Meter-baseline tests of sterile neutrinos at Daya Bay

Abstract

We explore the sensitivity of an experiment at the Daya Bay site, with a point radioactive source and a few meter baseline, to neutrino oscillations involving one or more eV mass sterile neutrinos. We find that within a year, the entire 3+2 and 1+3+1 parameter space preferred by global fits can be excluded at the 3σ level, and if an oscillation signal is found, the 3+1 and 3+2 scenarios can be distinguished from each other at more than the 3σ level provided one of the sterile neutrinos is lighter than 0.5 eV.