Stoppa, F., Vreeswijk, P., Bloemen, S., Bhattacharyya, S., Caron, S., Johannesson, G., et al. (2022). AutoSourceID-Light Fast optical source localization via U-Net and Laplacian of Gaussian. Astron. Astrophys., 662, A109–8pp.
Abstract: Aims. With the ever-increasing survey speed of optical wide-field telescopes and the importance of discovering transients when they are still young, rapid and reliable source localization is paramount. We present AutoSourceID-Light (ASID-L), an innovative framework that uses computer vision techniques that can naturally deal with large amounts of data and rapidly localize sources in optical images. Methods. We show that the ASID-L algorithm based on U-shaped networks and enhanced with a Laplacian of Gaussian filter provides outstanding performance in the localization of sources. A U-Net network discerns the sources in the images from many different artifacts and passes the result to a Laplacian of Gaussian filter that then estimates the exact location. Results. Using ASID-L on the optical images of the MeerLICHT telescope demonstrates the great speed and localization power of the method. We compare the results with SExtractor and show that our method outperforms this more widely used method. ASID-L rapidly detects more sources not only in low- and mid-density fields, but particularly in areas with more than 150 sources per square arcminute. The training set and code used in this paper are publicly available.
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Mandal, S., Miranda, O. G., Sanchez Garcia, G., Valle, J. W. F., & Xu, X. J. (2022). High-energy colliders as a probe of neutrino properties. Phys. Lett. B, 829, 137110–5pp.
Abstract: The mediators of neutrino mass generation can provide a probe of neutrino properties at the next round of high-energy hadron (FCC-hh) and lepton colliders (FCC-ee/ILC/CEPC/CLIC). We show how the decays of the Higgs triplet scalars mediating the simplest seesaw mechanism can shed light on the neutrino mass scale and mass-ordering, as well as the atmospheric octant. Four-lepton signatures at the high-energy frontier may provide the discovery-site for charged lepton flavor non-conservation in nature, rather than low-energy intensity frontier experiments.
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SCiMMA and SNEWS Collaborations(Baxter, A. L. et al), & Colomer, M. (2022). Collaborative experience between scientific software projects using Agile Scrum development. Softw.-Pract. Exp., 52, 2077–2096.
Abstract: Developing sustainable software for the scientific community requires expertise in software engineering and domain science. This can be challenging due to the unique needs of scientific software, the insufficient resources for software engineering practices in the scientific community, and the complexity of developing for evolving scientific contexts. While open-source software can partially address these concerns, it can introduce complicating dependencies and delay development. These issues can be reduced if scientists and software developers collaborate. We present a case study wherein scientists from the SuperNova Early Warning System collaborated with software developers from the Scalable Cyberinfrastructure for Multi-Messenger Astrophysics project. The collaboration addressed the difficulties of open-source software development, but presented additional risks to each team. For the scientists, there was a concern of relying on external systems and lacking control in the development process. For the developers, there was a risk in supporting a user-group while maintaining core development. These issues were mitigated by creating a second Agile Scrum framework in parallel with the developers' ongoing Agile Scrum process. This Agile collaboration promoted communication, ensured that the scientists had an active role in development, and allowed the developers to evaluate and implement the scientists' software requirements. The collaboration provided benefits for each group: the scientists actuated their development by using an existing platform, and the developers utilized the scientists' use-case to improve their systems. This case study suggests that scientists and software developers can avoid scientific computing issues by collaborating and that Agile Scrum methods can address emergent concerns.
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Addazi, A. et al, Martinez-Mirave, P., Mitsou, V. A., Palomares-Ruiz, S., Tortola, M., & Zornoza, J. D. (2022). Quantum gravity phenomenology at the dawn of the multi-messenger era-A review. Prog. Part. Nucl. Phys., 125, 103948–119pp.
Abstract: The exploration of the universe has recently entered a new era thanks to the multi-messenger paradigm, characterized by a continuous increase in the quantity and quality of experimental data that is obtained by the detection of the various cosmic messengers (photons, neutrinos, cosmic rays and gravitational waves) from numerous origins. They give us information about their sources in the universe and the properties of the intergalactic medium. Moreover, multi-messenger astronomy opens up the possibility to search for phenomenological signatures of quantum gravity. On the one hand, the most energetic events allow us to test our physical theories at energy regimes which are not directly accessible in accelerators; on the other hand, tiny effects in the propagation of very high energy particles could be amplified by cosmological distances. After decades of merely theoretical investigations, the possibility of obtaining phenomenological indications of Planck-scale effects is a revolutionary step in the quest for a quantum theory of gravity, but it requires cooperation between different communities of physicists (both theoretical and experimental). This review, prepared within the COST Action CA18108 “Quantum gravity phenomenology in the multi-messenger approach”, is aimed at promoting this cooperation by giving a state-of-the art account of the interdisciplinary expertise that is needed in the effective search of quantum gravity footprints in the production, propagation and detection of cosmic messengers.
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Vitez-Sveiczer, A. et al, Algora, A., Morales, A. I., Rubio, B., Agramunt, J., Guadilla, V., et al. (2022). The beta-decay of Kr-70 into Br-70: Restoration of the pseudo-SU(4) symmetry. Phys. Lett. B, 830, 137123–8pp.
Abstract: The beta-decay of the even-even nucleus Kr-70 with Z=N+2, has been investigated at the Radioactive Ion Beam Factory (RIBF) of the RIKEN Nishina Center using the BigRIPS fragment separator, the ZeroDegree Spectrometer, the WAS3ABI implantation station and the EURICA HPGe cluster array. Fifteen gamma-rays associated with the beta-decay of( 70)Kr into Br-70 have been identified for the first time, defining ten populated states below E-exc=3300 keV. The half-life of Kr-70 was derived with increased precision and found to be t(1/2)=45.19 +/- 0.14 ms. The beta-delayed proton emission probability has also been determined as epsilon(p)=0.545(23)%. An increase in the beta-strength to the yrast 1(+) state in comparison with the heaviest Z=N+2 system studied so far (Ge-62 decay) is observed that may indicate increased np correlations in the T=0 channel. The beta-decay strength deduced from the results is interpreted in terms of the proton-neutron quasiparticle random-phase approximation (pnQRPA) and also with a schematic model that includes isoscalar and isovector pairing in addition to quadrupole deformation. The application of this last model indicates an approximate realization of pseudo-SU(4) symmetry in this system.
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