Abstract: Projective invariance is a symmetry of the Palatini version of General Relativity which is not present in the metric formulation. The fact that the Riemann tensor changes nontrivially under projective transformations implies that, unlike in the usual metric approach, in the Palatini formulation this tensor is subject to a gauge freedom, which allows some ambiguities even in its scalar contractions. In this sense, we show that for the Schwarzschild solution there exists a projective gauge in which the (affine) Kretschmann scalar, K (R beta μnu R alpha beta μnu)-R-alpha, can be set to vanish everywhere. This puts forward that the divergence of curvature scalars may, in some cases, be avoided by a gauge transformation of the connection.

Abstract: Non-unitarity of the neutrino mixing matrix is expected in many scenarios with physics beyond the Standard Model. Motivated by the search for deviations from unitary, we study two neutrino counting observables: the neutrino-antineutrino gamma process and the invisible Z boson decay into neutrinos. We report on new constraints for non-unitarity coming from the first of these observables. We study the potential constraints that future collider experiments will give from the invisible decay of the Z boson, that will be measured with improved precision.

Abstract: Evidence for electroweak production of two jets in association with a Z gamma pair in root s = 13 TeV proton-proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider is presented. The analysis uses data collected by the ATLAS detector in 2015 and 2016 that corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb(-1). Events that contain a Z boson candidate decaying leptonically into either e(+)e(-) or mu(+)mu(-), a photon, and two jets are selected. The electroweak component is measured with observed and expected significances of 4.1 standard deviations. The fiducial cross-section for electroweak production is measured to be sigma(Z gamma jj-Ew) = 7.8 +/- 2.0 fb, in good agreement with the Standard Model prediction.

Abstract: In a recent paper [I], the BESIII Collaboration reported the so-called first observation of pure W-annihi- lation decays D-s(+) -> a(0)(+) (980)pi(0) and D-s(+) -> a(0)(0)(980)pi(+). The measured absolute branching fractions are, however, puzzlingly larger than those of other measured pure W-annihilation decays by at least one order of magnitude. In addition, the relative phase between the two decay modes is found to be about 0 degrees. In this letter, we show that all these can be easily understood if the a(0)(980) is a dynamically generated state from (K) over barK and pi eta interactions in coupled channels. In such a scenario, the D-s(+) decay proceeds via internal W emission instead of W-annihilation, which has a larger decay rate than W-annihilation. The proposed decay mechanism and the molecular nature of the a(0)(980) also provide a natural explanation to the measured negative interference between the two decay modes.

Abstract: Neutrinos were assumed to be massless particles until the discovery of the neutrino oscillation process. This phenomenon indicates that the neutrinos have non-zero masses and the mass eigenstates (nu(1), nu(2), nu(3)) are mixtures of their flavour eigenstates (nu(e), nu(mu), nu(tau)). The oscillations between different flavour eigenstates are described by three mixing angles (theta(12), theta(23), theta(13)), two differences of the squared neutrino masses of the nu(2)/nu(1) and nu(3)/nu(1) pairs and a charge conjugation parity symmetry violating phase delta(CP). The Double Chooz experiment, located near the Chooz Electricite de France reactors, measures the oscillation parameter theta(13) using reactor neutrinos. Here, the Double Chooz collaboration reports the measurement of the mixing angle theta(13) with the new total neutron capture detection technique from the full data set, yielding sin(2)(2 theta(13)) = 0.105 +/- 0.014. This measurement exploits the multidetector configuration, the isoflux baseline and data recorded when the reactors were switched off. In addition to the neutrino mixing angle measurement, Double Chooz provides a precise measurement of the reactor neutrino flux, given by the mean cross-section per fission <sigma(f)& rang; = (5.71 +/- 0.06) x 10(-43) cm(2) per fission, and reports an empirical model of the distortion in the reactor neutrino spectrum. The Double Chooz collaboration reports the neutrino oscillation parameter theta(13) from a measurement of the disappearance of reactor anti-electron neutrinos with the total neutron capture technique.