Stodolsky's Theorem and Neutrino Oscillation Phases -- for pedestrians

TL;DR

This paper clarifies that neutrino oscillations are observable only through interference of states with identical energies, emphasizing the importance of neutrino-detector interactions often overlooked in analyses.

Contribution

It highlights the crucial role of neutrino-detector interactions in neutrino oscillation experiments and corrects common misconceptions about interference effects.

Findings

Interference occurs only between neutrino states with the same energy.

Interactions with the detector destroy interference between states with different energies.

Neglecting detector interactions leads to erroneous conclusions.

Abstract

Neutrino oscillations are experimentally observable only as a result of interference between neutrino states with different masses and THE SAME ENERGY. All interference effects between neutrino states having different energies are destroyed by the intereaction between the incident neutrino and the neutrino detector. Erroneous results are frequently obtained by neglecting the neutrino-detector interactions.