MicroBooNE experiment, NuMI absorber, and heavy neutral leptons
Kevin J. Kelly, P. Machado
Abstract
Motivated by the recent search for a Higgs portal scalar decaying inside the MicroBooNE detector, we demonstrate that the same search can be used to constrain heavy neutral leptons. These are gauge-singlet fermions that interact with the Standard Model by mixing with neutrinos only and could be related to the origin of neutrino masses. By recasting the results of the MicroBooNE Collaboration's analysis, we show that, for a heavy neutral lepton that mixes predominantly with muon-flavored neutrinos, previously unexplored parameter space can be excluded for masses between 30 and 150 MeV. Additionally, we make our Monte Carlo tools publicly available.
Topics & Concepts
PhysicsParticle physicsLeptonNeutrinoHiggs bosonMuonParameter spaceFermionNuclear physicsScalar (mathematics)Sterile neutrinoPhysics beyond the Standard ModelNeutrino oscillationElectronGeometryMathematicsStatisticsParticle physics theoretical and experimental studiesNeutrino Physics ResearchDark Matter and Cosmic Phenomena