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Auclair, P., Blanco-Pillado, J. J., Figueroa, D. G., Jenkins, A. C., Lewicki, M., Sakellariadou, M., et al. (2020). Probing the gravitational wave background from cosmic strings with LISA. J. Cosmol. Astropart. Phys., 04(4), 034–50pp.
Abstract: Cosmic string networks offer one of the best prospects for detection of cosmological gravitational waves (GWs). The combined incoherent GW emission of a large number of string loops leads to a stochastic GW background (SGWB), which encodes the properties of the string network. In this paper we analyze the ability of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) to measure this background, considering leading models of the string networks. We find that LISA will be able to probe cosmic strings with tensions G μgreater than or similar to O(10(-17)), improving by about 6 orders of magnitude current pulsar timing arrays (PTA) constraints, and potentially 3 orders of magnitude with respect to expected constraints from next generation PTA observatories. We include in our analysis possible modifications of the SGWB spectrum due to different hypotheses regarding cosmic history and the underlying physics of the string network. These include possible modifications in the SGWB spectrum due to changes in the number of relativistic degrees of freedom in the early Universe, the presence of a non-standard equation of state before the onset of radiation domination, or changes to the network dynamics due to a string inter-commutation probability less than unity. In the event of a detection, LISA's frequency band is well-positioned to probe such cosmic events. Our results constitute a thorough exploration of the cosmic string science that will be accessible to LISA.
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Autieri, A., Cieri, L., Ferrera, G., & Sborlini, G. F. R. (2023). Combining QED and QCD transverse-momentum resummation for W and Z boson production at hadron colliders. J. High Energy Phys., 07(7), 104–30pp.
Abstract: In this article, we consider the transverse momentum (qT) distribution of W and Z bosons produced in hadronic collisions. We combine the qT resummation for QED and QCD radiation including the QED soft emissions from the W boson in the final state. In particular, we perform the resummation of enhanced logarithmic contributions due to soft and collinear emissions at next-to-leading accuracy in QED, leading-order accuracy for mixed QED-QCD and next-to-next-to-leading accuracy in QCD. In the small-qT region we consistently include in our results the next-to-next-to-leading order (i.e. two loops) QCD corrections and the next-to-leading order (i.e. one loop) electroweak corrections. The matching with the fixed-order calculation at large qT has been performed at next-to-leading order in QCD (i.e. at O(alpha(2)(S))) and at leading order in QED. We show numerical results for W and Z production at the Tevatron and the LHC. Finally, we consider the effect of combined QCD and QED resummation for the ratio of W and Z qT distributions, and we study the impact of the QED corrections providing an estimate of the corresponding perturbative uncertainties.
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AGATA Collaboration(Avigo, R. et al), Domingo-Pardo, C., Gadea, A., & Gonzalez, V. (2020). Low-lying electric dipole gamma-continuum for the unstable Fe-62(,)64 nuclei: Strength evolution with neutron number. Phys. Lett. B, 811, 135951–6pp.
Abstract: The gamma-ray emission from the nuclei Fe-62,Fe-64 following Coulomb excitation at bombarding energy of 400-440 AMeV was measured with special focus on E1 transitions in the energy region 4-8 MeV. The unstable neutron-rich nuclei Fe-62,Fe-64 were produced at the FAIR-GSI laboratories and selected with the FRS spectrometer. The gamma decay was detected with AGATA. From the measured gamma-ray spectra the summed E1 strength is extracted and compared to microscopic quasi-particle phonon model calculations. The trend of the E1 strength with increasing neutron number is found to be fairly well reproduced with calculations that assume a rather complex structure of the 1(-) states (three-phonon states) inducing a strong fragmentation of the E1 nuclear response below the neutron binding energy.
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Avila, I. M., De Romeri, V., Duarte, L., & Valle, J. W. F. (2020). Phenomenology of scotogenic scalar dark matter. Eur. Phys. J. C, 80(10), 908–19pp.
Abstract: We reexamine the minimal Singlet + Triplet Scotogenic Model, where dark matter is the mediator of neutrino mass generation. We assume it to be a scalar WIMP, whose stability follows from the same Z(2) symmetry that leads to the radiative origin of neutrino masses. The scheme is the minimal one that allows for solar and atmospheric mass scales to be generated. We perform a full numerical analysis of the signatures expected at dark matter as well as collider experiments. We identify parameter regions where dark matter predictions agree with theoretical and experimental constraints, such as neutrino oscillations, Higgs data, dark matter relic abundance and direct detection searches. We also present forecasts for near future direct and indirect detection experiments. These will further probe the parameter space. Finally, we explore collider signatures associated with the mono jet channel at the LHC, highlighting the existence of a viable light dark matter mass range.
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Azevedo, C. D. R., Baeza, A., Chauveau, E., Corbacho, J. A., Diaz, J., Domange, J., et al. (2023). Development of a real-time tritium-in-water monitor. J. Instrum., 18(12), T12008–14pp.
Abstract: In this paper, we report the development and performance of a detector module envisaging a tritium-in-water real-time activity monitor. The monitor is based on modular detection units whose number can be chosen according to the required sensitivity. The full system is being designed to achieve a Minimum Detectable Activity (MDA) of 100 Bq/L of tritium-in-water activity which is the limit established by the E.U. Council Directive 2013/51/Euratom for water intended for human consumption. The same system can be used as a real-time pre-alert system for nuclear power plant regarding tritium-in water environmental surveillance. The first detector module was characterized, commissioned and installed immediately after the discharge channel of the Arrocampo dam (Almaraz nuclear power plant, Spain) on the Tagus river. Due to the high sensitivity of the single detection modules, the system requires radioactive background mitigation techniques through the use of active and passive shielding. We have extrapolated a MDA of 3.6 kBq/L for a single module being this value limited by the cosmic background. The obtained value for a single module is already compatible with a real-time environmental surveillance and pre-alert system. Further optimization of the single-module sensitivity will imply the reduction of the number of modules and the cost of the detector system.
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