668 research outputs found
Implications of finite one-loop corrections for seesaw neutrino masses
In the standard seesaw model, finite corrections to the neutrino mass matrix
arise from one-loop self-energy diagrams mediated by a heavy neutrino. We
discuss the impact that these corrections may have on the different low-energy
neutrino observables paying special attention to their dependence with the
seesaw model parameters. It is shown that sizable deviations from the
tri-bimaximal mixing pattern can be obtained when these corrections are taken
into account.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. Prepared for the proceedings of the 12th
International Conference on Topics in Astroparticle and Underground Physics
(TAUP 2011), Munich, Germany, 5-9 September 201
Leptogenesis in the presence of exact flavor symmetries
In models with flavor symmetries in the leptonic sector leptogenesis can take
place in a very different way compared to the standard leptogenesis scenario.
We study the generation of a asymmetry in these kind of models in the
flavor symmetric phase pointing out that successful leptogenesis requires (i)
the right-handed neutrinos to lie in different representations of the flavor
group; (ii) the flavons to be lighter at least that one of the right-handed
neutrino representations. When these conditions are satisfied leptogenesis
proceeds due to new contributions to the CP violating asymmetry and -depending
on the specific model- in several stages. We demonstrate the validity of these
arguments by studying in detail the generation of the asymmetry in a
scenario of a concrete flavor model realization.Comment: 25 pages, 7 figures; version 2: A few clarifications added. Version
matches publication in JHE
Integration of stochastic models for long-term eruption forecasting into a Bayesian event tree scheme: a basis method to estimate the probability of volcanic unrest
Eruption forecasting refers, in general, to the
assessment of the occurrence probability of a given erup-
tive event, whereas volcanic hazards are normally associated
with the analysis of superficial and evident phenomena
that usually accompany eruptions (e.g., lava, pyroclastic
flows, tephra fall, lahars, etc.). Nevertheless, several hazards
of volcanic origin may occur in noneruptive phases dur-
ing unrest episodes. Among others, remarkable examples
are gas emissions, phreatic explosions, ground deforma-
tion, and seismic swarms. Many of such events may lead to
significant damages, and for this reason, the “risk” associ-
ated to unrest episodes could not be negligible with respect
to eruption-related phenomena. Our main objective in this
paper is to provide a quantitative framework to calculate
probabilities of volcanic unrest. The mathematical frame-
work proposed is based on the integration of stochastic mod-
els based on the analysis of eruption occurrence catalogs
into a Bayesian event tree scheme for eruption forecast-
ing and volcanic hazard assessment. Indeed, such models
are based on long-term eruption catalogs and in many
cases allow a more consistent analysis of long-term tem-
poral modulations of volcanic activity. The main result of
this approach is twofold: first, it allows to make inferences
about the probability of volcanic unrest; second, it allows
to project the results of stochastic modeling of the eruptive
history of a volcano toward the probabilistic assessment of
volcanic hazards. To illustrate the performance of the pro-
posed approach, we apply it to determine probabilities of
unrest at Miyakejima volcano, Japan
Reactor mixing angle from hybrid neutrino masses
In terms of its eigenvector decomposition, the neutrino mass matrix (in the
basis where the charged lepton mass matrix is diagonal) can be understood as
originating from a tribimaximal dominant structure with small deviations, as
demanded by data. If neutrino masses originate from at least two different
mechanisms, referred to as "hybrid neutrino masses", the experimentally
observed structure naturally emerges provided one mechanism accounts for the
dominant tribimaximal structure while the other is responsible for the
deviations. We demonstrate the feasibility of this picture in a fairly
model-independent way by using lepton-number-violating effective operators,
whose structure we assume becomes dictated by an underlying flavor
symmetry. We show that if a second mechanism is at work, the requirement of
generating a reactor angle within its experimental range always fixes the solar
and atmospheric angles in agreement with data, in contrast to the case where
the deviations are induced by next-to-leading order effective operators. We
prove this idea is viable by constructing an -based ultraviolet
completion, where the dominant tribimaximal structure arises from the type-I
seesaw while the subleading contribution is determined by either type-II or
type-III seesaw driven by a non-trivial singlet (minimal hybrid model).
