Neutrino-Mass Sensitivity and Nuclear Matrix Element for Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay

Abstract

Neutrinoless double beta decay (DBD) is a useful probe to study neutrino properties such as the Majorana nature, the absolute neutrino mass, the CP phase and the others, which are beyond the standard model. The nuclear matrix element (NME) for DBD is crucial to extract the neutrino properties from the experimental transition rate. The neutrino-mass sensitivity, i.e., the minimum neutrino-mass to be measured by the DBD experiment, is very sensitive to the DBD NME. Actually, the NME is one of the key elements for designing the DBD experiment. Theoretical evaluation for the DBD NME, however, is very hard. Recently experimental studies of charge-exchange nuclear and leptonic reactions have shown to be used to get single-β NMEs associated with the DBD NME. Critical discussions are made on the neutrino-mass sensitivity and the NME for the DBD neutrino-mass study and on the experimental studies of the single-β NMEs and nuclear structures associated with DBD NMEs.