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Light neutrinos as cosmological dark matter and the next supernova

Abstract:

We point out that the light-neutrino hypothesis for cosmological dark matter can be tested by observing a neutrino burst from a type-II supernova. With the luck of a nearby (10 kpc) event watched by enlarged water Cherenkov detectors, such as the proposed super-Kamiokande, it might be possible to measure the tau- (heaviest-)neutrino mass. In such a case the statistically significant (4000-6000) »e absorption events would allow the precise determination of the neutrino flux and the temperature. By using a simple model of neutrino emission based on the simulation by Mayle, Wilson, and Schramm, we show that the existence of the neutrino mixing can be signaled by 20-30% excess of the scattering events in the water Cherenkov detector, and by factor 3 larger rate in Davis's Cl37 detector. The effect on the recoil electron energy spectrum is also analyzed. © 1990 The American Physical Society.