Russian scientists from MIPT have developed a method for searching for unusual radiation that could change our understanding of the fundamental laws of nature. The researchers plan to detect the spin light of neutrinos in gamma-ray bursts — powerful cosmic explosions.
Under certain conditions, neutrinos — almost elusive elementary particles — can emit light in a special way when colliding with dense matter. In space, where there are powerful magnetic fields and a superdense medium, this glow can be detected.
Gamma-ray bursts are of particular interest for neutrino spin radiation, as they are considered sources of high-energy neutrinos.
In 2002, physicists Alexey Lobanov and Alexander Studenikin theoretically proved that if a neutrino has mass and a magnetic moment, it should emit spin light. Now, associate professors at MIPT, Alexander Grigoriev and Alexey Ternov, have decided to test this hypothesis in practice.
The scientists intend to pay special attention to gamma-ray bursts during the merging of neutron stars, where the probability of detecting the desired radiation is highest. The discovery of spin light will be a breakthrough in elementary particle physics and could lead to a revision of fundamental ideas about the structure of matter in the Universe.
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