Detecting sterile neutrinos with KATRIN like experiments

TL;DR

This paper discusses the potential to detect eV-mass sterile neutrinos using beta decay experiments like KATRIN, highlighting their advantages over active neutrinos for direct detection.

Contribution

It proposes a method to identify sterile neutrinos in KATRIN-like experiments based on their distinct mass and mixing properties.

Findings

Sterile neutrinos with eV-scale mass are promising targets for direct detection.

Their higher mass allows easier separation from primary beta decay signals.

Detection could provide insights into neutrino physics and cosmology.

Abstract

A sterile neutrino with mass in the eV range, mixing with the electron antineutrino, is allowed and possibly even preferred by cosmology and oscillation experiments. If such eV-mass neutrinos exist they provide a much better target for direct detection in beta decay experiments than the active neutrinos which are expected to have sub-eV masses. Their relatively high mass would allow for an easy separation from the primary decay signal in experiments such as KATRIN.