Coherent vacuum neutrino mixing and oscillation
In a unitary light-neutrino mixing model |ν_α⟩=Σ_iU_αi*|ν_i⟩.
Key knowledge
In a unitary light-neutrino mixing model |ν_α⟩=Σ_iU_αi*|ν_i⟩. Coherent ultrarelativistic vacuum propagation gives P_αβ=|Σ_iU_βiU_αi*exp[−im_i²c³L/(2ħE)]|² after removal of a common phase. A two-state real-angle limit gives appearance probability sin²(2θ)sin²[Δm²c³L/(4ħE)]. Relative phases probe mass-squared differences; this formula does not fix absolute masses or decide Dirac versus Majorana nature.
Values and equations
|ν_α⟩=Σ_iU_αi*|ν_i⟩; P_αβ=|Σ_iU_βiU_αi*e^[−im_i²c³L/(2ħE)]|²; P_α≠β^(2)=sin²(2θ)sin²[Δm²c³L/(4ħE)]
- ν_α,ν_β,ν_i
- Flavor and orthogonal mass eigenstates
- U_αi,U_βi
- Dimensionless unitary mixing entries
- P_αβ,P_α≠β^(2)
- Flavor transition and two-state appearance probabilities
- m_i
- Mass eigenvalues kg
- Δm²
- Difference of squared masses in the two-state limit kg²
- L
- Propagation distance m
- E
- Ultrarelativistic neutrino energy J
- c
- Vacuum light speed m s⁻¹
- ħ
- Reduced Planck constant J s
- θ
- Two-state mixing angle rad
Conditions and scope
- Orthogonal mass eigenstates, coherent production/propagation/detection, ultrarelativistic common central energy E and L≈ct; unitary mixing within the specified light-state space. Matter effects, absorption, resolved/decohered wave packets and sterile/heavy-state leakage need their own model.
- U is complex in general; use its conjugate for antineutrinos. The two-state expression is a bounded limit, not a full fit to all three-flavor observations. No current mass-ordering, mixing-angle, CP-phase or cosmological bound is inferred.
Sources · 1
References
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Evidence and review
PDG: Neutrino Masses, Mixing, and Oscillations (2025): Section 14.3, printed pages 6–8: mixing matrix and the qualified unitary-light-state approximation. Section 14.4, printed pages 8–10, equations 14.35–14.43: coherent states, vacuum phases, mass-squared splitting and two-state limit; ħ and c restored for masses in kg and E in J. The source's practical plane-wave approximation is not treated as a universal wave-packet theorem.
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