CPT, CP, and C transformations of fermions, and their consequences, in theories with B-L violation

TL;DR

This paper explores how fermions transform under CPT, CP, and C symmetries in theories with B-L violation, extending known properties of Majorana neutrinos to Dirac fermions relevant for neutron-antineutron oscillations.

Contribution

It generalizes the analysis of fermion symmetry transformations to include B-L violation for Dirac fermions, with implications for neutron-antineutron oscillations and CPT phases.

Findings

CPT phase affects neutron-antineutron oscillations in external fields

Differences in Majorana neutrino and neutron dynamics in B-L violating theories

Implications for theories with self-conjugate isospin fields

Abstract

We consider the transformation properties of fermions under the discrete symmetries CPT, CP, and C in the presence of B-L violation. We thus generalize the analysis of the known properties of Majorana neutrinos, probed via neutrinoless double beta decay, to include the case of Dirac fermions with B-L violation, which can be probed via neutron-antineutron oscillations. We show that the resulting CPT phase has implications for the interplay of neutron-antineutron oscillations with external fields and sources and consider the differences in the Majorana dynamics of neutrinos and neutrons in the context of theories with self-conjugate isospin I=0 and I=1/2 fields.