KATRIN: A next generation tritium beta decay experiment with sub-eV sensitivity for the electron neutrino mass

Abstract

With the compelling evidence for massive neutrinos from recent neutrino-oscillation experiments, one of the most fundamental tasks of particle physics over the next years will be the determination of the absolute mass scale of neutrinos. The absolute value of neutrino-masses will have crucial implications for cosmology, astrophysics and particle physics. We present the case for a next generation tritium beta decay experiment to perform a high precision direct measurement of the absolute mass of the electron neutrino with sub-eV sensitivity. We discuss the experimental requirements and technical challenges of the proposed Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino experiment (KATRIN) and outline its physics potential.