n_TOF Collaboration(Barbagallo, M. et al), Domingo-Pardo, C., Tain, J. L., & Tarifeño-Saldivia, A. (2016). Be-7(n,alpha)He-4 Reaction and the Cosmological Lithium Problem: Measurement of the Cross Section in a Wide Energy Range at n_TOF at CERN. Phys. Rev. Lett., 117(15), 152701–7pp.
Abstract: The energy-dependent cross section of the (7)Bed(n,alpha)He-4 reaction, of interest for the so-called cosmological lithium problem in big bang nucleosynthesis, has been measured for the first time from 10 meV to 10 keV neutron energy. The challenges posed by the short half-life of Be-7 and by the low reaction cross section have been overcome at nTOF thanks to an unprecedented combination of the extremely high luminosity and good resolution of the neutron beam in the new experimental area (EAR2) of the nTOF facility at CERN, the availability of a sufficient amount of chemically pure Be-7, and a specifically designed experimental setup. Coincidences between the two alpha particles have been recorded in two Si-Be-7-Si arrays placed directly in the neutron beam. The present results are consistent, at thermal neutron energy, with the only previous measurement performed in the 1960s at a nuclear reactor. The energy dependence reported here clearly indicates the inadequacy of the cross section estimates currently used in BBN calculations. Although new measurements at higher neutron energy may still be needed, the n_TOF results hint at a minor role of this reaction in BBN, leaving the long-standing cosmological lithium problem unsolved.
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NEXT Collaboration(McDonald, A. D. et al), Alvarez, V., Benlloch-Rodriguez, J. M., Botas, A., Carcel, S., Carrion, J. V., et al. (2018). Demonstration of Single-Barium-Ion Sensitivity for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay Using Single-Molecule Fluorescence Imaging. Phys. Rev. Lett., 120(13), 132504–6pp.
Abstract: A new method to tag the barium daughter in the double-beta decay of Xe-136 is reported. Using the technique of single molecule fluorescent imaging (SMFI), individual barium dication (Ba++) resolution at a transparent scanning surface is demonstrated. A single-step photobleach confirms the single ion interpretation. Individual ions are localized with superresolution (similar to 2 nm), and detected with a statistical significance of 12.9 sigma over backgrounds. This lays the foundation for a new and potentially background-free neutrinoless double-beta decay technology, based on SMFI coupled to high pressure xenon gas time projection chambers.
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n_TOF Collaboration(Damone, L. et al), Domingo-Pardo, C., Tain, J. L., & Tarifeño-Saldivia, A. (2018). Be-7 (n,p)Li-7 Reaction and the Cosmological Lithium Problem: Measurement of the Cross Section in a Wide Energy Range at n_TOF at CERN. Phys. Rev. Lett., 121(4), 042701–7pp.
Abstract: We report on the measurement of the Be-7(n,p)Li-7 cross section from thermal to approximately 325 keV neutron energy, performed in the high-flux experimental area (EAR2) of the n_TOF facility at CERN. This reaction plays a key role in the lithium yield of the big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) for standard cosmology. The only two previous time-of-flight measurements performed on this reaction did not cover the energy window of interest for BBN, and they showed a large discrepancy between each other. The measurement was performed with a Si telescope and a high-purity sample produced by implantation of a Be-7 ion beam at the ISOLDE facility at CERN. While a significantly higher cross section is found at low energy, relative to current evaluations, in the region of BBN interest, the present results are consistent with the values inferred from the time-reversal Li-7(p,n)Be-7 reaction, thus yielding only a relatively minor improvement on the so-called cosmological lithium problem. The relevance of these results on the near-threshold neutron production in the p + Li-7 reaction is also discussed.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Garcia Martin, L. M., Henry, L., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., Remon Alepuz, C., et al. (2019). First Measurement of Charm Production in its Fixed-Target Configuration at the LHC. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(13), 132002–12pp.
Abstract: The first measurement of heavy-flavor production by the LHCb experiment in its fixed-target mode is presented. The production of J/psi and D-0 mesons is studied with beams of protons of different energies colliding with gaseous targets of helium and argon with nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energies of root s(NN) = 86.6 and 110.4 GeV, respectively. The J/psi and D-0 production cross sections in pHe collisions in the rapidity range [2, 4.6] are found to be sigma(J/psi) = 652 +/- 33(stat) +/- 42(syst) nb/nucleon and sigma(D0) = 80.8 +/- 2.4(syst) +/- 6.3(syst) μb/nucleon, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. No evidence for a substantial intrinsic charm content of the nucleon is observed in the large Bjorken-x region.
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ATLAS Collaboration(Aaboud, M. et al), Alvarez Piqueras, D., Aparisi Pozo, J. A., Bailey, A. J., Barranco Navarro, L., Cabrera Urban, S., et al. (2019). Search for the Production of a Long-Lived Neutral Particle Decaying within the ATLAS Hadronic Calorimeter in Association with a Z Boson from pp Collisions at root s=13 TeV. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(15), 151801–19pp.
