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Carames, T. F., Vijande, J., & Valcarce, A. (2019). Exotic bc(q)over-bar(q)over-bar four-quark states. Phys. Rev. D, 99(1), 014006–9pp.
Abstract: We carry out a systematic study of exotic QQ'(q) over bar(q) over bar four-quark states containing distinguishable heavy flavors, b and c. Different generic constituent models are explored in an attempt to extract general conclusions. The results are robust, predicting the same sets of quantum numbers as the best candidates to lodge bound states independently of the model used, the isoscalar J(P) = 0(+) and J(P) = 1(+) states. The first state would be strong and electromagnetic-interaction stable, while the second would decay electromagnetically to (B) over barD gamma. Isovector states are found to be unbound, preventing the existence of charged partners. The interest on exotic heavy-light tetraquarks with nonidentical heavy flavors comes reinforced by the recent estimation of the production rate of the isoscalar bc (u) over bar(d) over bar J(P) = 1(+) state, 2 orders of magnitude larger than that of the bb (u) over bar(d) over bar analogous state.
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Garcilazo, H., Valcarce, A., & Vijande, J. (2020). Neutral baryonic systems with strangeness. Int. J. Mod. Phys. E, 29(1), 1930009–22pp.
Abstract: We review the status as regards to the existence of three- and four-body bound states made of neutrons and Lambda hyperons. For interesting cases, the coupling to neutral baryonic systems made of charged particles of different strangeness has been addressed. There are strong arguments showing that the Lambda nn system has no bound states. Lambda Lambda nn strong stable states are not favored by our current knowledge of the strangeness -1 and -2 baryon-baryon interactions. However, a possible Xi(-) t quasibound state decaying to Lambda Lambda nn might exist in nature. Similarly, there is a broad agreement about the nonexistence of Lambda Lambda n bound states. However, the coupling to Xi NN states opens the door to a resonance above the Lambda Lambda n threshold.
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Valdes-Cortez, C., Mansour, I., Rivard, M. J., Ballester, F., Mainegra-Hing, E., Thomson, R. M., et al. (2021). A study of Type B uncertainties associated with the photoelectric effect in low-energy Monte Carlo simulations. Phys. Med. Biol., 66(10), 105014–14pp.
Abstract: Purpose. To estimate Type B uncertainties in absorbed-dose calculations arising from the different implementations in current state-of-the-art Monte Carlo (MC) codes of low-energy photon cross-sections (<200 keV). Methods. MC simulations are carried out using three codes widely used in the low-energy domain: PENELOPE-2018, EGSnrc, and MCNP. Three dosimetry-relevant quantities are considered: mass energy-absorption coefficients for water, air, graphite, and their respective ratios; absorbed dose; and photon-fluence spectra. The absorbed dose and the photon-fluence spectra are scored in a spherical water phantom of 15 cm radius. Benchmark simulations using similar cross-sections have been performed. The differences observed between these quantities when different cross-sections are considered are taken to be a good estimator for the corresponding Type B uncertainties. Results. A conservative Type B uncertainty for the absorbed dose (k = 2) of 1.2%-1.7% (<50 keV), 0.6%-1.2% (50-100 keV), and 0.3% (100-200 keV) is estimated. The photon-fluence spectrum does not present clinically relevant differences that merit considering additional Type B uncertainties except for energies below 25 keV, where a Type B uncertainty of 0.5% is obtained. Below 30 keV, mass energy-absorption coefficients show Type B uncertainties (k = 2) of about 1.5% (water and air), and 2% (graphite), diminishing in all materials for larger energies and reaching values about 1% (40-50 keV) and 0.5% (50-75 keV). With respect to their ratios, the only significant Type B uncertainties are observed in the case of the water-to-graphite ratio for energies below 30 keV, being about 0.7% (k = 2). Conclusions. In contrast with the intermediate (about 500 keV) or high (about 1 MeV) energy domains, Type B uncertainties due to the different cross-sections implementation cannot be considered subdominant with respect to Type A uncertainties or even to other sources of Type B uncertainties (tally volume averaging, manufacturing tolerances, etc). Therefore, the values reported here should be accommodated within the uncertainty budget in low-energy photon dosimetry studies.
