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Liddick, S. N., Spyrou, A., Crider, B. P., Naqvi, F., Larsen, A. C., Guttormsen, M., et al. (2016). Experimental Neutron Capture Rate Constraint Far from Stability. Phys. Rev. Lett., 116(24), 242502–6pp.
Abstract: Nuclear reactions where an exotic nucleus captures a neutron are critical for a wide variety of applications, from energy production and national security, to astrophysical processes, and nucleosynthesis. Neutron capture rates are well constrained near stable isotopes where experimental data are available; however, moving far from the valley of stability, uncertainties grow by orders of magnitude. This is due to the complete lack of experimental constraints, as the direct measurement of a neutron-capture reaction on a short-lived nucleus is extremely challenging. Here, we report on the first experimental extraction of a neutron capture reaction rate on Ni-69, a nucleus that is five neutrons away from the last stable isotope of Ni. The implications of this measurement on nucleosynthesis around mass 70 are discussed, and the impact of similar future measurements on the understanding of the origin of the heavy elements in the cosmos is presented.
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Lorusso, G. et al, & Montaner-Piza, A. (2015). beta-Decay Half-Lives of 110 Neutron-Rich Nuclei across the N=82 Shell Gap: Implications for the Mechanism and Universality of the Astrophysical r Process. Phys. Rev. Lett., 114(19), 192501–7pp.
Abstract: The beta-decay half-lives of 110 neutron-rich isotopes of the elements from 37 Rb to 50 Sn were measured at the Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory. The 40 new half-lives follow robust systematics and highlight the persistence of shell effects. The new data have direct implications for r-process calculations and reinforce the notion that the second (A approximate to 130) and the rare-earth-element (A approximate to 160) abundance peaks may result from the freeze-out of an (n, gamma) reversible arrow (gamma, n) equilibrium. In such an equilibrium, the new half-lives are important factors determining the abundance of rare-earth elements, and allow for a more reliable discussion of the r process universality. It is anticipated that universality may not extend to the elements Sn, Sb, I, and Cs, making the detection of these elements in metal-poor stars of the utmost importance to determine the exact conditions of individual r-process events.
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Maiezza, A., Nemevsek, M., & Nesti, F. (2015). Lepton Number Violation in Higgs Decay at LHC. Phys. Rev. Lett., 115(8), 081802–7pp.
Abstract: We show that within the left-right symmetric model, lepton number violating decays of the Higgs boson can be discovered at the LHC. The process is due to the mixing of the Higgs boson with the triplet that breaks parity. As a result, the Higgs boson can act as a gateway to the origin of the heavy Majorana neutrino mass. To assess the LHC reach, a detailed collider study of the same-sign dileptons plus jets channel is provided. This process is complementary to the existing nuclear and collider searches for lepton number violation and can probe the scale of parity restoration even beyond other direct searches.
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Marchi, T. et al, & Gadea, A. (2014). Quadrupole Transition Strength in the Ni-74 Nucleus and Core Polarization Effects in the Neutron-Rich Ni Isotopes. Phys. Rev. Lett., 113(18), 182501–5pp.
Abstract: The reduced transition probability B(E2;0(+) -> 2(+)) has been measured for the neutron-rich nucleus Ni-74 in an intermediate energy Coulomb excitation experiment performed at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory at Michigan State University. The obtained B(E2;0(+) -> 2(+)) = 642(-226)(+216) e(2) fm(4) value defines a trend which is unexpectedly small if referred to Ni-70 and to a previous indirect determination of the transition strength in Ni-74. This indicates a reduced polarization of the Z = 28 core by the valence neutrons. Calculations in the pfgd model space reproduce well the experimental result indicating that the B(E2) strength predominantly corresponds to neutron excitations. The ratio of the neutron and proton multipole matrix elements supports such an interpretation.
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Martinez Torres, A., & Oset, E. (2010). Novel Interpretation of the “Theta(+)(1540) Pentaquark” Peak. Phys. Rev. Lett., 105(9), 092001–4pp.
Abstract: We use a theoretical model of the gamma d --> K+K- np reaction adapted to the experiment done at LEPS where a peak was observed and associated with the Theta(+)(1540) pentaquark. The study shows that the method used in the experiment to assign momenta to the undetected proton and neutron, together with the chosen cuts, necessarily creates an artificial broad peak in the assumed K(+)n invariant mass in the region of the claimed Theta(+)(1540), such that the remaining strength seen for the experimental peak is compatible with a fluctuation of 2 sigma significance.
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Matsubara, H. et al, & Rubio, B. (2015). Nonquenched Isoscalar Spin-M1 Excitations in sd-Shell Nuclei. Phys. Rev. Lett., 115(10), 102501–6pp.
