutrino is the dark matter candidate. It is shown that, in this model, inverse decays, which had been previously neglected, may suppress the sneutrino relic density by several orders of magnitude. After including such processes and numerically solving the appropriate Boltzmann equation, we study the dependence of the relic density on the μ parameter, the sneutrino mass, and the neutrino Yukawa coupling. We find that, even though much smaller than in earlier calculations, the sneutrino relic density is still larger than the observed dark matter density.     

Magnetic dipole moment and keV neutrino dark matter

We study magnetic dipole moments of right-handed neutrinos in a keV neutrino dark matter model. This model is a simple extension of the standard model with only right-handed neutrinos and a pair of charged particles added. One of the right-handed neutrinos is the candidate of dark matter with a keV mass. Some bounds on the dark matter magnetic dipole moment and model parameters are obtained from cosmological observations.