https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-025-15237-z
Regular Article - Theoretical Physics
Cosmological search for sterile neutrinos after DESI 2024
1
Liaoning Key Laboratory of Cosmology and Astrophysics, College of Sciences, Northeastern University, 110819, Shenyang, China
2
School of Physics, Ningxia University, 750021, Yinchuan, China
3
College of Physical Science and Technology, Shenyang Normal University, 110034, Shenyang, China
4
MOE Key Laboratory of Data Analytics and Optimization for Smart Industry, Northeastern University, 110819, Shenyang, China
5
National Frontiers Science Center for Industrial Intelligence and Systems Optimization, Northeastern University, 110819, Shenyang, China
a
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Received:
26
January
2025
Accepted:
20
December
2025
Published online:
4
February
2026
Abstract
The question of whether massive sterile neutrinos exist remains a crucial unresolved issue in both particle physics and cosmology. We explore the cosmological constraints on massive sterile neutrinos using the latest observational data, including the baryon acoustic oscillations data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), the cosmic microwave background data from the Planck satellite and Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT), and the 5-year Type Ia supernova data and 3-year weak-lensing data from the Dark Energy Survey (DES). We search for massive sterile neutrinos within the 
CDM, wCDM, and 
CDM models. Our analysis shows that when considering massive sterile neutrinos within the 
model, the combined datasets allow us to infer a nonzero sterile neutrino mass at an approximately 
confidence level. Specifically, in the CDM+Sterile model, the effective mass of sterile neutrinos and the effective number of relativistic species are constrained to 
and 
, respectively. However, the CDM+Sterile and wCDM+Sterile models could not provide evidence supporting the existence of massive sterile neutrinos.
© The Author(s) 2026
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Funded by SCOAP3.
