The masses of the neutrinos

TL;DR

This paper discusses how cosmological data from the Planck experiment provides the first measurements of neutrino masses, estimating the masses of the heaviest and lightest neutrinos under certain assumptions.

Contribution

It presents the first estimates of neutrino masses based on cosmological limits, specifically using Planck data and simple assumptions about uncertainties.

Findings

Heaviest neutrino mass estimated at 63±11 meV

Lightest neutrino mass estimated at 40±18 meV

Supports the idea that cosmological data can measure neutrino masses

Abstract

If the cosmological limits on the sum of the neutrino masses are taken seriously we have first measurements of the masses of the neutrinos. Using the Planck experiment's limit $\sum_{i=1}^3{m_i} < 230 ~meV$ and some simple assumptions on measurement uncertainties the mass of the heaviest neutrino is $63\pm11 ~meV$ and the lightest $40\pm18 ~meV$ for either hierarchy.