After finding general criteria, we identify all the symmetries
capable of producing such -based minimal hybrid models.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figures. v3: section including sum rules added, accepted
by JHE
Towards spin injection from silicon into topological insulators: Schottky barrier between Si and Bi2Se3
A scheme is proposed to electrically measure the spin-momentum coupling in
the topological insulator surface state by injection of spin polarized
electrons from silicon. As a first approach, devices were fabricated consisting
of thin (<100nm) exfoliated crystals of Bi2Se3 on n-type silicon with
independent electrical contacts to silicon and Bi2Se3. Analysis of the
temperature dependence of thermionic emission in reverse bias indicates a
barrier height of 0.34 eV at the Si-Bi2Se3 interface. This robust Schottky
barrier opens the possibility of novel device designs based on sub-band gap
internal photoemission from Bi2Se3 into Si
Estimating the Parameters of the Three-Parameter Lognormal Distribution
The three-parameter lognormal distribution is widely used in many areas of science. Some modifications have been proposed to improve the maximum likelihood estimator. In some cases, however, the modified maximum likelihood estimates do not exist or the procedure encounters multiple estimates.
The purpose of this research is focused on estimating the threshold or location parameter , because when is known, then the other two estimated parameters are obtained from the first two MLE equations. In this research, a method for constructing confidence intervals, confidence limits, and point estimator for the threshold parameter is proposed. Monte-Carlo simulation, bisection method, and SAS/IML were used to accomplish this objective. The bias of the point estimator and mean square error (MSE) criteria were used throughout extensive simulation to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. The result shows that the proposed method can provide quite accurate estimates
Minimal lepton flavor violating realizations of minimal seesaw models
We study the implications of the global U(1)R symmetry present in minimal
lepton flavor violating implementations of the seesaw mechanism for neutrino
masses. In the context of minimal type I seesaw scenarios with a slightly
broken U(1)R, we show that, depending on the R-charge assignments, two classes
of generic models can be identified. Models where the right-handed neutrino
masses and the lepton number breaking scale are decoupled, and models where the
parameters that slightly break the U(1)R induce a suppression in the light
neutrino mass matrix. We show that within the first class of models,
contributions of right-handed neutrinos to charged lepton flavor violating
processes are severely suppressed. Within the second class of models we study
the charged lepton flavor violating phenomenology in detail, focusing on mu to
e gamma, mu to 3e and mu to e conversion in nuclei. We show that sizable
contributions to these processes are naturally obtained for right-handed
neutrino masses at the TeV scale. We then discuss the interplay with the
effects of the right-handed neutrino interactions on primordial B - L
asymmetries, finding that sizable right-handed neutrino contributions to
charged lepton flavor violating processes are incompatible with the requirement
of generating (or even preserving preexisting) B - L asymmetries consistent
with the observed baryon asymmetry of the Universe.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures; version 2: Discussion on possible generic models
extended, typos corrected, references added. Version matches publication in
JHE
Leptogenesis with a dynamical seesaw scale
In the simplest type-I seesaw leptogenesis scenario right-handed neutrino annihilation processes are absent. However, in the presence of new interactions these processes are possible and can affect the resulting B ¿ L asymmetry in an important way. A prominent example is provided by models with spontaneous lepton number violation, where the existence of new dynamical degrees of freedom can play a crucial role. In this context, we provide a model-independent discussion of the effects of right-handed neutrino annihilations. We show that in the weak washout regime, as long as the scattering processes remain slow compared with the Hubble expansion rate throughout the relevant temperature range, the efficiency can be largely enhanced, reaching in some cases maximal values. Moreover, the B ¿ L asymmetry yield turns out to be independent upon initial conditions, in contrast to the ¿standard¿ case. On the other hand, when the annihilation processes are fast, the right-handed neutrino distribution tends to a thermal one down to low temperatures, implying a drastic suppression of the efficiency which in some cases can render the B ¿ L generation mechanism inoperative
CP Violation from Scatterings with Gauge Bosons in Leptogenesis
We present an explicit computation of the CP asymmetry in scattering
processes involving the heavy right-handed neutrinos of the type I seesaw
framework and the Standard Model gauge bosons. Compared to CP violation in
two--body decays and in scatterings with top quarks there are new contributions
at one loop in the form of new type of vertex corrections as well as of box
diagrams. We show that their presence implies that, unlike the CP asymmetry in
scatterings with top quarks, the CP asymmetry in scatterings with gauge bosons
is different from the two-body decay asymmetry even for hierarchical
right-handed neutrinos. This also holds for the L-conserving CP asymmetry in
scatterings with U(1) gauge bosons.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figure
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