|
Papavassiliou, J. (2022). Emergence of mass in the gauge sector of QCD. Chin. Phys. C, 46(11), 112001–23pp.
Abstract: It is currently widely accepted that gluons, while massless at the level of the fundamental QCD Lagrangian, acquire an effective mass through the non-Abelian implementation of the classic Schwinger mechanism. The key dynamical ingredient that triggers the onset of this mechanism is the formation of composite massless poles inside the fundamental vertices of the theory. These poles enter the evolution equation of the gluon propagator and nontrivially affect the way the Slavnov-Taylor identities of the vertices are resolved, inducing a smoking-gun displacement in the corresponding Ward identities. In this article, we present a comprehensive review of the pivotal concepts associated with this dynamical scenario, emphasizing the synergy between functional methods and lattice simulations and highlighting recent advances that corroborate the action of the Schwinger mechanism in QCD.
|
|
|
Real, D., & Calvo, D. (2022). Production requirements and functional tests of the KM3NeT Digital Optical Module Power Board. Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. A, 1042, 167426–3pp.
Abstract: The KM3NeT research facility is being built in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of matrices of optical detectors, the so-called Digital Optical Module. Each of this elementary detector holds a set of 31 small-area photomultipliers, which detect the Cherenkov light generated by secondary particles produced in neutrino interactions. It includes also the acquisition electronics and the power board which supplies both, the acquisition electronics and the photomultipliers. The production of electronics boards needs to have a high quality and reliability level as it is going to be deployed for more than ten years without any maintenance possible. This work presents the requirements and the qualification tests being implemented in order to increase the reliability of the Power Board of the acquisition electronics of KM3NeT during the mass production. At the moment, more than one thousand board have been produced. Results on the production of the boards, including the production yield is presented. From the already produced boards, more than 350 have been already deployed and are operative in the detectors.
|
|
|
Gonzalez-Iglesias, D., Esperante, D., Gimeno, B., Blanch, C., Fuster-Martinez, N., Martinez-Reviriego, P., et al. (2023). Analysis of the Multipactor Effect in an RF Electron Gun Photoinjector. IEEE Trans. Electron Devices, 70(1), 288–295.
Abstract: The objective of this work is the evaluation of the risk of suffering a multipactor discharge within an RF electron gun photoinjector. Photoinjectors are a type of source for intense electron beams, which are the main electron source for synchrotron light sources, such as free-electron lasers. The analyzed device consists of 1.6 cells and it has been designed to operate at the S-band. Besides, around the RF gun there is an emittance compensation solenoid, whose magnetic field prevents the growth of the electron beam emittance, and thus the degradation of the properties of the beam. The multipactor analysis is based on a set of numerical simulations by tracking the trajectories of the electron cloud in the cells of the device. To reach this aim, an in-house multipactor code was developed. Specifically, two different cases were explored: with the emittance compensation solenoid assumed to be off and with the emittance compensation solenoid in operation. For both the cases, multipactor simulations were carried out exploring different RF electric field amplitudes. Moreover, for a better understanding of the multipactor phenomenon, the resonant trajectories of the electrons and the growth rate of the electrons population are investigated.
|
|
|
Mendoza, E., Alcayne, V., Cano-Ott, D., Gonzalez-Romero, E., Martinez, T., de Rada, A. P., et al. (2023). Neutron capture measurements with high efficiency detectors and the Pulse Height Weighting Technique. Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. A, 1047, 167894–16pp.
