Possible Effects of Lorentz Symmetry Violation on the Interaction Properties of Very High-Energy Cosmic Rays

Abstract

Special relativity has been tested at low energy with great accuracy, but these results cannot be extrapolated to the very high-energy region. Introducing a critical distance scale, $a$ , below 10E-25 cm (the wavelength scale of the highest-energy observed cosmic rays) allows to consider models, compatible with standard tests of special relativity, where a small violation of Lorentz symmetry ($a$ can, for instance, be the Planck length, around 10E-33 cm) produces dramatic effects on the interaction properties of very high-energy particles. Lorentz symmetry violation may potentially solve all the basic problems raised by the highest-energy cosmic rays (origin and energy, propagation...). Furthermore, superluminal sectors of matter may exist and release very high-energy ordinary particles or directly produce very high-energy cosmic-ray events with unambiguous signatures in very large detectors. We discuss these phenomena, as well as the cosmic-ray energy range (well below the energy scale associated to the fundamental length) and experiments where they could be detected and studied.