Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 20, 2026

Setting Limits on Supersymmetry Using Simplified Models
Published on: November 15, 2013
Fundamental Impossibility of a Superradiant Neutrino Laser
Yu-Kun Lu1, Hanzhen Lin1, Wolfgang Ketterle1
1MIT-Harvard Center for Ultracold Atoms, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA, Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA, and , Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
Abstract:
Here, we address the fundamental question of whether an idealized system of N atoms will show collective behavior and superradiance when it emits fermions instead of photons. We show that for single-fermion emission processes, the maximum emission is ∝N and not ∝N^{2}, which proves the absence of superradiance and shows that the recent proposal to realize a superradiant neutrino laser is impossible. This can be understood as either destructive interference of fermionic transition amplitudes, or Pauli blockade by collective excitations with fermionic nature. We derive the exact solution of the fermionic Dicke problem and analyze the decay dynamics in various regimes. We extend the proof to arbitrary Hamiltonians and show that the jump rate operator for neutrino emission has a maximum eigenvalue of N times the single-particle rate Γ_{0}. States with low excitation can show collective behavior and emit at a rate of NΓ_{0}.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Nuclear Transmutation
Nuclear Fusion
A helium nucleus has a mass that is 0.7% less than that of four hydrogen nuclei; this lost mass is converted into energy during the fusion. This reaction produces about...
Dual Nature of Electromagnetic (EM) Radiation
Wavelength is the distance between two consecutive peaks (the highest point) or troughs (the lowest point) in the wave. Frequency is the number of...
Generating Electromagnetic Radiations
The Bohr Model
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Population Distribution