Abstract: Neutron capture cross section measurements in time-of-flight facilities are usually performed by detecting the prompt 7-rays emitted in the capture reactions. One of the difficulties to be addressed in these measurements is that the emitted 7-rays may change with the neutron energy, and therefore also the detection efficiency. To deal with this situation, many measurements use the so called Total Energy Detection (TED) technique, usually in combination with the Pulse Height Weighting Technique (PHWT). With it, it is sought that the detection efficiency depends only on the total energy of the 7-ray cascade, which does not vary much with the neutron energy. This technique was developed in the 1960s and has been used in many neutron capture experiments to date. One of the requirements of the technique is that 7-ray detectors have a low efficiency. This has meant that the PHWT has been used with experimental setups with low detection efficiencies. However, this condition does not have to be fulfilled by the experimental system as a whole. The main goal of this work is to show that it is possible to measure with a high efficiency detection system that uses the PHWT, and how to analyze the measured data.
|
|
|
Aja, B. et al, & Gimeno, B. (2022). The Canfranc Axion Detection Experiment (CADEx): search for axions at 90 GHz with Kinetic Inductance Detectors. J. Cosmol. Astropart. Phys., 11(11), 044–29pp.
Abstract: We propose a novel experiment, the Canfranc Axion Detection Experiment (CADEx), to probe dark matter axions with masses in the range 330-460 μeV, within the W-band (80-110 GHz), an unexplored parameter space in the well-motivated dark matter window of Quantum ChromoDynamics (QCD) axions. The experimental design consists of a microwave resonant cavity haloscope in a high static magnetic field coupled to a highly sensitive detecting system based on Kinetic Inductance Detectors via optimized quasi-optics (horns and mirrors). The experiment is in preparation and will be installed in the dilution refrigerator of the Canfranc Underground Laboratory. Sensitivity forecasts for axion detection with CADEx, together with the potential of the experiment to search for dark photons, are presented.
|
|
|
Ferreira, M. N., & Papavassiliou, J. (2023). Gauge Sector Dynamics in QCD. Particles, 6(1), 312–363.
Abstract: The dynamics of the QCD gauge sector give rise to non-perturbative phenomena that are crucial for the internal consistency of the theory; most notably, they account for the generation of a gluon mass through the action of the Schwinger mechanism, the taming of the Landau pole, the ensuing stabilization of the gauge coupling, and the infrared suppression of the three-gluon vertex. In the present work, we review some key advances in the ongoing investigation of this sector within the framework of the continuum Schwinger function methods, supplemented by results obtained from lattice simulations.
|
|
|
Feijoo, A., Valcarce Cadenas, V., & Magas, V. K. (2023). The Xi(1620) and Xi(1690) molecular states from S =-2 meson-baryon interaction up to next-to-leading order. Phys. Lett. B, 841, 137927–6pp.
Abstract: We have studied the meson-baryon interaction in the neutral S = -2 sector using an extended Unitarized Chiral Perturbation Theory, which takes into account not only the leading Weinberg-Tomozawa term (as all the previous studies in S = -2 sector), but also the Born terms and next-to-leading order contribution. Based on the SU(3) symmetry of the chiral Lagrangian we took most of the model parameters from the BCN model [1], where these were fitted to a large amount of experimental data in the neutral S = -1 sector. We have shown that our approach is able to generate dynamically both Xi(1620) and Xi(1690) states in very reasonable agreement with the data, and can naturally explain the puzzle with the decay branching ratios of Xi(1690). Our results clearly illustrate the reliability of chiral models implementing unitarization in coupled channels and the importance of considering Born and NLO contributions for precise calculations.
|
|
|
Oliver-Canamas, L., Vijande, J., Candela-Juan, C., Gimeno-Olmos, J., Pujades-Claumarchirant, M. C., Rovira-Escutia, J. J., et al. (2023). A User-Friendly System for Mailed Dosimetric Audits of Ir-192 or Co-60 HDR Brachytherapy Sources. Cancers, 15(9), 2484–14pp.
