Behavior of Neutrinos in Stochastic Magnetic Fields

Abstract

If massive neutrinos possess magnetic moments, they can undergo spin flip in a magnetic field. The magnetic fields needed for a meaningful measurement of neutrino moments could be very high and may occur in astronomical objects such as some supernovae or active galactic nuclei: they are typically chaotic ones. We develop the general theory of the passage of neutrinos through such fields. We also develop a simple model which becomes solvable in the high energy limit. Both helicities occur with equal probability, independently of the initial distribution. Observational consequences are discussed.