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Thermalisation of sterile neutrinos in the early Universe in the 3+1 scheme with full mixing matrix

3 Pith papers cite this work. Polarity classification is still indexing.

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abstract

In the framework of a 3+1 scheme with an additional inert state, we consider the thermalisation of sterile neutrinos in the early Universe taking into account the full $4\times4$ mixing matrix. The evolution of the neutrino energy distributions is found solving the momentum-dependent kinetic equations with full diagonal collision terms, as in previous analyses of flavour neutrino decoupling in the standard case. The degree of thermalisation of the sterile state is shown in terms of the effective number of neutrinos, $N_{\rm eff}$, and its dependence on the three additional mixing angles ($\theta_{14}$, $\theta_{24}$, $\theta_{34}$) and on the squared mass difference $\Delta m^2_{41}$ is discussed. Our results are relevant for fixing the contribution of a fourth light neutrino species to the cosmological energy density, whose value is very well constrained by the final Planck analysis. For the preferred region of active-sterile mixing parameters from short-baseline neutrino experiments, we find that the fourth state is fully thermalised ($N_{\rm eff}\simeq 4$).

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astro-ph.CO 3

years

2026 3

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UNVERDICTED 3

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representative citing papers

Quintom Model Perturbations

astro-ph.CO · 2026-06-25 · unverdicted · novelty 4.0

A two-field quintom model reproduces w0waCDM perturbation features and is mildly favored over it in Bayesian fits to BAO, CMB, and SNIa data.

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Showing 3 of 3 citing papers after filters.

  • Recoupled Dark Radiation reconciling CMB and DESI BAO measurements astro-ph.CO · 2026-05-18 · unverdicted · none · ref 22 · internal anchor

    An interacting sterile neutrino component via pseudoscalar mediator reconciles CMB and DESI DR2 BAO measurements with 2.7 sigma preference and reduces H0 tension to 2.4 sigma.

  • Are Cosmological Data Excluding Sterile Neutrinos or Only the Fully Thermalized Limit? astro-ph.CO · 2026-06-19 · unverdicted · none · ref 54 · internal anchor

    Cosmological observations constrain the effective abundance of light sterile neutrinos tightly while allowing non-fully-thermalized realizations to remain viable across LambdaCDM and CPL models.

  • Quintom Model Perturbations astro-ph.CO · 2026-06-25 · unverdicted · none · ref 8 · internal anchor

    A two-field quintom model reproduces w0waCDM perturbation features and is mildly favored over it in Bayesian fits to BAO, CMB, and SNIa data.