Heavy Sterile Neutrino in Dark Matter Searches

Sterile neutrinos are possible dark matter candidates. We examine here possible detection mechanisms, assuming that the neutrino has a mass of about 50 keV and couples to the ordinary neutrino. Even though this neutrino is quite heavy, it is nonrelativistic with a maximum kinetic energy of 0.1 eV. T...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Paraskevi C. Divari, John D. Vergados
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2018-01-01
Series:Advances in High Energy Physics
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/1479313
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Summary:Sterile neutrinos are possible dark matter candidates. We examine here possible detection mechanisms, assuming that the neutrino has a mass of about 50 keV and couples to the ordinary neutrino. Even though this neutrino is quite heavy, it is nonrelativistic with a maximum kinetic energy of 0.1 eV. Thus new experimental techniques are required for its detection. We estimate the expected event rate in the following cases: (i) measuring electron recoil in the case of materials with very low electron binding; (ii) low temperature crystal bolometers; (iii) spin induced atomic excitations at very low temperatures, leading to a characteristic photon spectrum; (iv) observation of resonances in antineutrino absorption by a nucleus undergoing electron capture; (v) neutrino induced electron events beyond the end point energy of beta decaying systems, for example, in the tritium decay studied by KATRIN.
ISSN:1687-7357
1687-7365