Neutrinoless double beta decay with light sterile neutrinos: the contact terms

Abstract

We study neutrinoless double-beta decay in extensions of the Standard Model that include $n$ right-handed neutrino singlets, with masses $m_s$ below the GeV scale. Generalizing recently developed matching methods, we determine the $m_s$ dependence of the short-range $nn \to pp$ couplings that appear to leading order in the chiral effective field theory description of neutrinoless double beta decay. We focus on two scenarios, corresponding to the minimal $\nu$SM and left-right symmetric models. We illustrate the impact of our new results in the case of the $\nu$SM, showing a significant impact on the neutrinoless double-beta decay half-life when $m_s$ is in the 200-800 MeV range.