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Magister
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Does the Dirac equation predicts the fact that there are no right handed neutrinos?
I just saw this. The DE says nothing about the existence or non-exisence of handeness.Magister said:But the Dirac equation does "accept" the fact of the non-existence of the RH neutrinos, doesn´t it?
Meir Achuz said:I just saw this. The DE says nothing about the existence or non-exisence of handeness.
Handedness is a feature of the weak interaction.
Meir Achuz said:I hate to argue over words, since I think we are in basic agreement.
That is why I said "ambiguous". I would call your definition of "handedness", helicity,
with handedness used for the two possible chiralities.
I would say that chiral invariance puts fermions into two classes,
right handed and left handed, with the mneomnic that leptons are leftons.
The Dirac equation is a fundamental equation in quantum mechanics that describes the behavior of fermions, which includes particles such as electrons and neutrinos. It was developed by physicist Paul Dirac in the 1920s and provides a mathematical framework for understanding the properties and interactions of these particles. Neutrinos, being fermions, are governed by the Dirac equation and their behavior can be described using this equation.
The Dirac equation is considered one of the most important equations in particle physics as it provides a way to describe the behavior of fundamental particles and their interactions. It has been used to explain a wide range of phenomena, from the behavior of electrons in atoms to the interactions of subatomic particles in high-energy collisions. In particular, the Dirac equation has been crucial in understanding the properties and behavior of neutrinos.
The Dirac equation includes a term for mass, which allows for the prediction of the mass of particles such as electrons and neutrinos. However, experiments have shown that neutrinos have a much smaller mass than originally predicted by the Dirac equation. This led to the development of the seesaw mechanism, which suggests that there are additional, heavier neutrinos that interact with the known neutrinos and contribute to their overall mass.
Yes, the Dirac equation can account for neutrino oscillation, which is the phenomenon where neutrinos change from one type to another as they travel through space. This is possible because the Dirac equation includes terms for the weak interaction, which is the force responsible for neutrino oscillation. By using the Dirac equation, scientists can predict the probabilities of different types of neutrinos being detected at different points in time and space, which has been confirmed by experiments.
Yes, there is ongoing research to further understand the properties and behavior of neutrinos using the Dirac equation. This includes studying the possibility of sterile neutrinos, which are hypothetical neutrinos that do not interact with any of the known fundamental forces. Additionally, scientists are using the Dirac equation to study the role of neutrinos in the early universe and their potential impact on cosmological models.