Neutrino Physics Second Edition

When Kai Zuber’s pioneering text on neutrinos was published in 2003, the author correctly predicted that the field would see tremendous growth in the immediate future. In that book, Professor Zuber provided a comprehensive self-contained examination of neutrinos, covering their research history and theory, as well as their application to particle physics, astrophysics, nuclear physics, and the broad reach of cosmology; but now to be truly comprehensive and accurate, the field’s seminal reference needs to be revised and expanded to include the latest research, conclusions, and implications. Revised as needed to be equal to the research of today, Neutrino Physics, Second Edition delves into neutrino cross sections, mass measurements, double beta decay, solar neutrinos, neutrinos from supernovae, and high energy neutrinos, as well as new experimental results in the context of theoretical models. It also provides entirely new discussion on: Resolution of the solar neutrino problem The first real-time measurement of solar neutrinos below 1 MeV Geoneutrinos Long baseline accelerator experiments Written to be accessible to readers from diverse backgrounds, this edition, like the first, provides both an introduction to the field as well as the information needed by those looking to make their own contribution to it. And like the first edition, it whets the researcher’s appetite, going beyond certainty to pose those questions that still need answers.

A deeper understanding of neutrinos, with the goal to reveal their nature and exact role within particle physics, is at the frontier of current research. This book reviews the field in a concise fashion and highlights the most pressing issues and areas of strongest topical interest. It provides a clear, self-contained, and logical treatment of the fundamental physics aspects, appropriate for graduate students. Starting with the relevant basics of the SM, neutrinos are introduced, and the quantum mechanical effect of oscillations is explained in detail. A strong focus is then set on the phenomenon of lepton number violation, especially in 0nbb decay, as the crucial probe to understand the nature of neutrinos. The role of neutrinos in astrophysics, expected to be of increasing importance for future research, is then described. Finally, models to explain the neutrino properties are outlined. The central theme of the book is the nature of neutrino masses and the above topics will revolve around this issue.

Neutrino physics contributed in an fundamental way to the progress of science, opening important windows of knowledge in elementary particle physics, as well in astrophysics and cosmology. Substantial experimental efforts are presently dedicated to improve our knowledge on neutrino properties as, in fact, we don't know yet some of the basic ones. Although very significant steps forward have been done, neutrino masses and mixings still remain largely unknown and constitute an important field for future research. Are neutrinos Majorana or Dirac particles? Have they a magnetic moment? Historically, studies on weak processes and, therefore, on neutrino physics, provided first the Fermi theory of weak interactions and then the V-A theory. Finally, the observation of weak neutral currents provided the first experimental evidence for unification of weak and electromagnetic interactions by the so called "Standard Model' of elementary particles. In addition to the results obtained from the measurement of the solar neutrino flux, the study of atmospheric neutrinos strongly supports the hypothesis of neutrino oscillation among different flavours. At the same time, the detection of neutrinos emitted by our Sun gave an important confirmation that the Sun produces energy via a chain of nuclear reactions; in particular in our Sun a specific cycle - the hydrogen cycle - is responsible for practically all the produced energy.

When Kai Zuber’s pioneering text on neutrinos was published in 2003, the author correctly predicted that the field would see tremendous growth in the immediate future. In that book, Professor Zuber provided a comprehensive self-contained examination of neutrinos, covering their research history and theory, as well as their application to particle physics, astrophysics, nuclear physics, and the broad reach of cosmology; but now to be truly comprehensive and accurate, the field’s seminal reference needs to be revised and expanded to include the latest research, conclusions, and implications. Revised as needed to be equal to the research of today, Neutrino Physics, Third Edition delves into neutrino cross-sections, mass measurements, double beta decay, solar neutrinos, neutrinos from supernovae, and high-energy neutrinos, as well as entirely new experimental results in the context of theoretical models. Written to be accessible to graduate students and readers from diverse backgrounds, this edition, like the first, provides both an introduction to the field as well as the information needed by those looking to make their own contributions to it. And like the second edition, it whets the researcher’s appetite, going beyond certainty to pose those questions that still need answers. Features Presents the only single-author comprehensive text on neutrino physics Includes experimental and theoretical particle physics and examines solar neutrinos and astroparticle implications Offers details on new developments and recent experiments

A clear and concise introduction to nuclear physics suitable for a core undergraduate physics course.

