Neutrino mass generation in asymptotically safe gravity
There exist several distinct phenomenological models to generate neutrino masses. We explore which of these models can consistently be embedded in a quantum theory of gravity and matter. We proceed by invoking a minimal number of degrees of freedom beyond the Standard Model. Thus, we first investiga...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article (Journal) |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
9 September 2025
|
| In: |
Physical review
Year: 2025, Volume: 112, Issue: 6, Pages: 1-13 |
| ISSN: | 2470-0029 |
| DOI: | 10.1103/m137-zx8f |
| Online Access: | Verlag, kostenfrei, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1103/m137-zx8f Verlag, kostenfrei, Volltext: https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/m137-zx8f 
|
| Author Notes: | Gustavo P. de Brito, Astrid Eichhorn, Antonio D. Pereira, and Masatoshi Yamada |
| Summary: | There exist several distinct phenomenological models to generate neutrino masses. We explore which of these models can consistently be embedded in a quantum theory of gravity and matter. We proceed by invoking a minimal number of degrees of freedom beyond the Standard Model. Thus, we first investigate whether the Weinberg operator, a dimension-five operator that generates neutrino masses without requiring degrees of freedom beyond the Standard Model, can arise in asymptotically safe quantum gravity. We find a negative answer with far-reaching consequences: new degrees of freedom beyond gravity and the Standard Model are necessary to give neutrinos a mass in the asymptotic-safety paradigm. Second, we explore whether the type-I seesaw mechanism is viable and discover an upper bound on the seesaw scale. The bound depends on the mass of the visible neutrino. We find a numerical value of 1014 GeV for this bound when neglecting neutrino mixing for a visible mass of 10−10 GeV. Conversely, for the most “natural” value of the seesaw scale in a quantum-gravity setting, which is the Planck scale, we predict an upper bound for the neutrino mass of the visible neutrino of approximately 10−15 GeV. Third, we explore whether neutrinos could also be pseudo-Dirac neutrinos in asymptotic safety and find that this possibility can be accommodated. |
|---|---|
| Item Description: | Gesehen am 02.02.2026 |
| Physical Description: | Online Resource |
| ISSN: | 2470-0029 |
| DOI: | 10.1103/m137-zx8f |