Abstract: This Letter presents a search for the production of a long-lived neutral particle (Z(d)) decaying within the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter, in association with a standard model (SM) Z boson produced via an intermediate scalar boson, where Z -> l(+) l(-) (l = e, mu). The data used were collected by the ATLAS detector during 2015 and 2016 pp collisions with a center-of-mass energy of root s = 13 TeV at the Large Hadron Collider and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 +/- 0.8 fb(-1). No significant excess of events is observed above the expected background. Limits on the production cross section of the scalar boson times its decay branching fraction into the long-lived neutral particle are derived as a function of the mass of the intermediate scalar boson, the mass of the long-lived neutral particle, and its c tau from a few centimeters to one hundred meters. In the case that the intermediate scalar boson is the SM Higgs boson, its decay branching fraction to a long-lived neutral particle with a c tau approximately between 0.1 and 7 m is excluded with a 95% confidence level up to 10% for m(zd) between 5 and 15 GeV.
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Lazarides, G., Reig, M., Shafi, Q., Srivastava, R., & Valle, J. W. F. (2019). Spontaneous Breaking of Lepton Number and the Cosmological Domain Wall Problem. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(15), 151301–5pp.
Abstract: We show that if global lepton number symmetry is spontaneously broken in a postinflation epoch, then it can lead to the formation of cosmological domain walls. This happens in the well-known “Majoron paradigm” for neutrino mass generation. We propose some realistic examples that allow spontaneous lepton number breaking to be safe from such domain walls.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Garcia Martin, L. M., Henry, L., Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., et al. (2019). Model-Independent Observation of Exotic Contributions to B degrees -> J/psi K+pi(-) Decays. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(15), 152002–10pp.
Abstract: An angular analysis of B degrees -> J/psi K+pi(-) decays is performed, using proton-proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3 fb(-1) collected with the LHCb detector. The m(K+pi(-) ) spectrum is divided into fine bins. In each m(K+pi(-)) bin, the hypothesis that the three-dimensional angular distribution can be described by structures induced only by K* resonances is examined, making minimal assumptions about the K+pi(-) system. The data reject the K*-only hypothesis with a large significance, implying the observation of exotic contributions in a model-independent fashion. Inspection of the m(J/psi pi(-)) vs m(K+pi(-)) plane suggests structures near m(J/psi pi(-)) = 4200 and 4600 MeV.
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Cepedello, R., Deppisch, F. F., Gonzalez, L., Hati, C., & Hirsch, M. (2019). Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay with Nonstandard Majoron Emission. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(18), 181801–6pp.
Abstract: We present a novel mode of neutrinoless double-beta decay with emission of a light Majoron-like scalar particle phi. We assume it couples via an effective seven-dimensional operator with a (V + A) lepton current and (V +/- A) quark currents leading to a long-range contribution that is unsuppressed by the light neutrino mass. We calculate the total double-beta decay rate and determine the fully differential shape for this mode. We find that future double-beta decay searches are sensitive to scales of the order Lambda(NP) approximate to 1 TeV for the effective operator and a light scalar m(phi) < 0.2 MeV, based on ordinary double-beta decay Majoron searches. The angular and energy distributions can deviate considerably from that of two-neutrino double-beta decay, which is the main background. We point out possible ultraviolet completions where such an effective operator can emerge.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Garcia Martin, L. M., Henry, L., Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., et al. (2019). Search for Lepton-Universality Violation in B+ -> K(+)l(+)l(-) Decays. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(19), 191801–13pp.
Abstract: A measurement of the ratio of branching fractions of the decays B+ -> K+mu(+)mu(-) and B+ -> K(+)e(+)e(-) is presented. The proton-proton collision data used correspond to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb(-1) recorded with the LHCb experiment at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8, and 13 TeV. For the dilepton mass-squared range 1.1 < q(2) < 6.0 GeV2/c(4) the ratio of branching fractions is measured to be R-K = 0.846(-0.054-0.014)(+0.060+0.016), where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic. This is the most precise measurement of R-K to date and is compatible with the standard model at the level of 2.5 standard deviations.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Garcia Martin, L. M., Henry, L., Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., et al. (2019). Observation of B-(s)(0) -> J/psi p(p)over-bar Decays and Precision Measurements of the B-(s)(0) Masses. Phys. Rev. Lett., 122(19), 191804–10pp.
Abstract: The first observation of the decays B-(s)(0) -> J/psi p (p) over bar is reported, using proton-proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.2 fb(-1), collected with the LHCb detector. These decays are suppressed due to limited available phase space, as well as due to Okubo-Zweig-Iizuka or Cabibbo suppression. The measured branching fractions are beta(B-(s)(0) -> J/psi p (p) over bar). [4.51 +/- 0.40(stat)+/- 0.44(syst)] x 10(-7), BB(s)0 -> J/psi p (p) over bar) = 3.58 +/- 0.19(stat) 0.39(syst)] x 10(-6). For the B-s(0) meson, the result is much higher than the expected value of O(10(-9)). The small available phase space in these decays also allows for the most precise single measurement of both the B-0 mass as 5279.74 +/- 0.30(stat) 0.10(syst) MeV and the B-s(0) mass as 5366.85 +/- 0.19(stat) +/- 0.13(syst) MeV.
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