Posts by Collection

Broad Sterile Neutrinos & the Reactor/Gallium Tension

Published in Journal of High Energy Physics (JHEP), 2024

We demonstrate that a broad sterile neutrino may relax the tension between radioactive source experiments and reactor measurements, providing a phenomenological solution that can arise in plausible hidden sector scenarios such as clockwork-style models.

Recommended citation: Hannah Banks, Kevin J. Kelly, Matthew McCullough, Tao Zhou. (2024). "Broad Sterile Neutrinos & the Reactor/Gallium Tension." JHEP. 04 (2024) 096.
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Decaying sterile neutrinos at short baselines

Published in Physical Review D, 2024

We revisit the decaying sterile neutrino solution to MiniBooNE and LSND puzzles using new MicroBooNE data, deriving new limits and finding that MicroBooNE rules out this solution in a large portion of parameter space at more than 99% CL.

Recommended citation: Matheus Hostert, Kevin J. Kelly, Tao Zhou. (2024). "Decaying sterile neutrinos at short baselines." Phys.Rev.D 110 (2024) 7, 075002.
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Long-lived vectors from electromagnetic cascades at SHiP

Published in Journal of High Energy Physics (JHEP), 2025

We simulate dark-vector production from electromagnetic cascades at the SHiP experiment, leading to 3–4 orders of magnitude increase in event rate and significantly improved sensitivity projections for dark photons and electrophilic gauge bosons.

Recommended citation: Tao Zhou, Ryan Plestid, Kevin J. Kelly, Nikita Blinov, Patrick J. Fox. (2025). "Long-lived vectors from electromagnetic cascades at SHiP." JHEP. 02 (2025) 107.
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Toward a Robust Confirmation or Refutation of the Sterile-Neutrino Explanation of Short-Baseline Anomalies

Published in Physical Review Letters, 2025

We show two methods to eliminate the degeneracy between νμ→νe and νe→νe oscillations in sterile neutrino searches, demonstrating that upcoming searches at SBND and ICARUS can provide a rigorous test of short-baseline anomalies beyond the 4σ level.

Recommended citation: Ohana Benevides Rodrigues, Matheus Hostert, Kevin J. Kelly, Bryce Littlejohn, Pedro A.N. Machado, et al. (2025). "Toward a Robust Confirmation or Refutation of the Sterile-Neutrino Explanation of Short-Baseline Anomalies." Phys.Rev.Lett. 135 (2025) 8, 081801.
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Lμ−Lτ gauge bosons in beam dumps and supernovae

Published in arXiv preprint, 2025

We study the phenomenology of a sub-GeV Lμ−Lτ gauge boson, finding discrepancies with existing literature in sensitivity projections for SHiP and supernova cooling constraints, and present quantitative analysis of production modes in beam dumps.

Recommended citation: Nikita Blinov, Patrick J. Fox, Kevin J. Kelly, Ryan Plestid, Tao Zhou. (2025). "Lμ−Lτ gauge bosons in beam dumps and supernovae." arXiv preprint arXiv:2511.09619.
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SMEFT Effects on the Angular Orientation of Jet Splitting Products

Published: May 01, 2021

Presented at the remote Phenomenology 2021 Symposium on how Standard Model Effective Field Theory (SMEFT) corrections affect the angular distribution of jet splitting products.

Decaying Sterile Neutrinos at MicroBooNE

Published: May 01, 2024

Presented at the DPF-Phenomenology Symposium 2024 on the constraints placed by MicroBooNE data on decaying sterile neutrino models.

Dark Vector Production from Electromagnetic Secondaries at SHiP

Published: November 01, 2024

Presented at Particle Physics on the Plains 2024 on dark vector production mechanisms in electromagnetic cascades at the SHiP experiment.

Did MicroBooNE kill MiniBooNE?

Published: May 01, 2025

Presented at the Phenomenology Symposium 2025 on the implications of MicroBooNE results for the MiniBooNE anomaly.

INSS Poster Presentation

Published: August 15, 2025

Best poster award at the 16th International Neutrino Summer School.