Lepton Pair Cerenkov Radiation Emitted by Tachyonic Neutrinos: Lorentz-Covariant Approach and IceCube Data

Jentschura, Ulrich David and Ehrlich, R. (2016) Lepton Pair Cerenkov Radiation Emitted by Tachyonic Neutrinos: Lorentz-Covariant Approach and IceCube Data. ADVANCES IN HIGH ENERGY PHYSICS, 2016. ISSN 1687-7357

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Abstract

Current experiments do not exclude the possibility that one or more neutrinos are very slightly superluminal or that they have a very small tachyonic mass. Important bounds on the size of a hypothetical tachyonic neutrino mass term are set by lepton pair ˇCerenkov radiation (LPCR), i.e., by the decay channel ν → e+e−ν which proceeds via a virtual Z0 boson. Here, we use a Lorentz-invariant dispersion relation which leads to very tight constraints on the tachyonic mass of neutrinos; we also calculate decay and energy loss rates. A possible cutoff seen in the IceCube neutrino spectrum for Eν > 2 PeV, due to the potential onset of LPCR, is discussed.

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