Effective Field Theories For Heavy Majorana Neutrinos In A Thermal Bath

In this thesis we discuss the construction of an effective field theory (EFT) for non-relativistic Majorana fermions, show how to use it to calculate observables in a thermal medium, and derive the effects of these thermal particles on the CP asymmetry. The methods described in this thesis allow a systematic and effective description of the non-relativistic dynamics of a heavy Majorana fermion at finite temperature. The CP asymmetry is studied for hierarchical and nearly degenerate heavy-neutrino masses and the analysis includes the treatment of lepton-flavor effects. Heavy Majorana neutrinos are involved in many scenarios of physics beyond the standard model and, in the leptogenesis framework, they are at the root of the baryon asymmetry in the Universe. Besides simplifying exist in g results, the EFT approach provides useful tools for addressing even more involved observables. Indeed, taken together, the approach and the material presented here represent an important step toward a systematic improvement of our knowledge of the CP asymmetry in heavy-neutrino decays at finite temperature.

This book contains the proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Physics Beyond the Standard Models of Particle Physics, Cosmology and Astrophysics. It presents a brilliant overview of the status and future potential and trends in experimental

This book presents thermal field theory techniques, which can be applied in both cosmology and the theoretical description of the QCD plasma generated in heavy-ion collision experiments. It focuses on gauge interactions (whether weak or strong), which are essential in both contexts. As well as the many differences in the physics questions posed and in the microscopic forces playing a central role, the authors also explain the similarities and the techniques, such as the resummations, that are needed for developing a formally consistent perturbative expansion. The formalism is developed step by step, starting from quantum mechanics; introducing scalar, fermionic and gauge fields; describing the issues of infrared divergences; resummations and effective field theories; and incorporating systems with finite chemical potentials. With this machinery in place, the important class of real-time (dynamic) observables is treated in some detail. This is followed by an overview of a number of applications, ranging from the study of phase transitions and particle production rate computations, to the concept of transport and damping coefficients that play a ubiquitous role in current developments. The book serves as a self-contained textbook on relativistic thermal field theory for undergraduate and graduate students of theoretical high-energy physics.

A self-contained guide to the role played by neutrinos in the Universe and how their properties influence cosmological and astrophysical observations.