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Ma, Y. Z., Vijande, J., Ballester, F., Tedgren, A. C., Granero, D., Haworth, A., et al. (2017). A generic TG-186 shielded applicator for commissioning model-based dose calculation algorithms for high-dose-rate Ir-192 brachytherapy. Med. Phys., 44(11), 5961–5976.
Abstract: PurposeA joint working group was created by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO), and the Australasian Brachytherapy Group (ABG) with the charge, among others, to develop a set of well-defined test case plans and perform calculations and comparisons with model-based dose calculation algorithms (MBDCAs). Its main goal is to facilitate a smooth transition from the AAPM Task Group No. 43 (TG-43) dose calculation formalism, widely being used in clinical practice for brachytherapy, to the one proposed by Task Group No. 186 (TG-186) for MBDCAs. To do so, in this work a hypothetical, generic high-dose rate (HDR) Ir-192 shielded applicator has been designed and benchmarked. MethodsA generic HDR Ir-192 shielded applicator was designed based on three commercially available gynecological applicators as well as a virtual cubic water phantom that can be imported into any DICOM-RT compatible treatment planning system (TPS). The absorbed dose distribution around the applicator with the TG-186 Ir-192 source located at one dwell position at its center was computed using two commercial TPSs incorporating MBDCAs (Oncentra((R)) Brachy with Advanced Collapsed-cone Engine, ACE, and BrachyVision ACUROS) and state-of-the-art Monte Carlo (MC) codes, including ALGEBRA, BrachyDose, egs_brachy, Geant4, MCNP6, and Penelope2008. TPS-based volumetric dose distributions for the previously reported source centered in water and source displaced test cases, and the new source centered in applicator test case, were analyzed here using the MCNP6 dose distribution as a reference. Volumetric dose comparisons of TPS results against results for the other MC codes were also performed. Distributions of local and global dose difference ratios are reported. ResultsThe local dose differences among MC codes are comparable to the statistical uncertainties of the reference datasets for the source centered in water and source displaced test cases and for the clinically relevant part of the unshielded volume in the source centered in applicator case. Larger local differences appear in the shielded volume or at large distances. Considering clinically relevant regions, global dose differences are smaller than the local ones. The most disadvantageous case for the MBDCAs is the one including the shielded applicator. In this case, ACUROS agrees with MC within [-4.2%, +4.2%] for the majority of voxels (95%) while presenting dose differences within [-0.12%, +0.12%] of the dose at a clinically relevant reference point. For ACE, 95% of the total volume presents differences with respect to MC in the range [-1.7%, +0.4%] of the dose at the reference point. ConclusionsThe combination of the generic source and generic shielded applicator, together with the previously developed test cases and reference datasets (available in the Brachytherapy Source Registry), lay a solid foundation in supporting uniform commissioning procedures and direct comparisons among treatment planning systems for HDR Ir-192 brachytherapy.
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Carames, T. F., Fontoura, C. E., Krein, G., Vijande, J., & Valcarce, A. (2018). Charmed baryons in nuclear matter. Phys. Rev. D, 98(11), 114019–9pp.
Abstract: We study the temperature and baryon density dependence of the masses of the lightest charmed baryons Lambda(c), Sigma(c) and Sigma(c)*. We also look at the effects of the temperature and baryon density on the binding energies of the Lambda N-c and Lambda(c)Lambda(c) systems. Baryon masses and baryon-baryon interactions are evaluated within a chiral constituent quark model. Medium effects are incorporated in those parameters of the model related to the dynamical breaking of chiral symmetry, which are the masses of the constituent quarks, the sigma and pi meson masses, and quark-meson couplings. We find that while the in-medium Lambda(c) mass decreases monotonically with temperature, those of Sigma(c) and Sigma(c)* have a nonmonotonic dependence. These features can be understood in terms of a simple group theory analysis regarding the one-gluon exchange interaction in those hadrons. The in-medium Lambda N-c and Lambda(c)Lambda(c) interactions are governed by a delicate balance involving a stronger attraction due to the decrease of the sigma meson mass, suppression of coupled-channel effects and lower thresholds, leading to shallow bound states with binding energies of a few MeV. The Lambda(c) baryon could possibly be bound to a large nucleus, in qualitative agreement with results based on relativistic mean field models or QCD sum rules. Ongoing experiments at RHIC or LHCb or the planned ones at FAIR and J-PARC may take advantage of the present results.
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