Abstract: Differential cross sections of isoscalar and isovector spin-M1 (0(+) -> 1(+)) transitions are measured using high-energy-resolution proton inelastic scattering at E-p = 295 MeV on Mg-24, Si-28, S-32, and Ar-36 at 0 degrees-14 degrees. The squared spin-M1 nuclear transition matrix elements are deduced from the measured differential cross sections by applying empirically determined unit cross sections based on the assumption of isospin symmetry. The ratios of the squared nuclear matrix elements accumulated up to E-x = 16 MeV compared to a shell-model prediction are 1.01(9) for isoscalar and 0.61(6) for isovector spin-M1 transitions, respectively. Thus, no quenching is observed for isoscalar spin-M1 transitions, while the matrix elements for isovector spin-M1 transitions are quenched by an amount comparable with the analogous Gamow-Teller transitions on those target nuclei.
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Mena, O., Palomares-Ruiz, S., & Vincent, A. C. (2014). Flavor Composition of the High-Energy Neutrino Events in IceCube. Phys. Rev. Lett., 113(9), 091103–5pp.
Abstract: The IceCube experiment has recently reported the observation of 28 high-energy (> 30 TeV) neutrino events, separated into 21 showers and 7 muon tracks, consistent with an extraterrestrial origin. In this Letter, we compute the compatibility of such an observation with possible combinations of neutrino flavors with relative proportion (alpha(e:)alpha(mu):alpha tau)(circle plus). Although the 7: 21 track-to-shower ratio is naively favored for the canonical (1:1:1)(circle plus) at Earth, this is not true once the atmospheric muon and neutrino backgrounds are properly accounted for. We find that, for an astrophysical neutrino E-2 energy spectrum, (1:1:1)(circle plus). at Earth is disfavored at 81% C. L. If this proportion does not change, 6 more years of data would be needed to exclude (1:1:1)(circle plus) at Earth at 3 sigma C.L. Indeed, with the recently released 3-yr data, that flavor composition is excluded at 92% C. L. The best fit is obtained for (1:0:0)(circle plus). at Earth, which cannot be achieved from any flavor ratio at sources with averaged oscillations during propagation. If confirmed, this result would suggest either a misunderstanding of the expected background events or a misidentification of tracks as showers, or even more compellingly, some exotic physics which deviates from the standard scenario.
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MiniBooNE Collaboration(Aguilar-Arevalo, A. A. et al), & Sorel, M. (2010). Event Excess in the MiniBooNE Search for (nu)over-bar(mu) -> (nu)over-bar(e) Oscillations. Phys. Rev. Lett., 105(18), 181801–5pp.
Abstract: The MiniBooNE experiment at Fermilab reports results from a search for (nu) over bar (mu) -> (nu) over bar (e) oscillations, using a data sample corresponding to 5.66 x 10(20) protons on target. An excess of 20.9 +/- 14.0 events is observed in the energy range 475 < E-nu(QE) < 1250 MeV, which, when constrained by the observed <(nu)over bar>(mu) events, has a probability for consistency with the background-only hypothesis of 0.5%. On the other hand, fitting for (nu) over bar (mu) -> (nu) over bar (e) oscillations, the best-fit point has chi(2) probability of 8.7%. The data are consistent with (nu) over bar (mu) -> (nu) over bar (e) oscillations in the 0.1 to 1.0 eV(2) Delta m(2) range and with the evidence for antineutrino oscillations from the Liquid Scintillator Neutrino Detector at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
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Miranda, O. G., Tortola, M., & Valle, J. W. F. (2016). New Ambiguity in Probing CP Violation in Neutrino Oscillations. Phys. Rev. Lett., 117(6), 061804–5pp.
Abstract: If neutrinos get mass via the seesaw mechanism the mixing matrix describing neutrino oscillations can be effectively nonunitary. We show that in this case the neutrino appearance probabilities involve a new CP phase phi associated with nonunitarity. This leads to an ambiguity in extracting the “standard” three-neutrino phase delta(CP), which can survive even after neutrino and antineutrino channels are combined. Its existence should be taken into account in the planning of any oscillation experiment aiming at a robust measurement of delta(CP).
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MoEDAL Collaboration(Acharya, B. et al), Bernabeu, J., Garcia, C., Mamuzic, J., Mitsou, V. A., Ruiz de Austri, R., et al. (2017). Search for Magnetic Monopoles with the MoEDAL Forward Trapping Detector in 13 TeV Proton-Proton Collisions at the LHC. Phys. Rev. Lett., 118(6), 061801–6pp.
Abstract: MoEDAL is designed to identify new physics in the form of long-lived highly ionizing particles produced in high-energy LHC collisions. Its arrays of plastic nuclear-track detectors and aluminium trapping volumes provide two independent passive detection techniques. We present here the results of a first search for magnetic monopole production in 13 TeV proton-proton collisions using the trapping technique, extending a previous publication with 8 TeV data during LHC Run 1. A total of 222 kg of MoEDAL trapping detector samples was exposed in the forward region and analyzed by searching for induced persistent currents after passage through a superconducting magnetometer. Magnetic charges exceeding half the Dirac charge are excluded in all samples and limits are placed for the first time on the production of magnetic monopoles in 13 TeV pp collisions. The search probes mass ranges previously inaccessible to collider experiments for up to five times the Dirac charge.
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