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mfb submitted a new PF Insights post
Neutrino Masses and Speed
Continue reading the Original PF Insights Post.
Neutrino Masses and Speed
Continue reading the Original PF Insights Post.
ChrisVer said:@Orodruin With 3 anti-nu events, how can this be an exciting time?
Or is it going near the expectation for δcp=-π/2 and normal hierarchy?
Typo? Should that be "electron neutrino mass" ?mfb said:Current status
The current best direct upper limit on the electron mass comes from tritium beta decay: the mass has to below 2 eV.[2] Combined with mixing experiments, all three masses have to below 2 eV.
Oh sure. Fixed, thanks.strangerep said:Typo? Should that be "electron neutrino mass" ?
Ygggdrasil said:Kajita and McDonald just won the Nobel prize in physics for their discovery of neutrino oscillations, which showed that neutrinos have mass. http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2015/press.html
vanhees71 said:This prize had already been given some years ago:
The 2002 prize was awarded for the detection techniques used in neutrino astronomy, not for any oscillation measurement. The Super-Kamiokande atmospheric neutrino result is widely considered the first evidence for actual neutrino oscillations, the solar neutrino problem could have had other explanations. By measuring the total flux of neutrinos of any flavour and comparing with the electron neutrino flux, SNO was able to confirm that neutrinos do change flavour on the way from the Sun.ChrisVer said:I think they didn't know to whom to award the prize... afterall the solar neutrino problem was the most important indication for neutrino oscillations and the nobel prize was awarded because of that.
Shyan said:I know that Bruno Pontecorvo is dead now and people can't give him any prize, but why no mention of his name?
Orodruin said:He was mentioned in the detailed presentation by the Royal Academy, but this is not something that media picks up on. It is not usually the case to mention other people in the short motivation which in this case was "for the discovery of neutrino oscillations, which shows that neutrinos have mass".
I think that is a hypothetical question that only the Nobel committee could answer if anyone - and even if they knew the answer they would not tell anyone. The first step would have been to have someone nominating him, but I think that would be a minor hurdle.Shyan said:Would he share the prize if he was alive?
vanhees71 said:The only example that comes to my mind is the omission of Lise Meitner and Strassmann in the prize for nuclear fission, given to Otto Hahn alone in 1945. Of course, the prize was well deserved but should have been shared with the key players in the discovery.
It is possible to award the prize to organizations. It has never been done (apart from the Peace prize), but for experimental high-energy physics it would certainly be useful. There was a third spot for the Higgs discovery...vanhees71 said:This is also the problem with the big collaborations in experimental HEP.
Up to three organizations (or a mix) would be possible as well. It has never been done for the "hard sciences", but it is possible.vanhees71 said:I thought the prizes for the "hard sciences" can only be awarded to individuals (up to three people)?
Orodruin said:Some of our Italian colleagues would probably also mention the omission of Cabibbo from the prize shared by Kobayashi and Maskawa (receiving 1/4 each with the other half to Nambu). That motivation was very carefully worded to explicitly target the extension of the mixing matrix to three states with the realisation that one CP phase no longer can be removed, leading to CP violation.
A neutrino is a subatomic particle that is electrically neutral, has almost no mass, and rarely interacts with other particles.
The Standard Model of particle physics is a theory that describes the fundamental particles and forces in the universe. The discovery of neutrino masses challenges this model and suggests the need for new physics beyond the Standard Model.
There are several methods for measuring the mass of a neutrino, including direct measurement through the observation of nuclear reactions, and indirect measurement through the study of neutrino oscillations.
The current understanding is that neutrinos travel at almost the speed of light, but not quite. Recent experiments have shown that neutrinos have a tiny, but non-zero mass, which means they cannot travel at the speed of light.
The discovery of neutrino masses and speeds has major implications for our understanding of the universe, as neutrinos play a crucial role in various astrophysical processes. It also provides insight into the nature of dark matter and dark energy, which are still largely unknown phenomena.