The physics of neutrinos--uncharged elementary particles that are key to helping us better understand the nature of our universe--is one of the most exciting frontiers of modern science. This book provides a comprehensive overview of neutrino physics today and explores promising new avenues of inquiry that could lead to future breakthroughs. The Physics of Neutrinos begins with a concise history of the field and a tutorial on the fundamental properties of neutrinos, and goes on to discuss how the three neutrino types interchange identities as they propagate from their sources to detectors. The book shows how studies of neutrinos produced by such phenomena as cosmic rays in the atmosphere and nuclear reactions in the solar interior provide striking evidence that neutrinos have mass, and it traces our astounding progress in deciphering the baffling experimental findings involving neutrinos. The discovery of neutrino mass offers the first indication of a new kind of physics that goes beyond the Standard Model of elementary particles, and this book considers the unanticipated patterns in the masses and mixings of neutrinos in the framework of proposed new theoretical models. The Physics of Neutrinos maps out the ambitious future facilities and experiments that will advance our knowledge of neutrinos, and explains why the way forward in solving the outstanding questions in neutrino science will require the collective efforts of particle physics, nuclear physics, astrophysics, and cosmology.

Our Universe is made of a dozen fundamental building blocks. Among these, neutrinos are the most mysterious - but they are the second most abundant particles in the Universe. This book provides detailed discussions of how to describe neutrinos, their basic properties, and the roles they play in nature.

Over recent years there has been marked growth in interest in the study of techniques of cosmic ray physics by astrophysicists and particle physicists. Cosmic radiation is important for the astrophysicist because in the farther reaches of the universe. For particle physicists, it provides the opportunity to study neutrinos and very high energy particles of galactic origin. More importantly, cosmic rays constitue the background, and in some cases possibly the signal, for the more exotic unconfirmed hypothesized particles such as monopoles and sparticles. Concentrating on the highest energy cosmic rays, this book describes where they originate, acquire energy, and interact, in accreting neutron stars, supernova remnants, in large-scale shock waves. It also describes their interactions in the atmosphere and in the earth, how they are studied in surface and very large underground detectors, and what they tell us.

For many years neutrino was considered a massless particle. The theory of a two-componentneutrino,whichplayedacrucialroleinthecreationofthetheoryof theweakinteraction,isbasedontheassumptionthattheneutrinomassisequalto zero. We now know that neutrinos have nonzero, small masses. In numerous exp- iments with solar, atmospheric, reactor and accelerator neutrinos a new p- nomenon, neutrino oscillations, was observed. Neutrino oscillations (periodic transitionsbetweendifferent?avorneutrinos? ,? ,? )arepossibleonlyifneutrino e ? ? mass-squareddifferencesaredifferentfromzeroandsmalland?avorneutrinosare “mixed”. The discovery of neutrino oscillations opened a new era in neutrino physics: an era of investigation of neutrino masses, mixing, magnetic moments and other neutrino properties. After the establishment of the Standard Model of the el- troweak interaction at the end of the seventies, the discovery of neutrino masses was the most important discovery in particle physics. Small neutrino masses cannot be explained by the standard Higgs mechanism of mass generation. For their explanation a new mechanism is needed. Thus, small neutrino masses is the ?rst signature in particle physics of a new beyond the Standard Model physics. It took many years of heroic efforts by many physicists to discover n- trino oscillations. After the ?rst period of investigation of neutrino oscillations, manychallengingproblemsremainedunsolved.Oneofthemostimportantisthe problem of the nature of neutrinos with de?nite masses. Are they Dirac n- trinos possessing a conserved lepton number which distinguish neutrinos and antineutrinos or Majorana neutrinos with identical neutrinos and antineutrinos? Many experiments of the next generation and new neutrino facilities are now under preparation and investigation. There is no doubt that exciting results are ahead.

Following the discovery of the Higgs boson, Frank Close has produced this major revision to his classic and compelling introduction to the fundamental particles that make up the universe.