Abstract
The quantum field theory of superluminal (tachyonic) particles is plagued by a number of problems, which include the Lorentz non-invariance of the vacuum state, the ambiguous separation of the field operator into creation and annihilation operators under Lorentz transformations, and the necessity of a complex reinterpretation principle for quantum processes. Another unsolved question concerns the treatment of subluminal components of a tachyonic wave packet in the field-theoretical formalism, and the calculation of the time-ordered propagator. After a brief discussion on related problems, we conclude that rather painful choices have to be made in order to incorporate tachyonic spin-1/2 particles into field theory. We argue that the field theory needs to be formulated such as to allow for localizable tachyonic particles, even if that means that a slight unitarity violation is introduced into the S matrix, and we write down field operators with unrestricted momenta. We find that once these choices have been made, the propagator for the neutrino field can be given in a compact form, and the lefthandedness of the neutrino as well as the right-handedness of the antineutrino follow naturally. Consequences for neutrinoless double beta decay and superluminal propagation of neutrinos are briefly discussed.
Recommended Citation
U. D. Jentschura and B. J. Wundt, "Localizability of Tachyonic Particles and Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay," European Physical Journal C: Particles and Fields, vol. 72, no. 2, pp. 1 - 13, Springer New York LLC, Feb 2012.
The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-012-1894-4
Department(s)
Physics
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
1434-6044
Document Type
Article - Journal
Document Version
Final Version
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2012 Springer New York LLC, All rights reserved.
Publication Date
01 Feb 2012
