Z-burst scenario for the highest energy cosmic rays

Z. Fodor, S. D. Katz, A. Ringwald

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

The origin of highest energy cosmic rays is yet unknown. An appealing possibility is the so-called Z-burst scenario, in which a large fraction of these cosmic rays are decay products of Z bosons produced in the scattering of ultrahigh energy neutrinos on cosmological relic neutrinos. The comparison between the observed and predicted spectra constrains the mass of the heaviest neutrino. The required neutrino mass is fairly robust against variations of the presently unknown quantities, such as the amount of relic neutrino clustering, the universal photon radio background and the extragalactic magnetic field. Considering different possibilities for the ordinary cosmic rays the required neutrino masses are determined. In the most plausible case that the ordinary cosmic rays are of extragalactic origin and the universal radio background is strong enough to suppress high energy photons, the required neutrino mass is 0.08 eV ≤ m v 0.40 eV. The required ultrahigh energy neutrino flux should be detected in the near future by experiments such as AMANDA, RICE or the Pierre Auger Observatory.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationBeyond the Desert 2002
Subtitle of host publicationAccelerator, Non-Accelerator and Space Approaches in the New Millennium - Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Particle Physics Beyond the Standard Model
EditorsH.V. Klapdor-Kleingrothaus
Pages567-587
Number of pages21
StatePublished - 2003
EventBeyond the Desert 2002: Accelerator, Non-Accelerator and Space Approaches in the New Millennium - Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Particle Physics Beyond the Standard Model: Accelerator, Non-Accelerator and Space Approaches - Oulu, Finland
Duration: Jul 2 2002Jul 7 2002

Publication series

NameBeyond the Desert 2002: Accelerator, Non-Accelerator and Space APproaches in the New Millenium - Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Particle Physics Beyond the Standard Model

Conference

ConferenceBeyond the Desert 2002: Accelerator, Non-Accelerator and Space Approaches in the New Millennium - Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Particle Physics Beyond the Standard Model: Accelerator, Non-Accelerator and Space Approaches
Country/TerritoryFinland
CityOulu
Period7/2/027/7/02

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Engineering

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