Quantum leptogenesis. I (Q555625)

Standard thermal leptogenesis provides a simple and elegant explanation of the origin of matter in the universe. This paper discusses the observed matter-antimatter asymmetry of the universe in terms of neutrino masses, consistent with neutrino oscillation experiments. A full quantum mechanical calculation of the generated lepton asymmetry based on Kadanoff-Baym equations and the Schwinger-Keldysh formalism is discussed. The quantum treatment of leptogenesis covered in this paper is entirely based on Green's functions, thus avoiding all approximations needed to arrive at the Boltzmann equations.