Solar neutrino spectrum, sterile neutrinos and additional radiation in the Universe
P. C. de Holanda, A. Yu. Smirnov

TL;DR
This paper explores how very light sterile neutrinos could explain the lack of expected spectral upturns in solar neutrino data and account for additional relativistic degrees of freedom suggested by cosmological observations.
Contribution
It proposes a specific sterile neutrino mixing model that explains solar neutrino spectral features and cosmological data, and discusses testable predictions for future experiments.
Findings
Sterile neutrino mixing can suppress the spectral upturn in solar neutrino data.
The model accounts for additional relativistic degrees of freedom in the early Universe.
Predictions for future neutrino experiments can test the sterile neutrino hypothesis.
Abstract
Recent results from the SNO, Super-Kamiokande and Borexino experiments do not show the expected upturn of the energy spectrum of events (the ratio ) at low energies. At the same time, cosmological observations testify for possible existence of additional relativistic degrees of freedom in the early Universe: . These facts strengthen the case of very light sterile neutrino, , with eV, which mixes weakly with the active neutrinos. The mixing in the mass eigenstate characterized by can explain an absence of the upturn. The mixing of in the eigenstate with leads to production of via oscillations in the Universe and to additional contribution before the big…
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