Test of the Equivalence Principle from Neutrino Oscillation Experiments

R. B. Mann; U. Sarkar

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.76.865

Test of the Equivalence Principle from Neutrino Oscillation Experiments

R. B. Mann and U. Sarkar

Phys. Rev. Lett. 76, 865 – Published 5 February 1996

Abstract

We consider the hypothesis that neutrino oscillation data can be explained if the gravitational couplings of (massless or degenerate mass) neutrinos are flavor nondiagonal, in violation of the equivalence principle. We analyze the various neutrino oscillation laboratory experimental data including the recent LSND observations to constrain the relevant parameter space. We find (under the hypothesis that gravity couples to matter and antimatter in the same way) that there is no allowed region of parameter space which can explain the existing data, implying that the LSND result cannot be explained by oscillations of degenerate-mass neutrinos due to equivalence principle violations.

Received 22 May 1995

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.76.865

Authors & Affiliations

R. B. Mann¹ and U. Sarkar²

¹Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 9EW, United Kingdom
²Theory Group, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, 380 009, India