Dirac neutrinos and SN 1987A

Journal Article · Sat Feb 15 04:00:00 EST 1992 · Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.45.1066· OSTI ID:7048806

Turner, M S ^[1]

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1. NASA/Fermilab Astrophysics Center, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Batavia, Illinois 60510-0500 (United States) Departments of Physics and Astronomy Institute, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637-1433 (United States)

Within the standard electroweak theory wrong-helicity'' neutrinos are produced in a nascent neutron star by spin-flip'' processes (at a rate proportional to {ital m}{sub {nu}}{sup 2}), freely escape, and can lead to an excessively rapid cooling of the newly born neutron star. Previous work, based upon the neutrino-nucleon spin-flip scattering process alone, has shown that the observed cooling of the neutron star associated with SN 1987A excludes a Dirac-neutrino mass greater than {similar to}20 keV for either {nu}{sub {ital e}}, {nu}{sub {mu}}, or {nu}{sub {tau}}. We reexamine the emission of wrong-helicity'' Dirac neutrinos from SN 1987A and conclude that due to neutrino degeneracy and additional emission processes ({ital N}+{ital N}{r arrow}{ital N}+{ital N}+{nu}{bar {nu}}, {pi}{sup {minus}}+{ital p}{r arrow}{ital n}+{nu}{bar {nu}}) the effect of a Dirac neutrino on the cooling of SN 1987A has been IunderestimatedP. While a precise Dirac-mass limit awaits the incorporation of our new rates into detailed numerical cooling models, we believe that the limit that follows from the cooling of SN 1987A is better, probably much better, than 10 keV. In particular, we believe that SN 1987A definitely excludes a 17-keV (purely) Dirac-mass neutrino that mixes with the electron neutrino at the 1% level.

• OSTI ID: 7048806
• Journal Information: Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States), Journal Name: Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States) Vol. 45:4; ISSN PRVDA; ISSN 0556-2821
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

662210* -- Specific Theories & Interaction Models
662320 -- Neutrino Interactions-- (1992-)
72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS
CHIRALITY
DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
DIRAC EQUATION
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
EQUATIONS
ERUPTIVE VARIABLE STARS
FERMIONS
FIELD THEORIES
HELICITY
INTERACTIONS
LEPTON-BARYON INTERACTIONS
LEPTON-HADRON INTERACTIONS
LEPTON-NUCLEON INTERACTIONS
LEPTONS
LIE GROUPS
MASS
MASSLESS PARTICLES
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NEUTRINO-NUCLEON INTERACTIONS
NEUTRINOS
NEUTRON STARS
PARTIAL DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
PARTICLE INTERACTIONS
PARTICLE MODELS
PARTICLE PRODUCTION
PARTICLE PROPERTIES
Pa
Particle Systematics-- Unified Theories & Models-- (1992-)
SCATTERING
SPIN FLIP
STANDARD MODEL
STARS
SU GROUPS
SU-2 GROUPS
SUPERNOVAE
SYMMETRY GROUPS
U GROUPS
U-1 GROUPS
UNIFIED GAUGE MODELS
UNIFIED-FIELD THEORIES
VARIABLE STARS
WAVE EQUATIONS
WEINBERG-SALAM GAUGE MODEL