Abstract: Nowadays, the options available to perform external dosimetric audits of the high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy treatment process are limited. In this work, we present a methodology that allows for performing dosimetric audits in this field. A phantom was designed and manufactured for this purpose. The criteria for its design, together with the in-house measurements for its characterization, are presented. The result is a user-friendly system that can be mailed to perform dosimetric audits in HDR brachytherapy on-site for systems using either Iridium-192 (Ir-192) or Cobalt-60 (Co-60) sources. Objectives: The main goal of this work is to design and characterize a user-friendly methodology to perform mailed dosimetric audits in high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy for systems using either Iridium-192 (Ir-192) or Cobalt-60 (Co-60) sources. Methods: A solid phantom was designed and manufactured with four catheters and a central slot to place one dosimeter. Irradiations with an Elekta MicroSelectron V2 for Ir-192, and with a BEBIG Multisource for Co-60 were performed for its characterization. For the dose measurements, nanoDots, a type of optically stimulated luminescent dosimeters (OSLDs), were characterized. Monte Carlo (MC) simulations were performed to evaluate the scatter conditions of the irradiation set-up and to study differences in the photon spectra of different Ir-192 sources (Microselectron V2, Flexisource, BEBIG Ir2.A85-2 and Varisource VS2000) reaching the dosimeter in the irradiation set-up. Results: MC simulations indicate that the surface material on which the phantom is supported during the irradiations does not affect the absorbed dose in the nanoDot. Generally, differences below 5% were found in the photon spectra reaching the detector when comparing the Microselectron V2, the Flexisource and the BEBIG models. However, differences up to 20% are observed between the V2 and the Varisource VS2000 models. The calibration coefficients and the uncertainty in the dose measurement were evaluated. Conclusions: The system described here is able to perform dosimetric audits in HDR brachytherapy for systems using either Ir-192 or Co-60 sources. No significant differences are observed between the photon spectra reaching the detector for the MicroSelectron V2, the Flexisource and the BEBIG Ir-192 sources. For the Varisource VS2000, a higher uncertainty is considered in the dose measurement to allow for the nanoDot response.
|
|
|
Borja-Lloret, M., Barrientos, L., Bernabeu, J., Lacasta, C., Muñoz, E., Ros, A., et al. (2023). Influence of the background in Compton camera images for proton therapy treatment monitoring. Phys. Med. Biol., 68(14), 144001–16pp.
Abstract: Objective. Background events are one of the most relevant contributions to image degradation in Compton camera imaging for hadron therapy treatment monitoring. A study of the background and its contribution to image degradation is important to define future strategies to reduce the background in the system. Approach. In this simulation study, the percentage of different kinds of events and their contribution to the reconstructed image in a two-layer Compton camera have been evaluated. To this end, GATE v8.2 simulations of a proton beam impinging on a PMMA phantom have been carried out, for different proton beam energies and at different beam intensities. Main results. For a simulated Compton camera made of Lanthanum (III) Bromide monolithic crystals, coincidences caused by neutrons arriving from the phantom are the most common type of background produced by secondary radiations in the Compton camera, causing between 13% and 33% of the detected coincidences, depending on the beam energy. Results also show that random coincidences are a significant cause of image degradation at high beam intensities, and their influence in the reconstructed images is studied for values of the time coincidence windows from 500 ps to 100 ns. Significance. Results indicate the timing capabilities required to retrieve the fall-off position with good precision. Still, the noise observed in the image when no randoms are considered make us consider further background rejection methods.
|
|
|
Real, D., & Calvo, D. (2023). Silicon Photomultipliers for Neutrino Telescopes. Universe, 9(7), 326–14pp.
Abstract: Neutrino astronomy has opened a new window to the extreme Universe, entering into a fruitful era built upon the success of neutrino telescopes, which have already given a new step forward in this novel and growing field by the first observation of steady point-like sources already achieved by IceCube. Neutrino telescopes equipped with Silicon PhotoMultipliers (SiPMs) will significantly increase in number, because of their excellent time resolution and the angular resolution, and will be in better condition to detect more steady sources as well as the unexpected. The use of SiPMs represents a challenge to the acquisition electronics because of the fast signals as well as the high levels of dark noise produced by SiPMs. The acquisition electronics need to include a noise rejection scheme by implementing a coincidence filter between channels. This work discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using SiPMs for the next generation of neutrino telescopes, focusing on the possible developments that could help for their adoption in the near future.
|
|