Interpreting OPERA results on superluminal neutrino

TL;DR

This paper examines the OPERA claim of superluminal neutrinos, analyzing its compatibility with existing tests of relativity, and proposes models involving Lorentz violation with sterile neutrinos.

Contribution

It introduces models with Lorentz violation in sterile neutrinos to reconcile superluminal neutrino observations with established physics constraints.

Findings

Superluminal neutrino velocity must be nearly flavor independent.

Velocity must decrease steeply at low energies.

Energy dependence must differ from a simple power law.

Abstract

OPERA has claimed the discovery of superluminal propagation of neutrinos. We analyze the consistency of this claim with previous tests of special relativity. We find that reconciling the OPERA measurement with information from SN1987a and from neutrino oscillations requires stringent conditions. The superluminal limit velocity of neutrinos must be nearly flavor independent, must decrease steeply in the low-energy domain, and its energy dependence must depart from a simple power law. We construct illustrative models that satisfy these conditions, by introducing Lorentz violation in a sector with light sterile neutrinos. We point out that, quite generically, electroweak quantum corrections transfer the information of superluminal neutrino properties into Lorentz violations in the electron and muon sector, in apparent conflict with experimental data.