Abstract: A search for high-energy neutrino emission correlated with gamma-ray bursts outside the electromagnetic prompt-emission time window is presented. Using a stacking approach of the time delays between reported gammaray burst alerts and spatially coincident muon-neutrino signatures, data from the Antares neutrino telescope recorded between 2007 and 2012 are analysed. One year of public data from the IceCube detector between 2008 and 2009 have been also investigated. The respective timing profiles are scanned for statistically significant accumulations within 40 days of the Gamma Ray Burst, as expected from Lorentz Invariance Violation effects and some astrophysical models. No significant excess over the expected accidental coincidence rate could be found in either of the two data sets. The average strength of the neutrino signal is found to be fainter than one detectable neutrino signal per hundred gamma-ray bursts in the Antares data at 90% confidence level.

Abstract: A measurement of the time-integrated CP asymmetry in the Cabibbo-suppressed decay D-0 -> K- K+ is performed using pp collision data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3 fb(-1), collected with the LHCb detector at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV. The flavour of the charm meson at production is determined from the charge of the pion in D*(+) -> D-0 pi(+) and D*(-) -> (D) over bar (0)pi(-) decays. The time-integrated CP asymmetry A(CP)(K- K+) is obtained assuming negligible CP violation in charm mixing and in Cabibbo-favoured D-0 -> K- pi(+), D+ -> K- pi(+) pi(+) and D+ -> (K) over bar (0)pi(+) decays used as calibration channels. It is found to be A(CP)(K- K+) = (0.14 +/- 0.15 (stat) +/- 0.10 (syst))%. A combination of this result with previous LHCb measurements yields A(CP)(K- K+) = (0.04 +/- 0.12 (stat) +/- 0.10 (syst))%, A(CP)(pi(-) pi(+)) = (0.07 +/- 0.14 (stat) +/- 0.11 (syst))%. These are the most precise measurements from a single experiment. The result for ACP(K- K+) is the most precise determination of a time-integrated CPasymmetry in the charm sector to date, and neither measurement shows evidence of CP asymmetry.

Abstract: The so far only known charmed non-strange scalar meson is dubbed as D-0(*)(2400) in the Review of Particle Physics. We show, within the framework of unitarized chiral perturbation theory, that there are in fact two (I = 1/2, J(P) = 0(+)) poles in the region of the D-0(*)( 2400) in the coupled-channel D pi, D eta and D-s (K) over bar scattering amplitudes. With all the parameters previously fixed, we predict the energy levels for the coupled-channel system in a finite volume, and find that they agree remarkably well with recent lattice QCD calculations. This successful description of the lattice data is regarded as a strong evidence for the two-pole structure of the D-0(*)( 2400). With the physical quark masses, the poles are located at (2105(-8)(+6) – i102(-12)(+10)) MeV and (2451(-26)(+36) – i134(-8)(+7)) MeV, with the largest couplings to the D pi and D-s (K) over bar channels, respectively. Since the higher pole is close to the D-s (K) over bar threshold, we expect it to show up as a threshold enhancement in the D-s (K) over bar invariant mass distribution. This could be checked by high-statistic data in future experiments. We also show that the lower pole belongs to the same SU(3) multiplet as the D-s0(*)(2317) state. Predictions for partners in the bottom sector are also given.

Abstract: The aim of this work is to provide a precise and accurate measurement of the U-238(n,gamma) reaction cross section in the energy region from 1 eV to 700 keV. This reaction is of fundamental importance for the design calculations of nuclear reactors, governing the behavior of the reactor core. In particular, fast reactors, which are experiencing a growing interest for their ability to burn radioactive waste, operate in the high energy region of the neutron spectrum. In this energy region most recent evaluations disagree due to inconsistencies in the existing measurements of up to 15%. In addition, the assessment of nuclear data uncertainty performed for innovative reactor systems shows that the uncertainty in the radiative capture cross section of U-238 should be further reduced to 1-3% in the energy region from 20 eV to 25 keV. To this purpose, addressed by the Nuclear Energy Agency as a priority nuclear data need, complementary experiments, one at the GELINA and two at the nTOF facility, were proposed and carried out within the 7th Framework Project ANDES of the European Commission. The results of one of these U-238(n, gamma) measurements performed at the nTOF CERN facility are presented in this work. The gamma-ray cascade following the radiative neutron capture has been detected exploiting a setup of two C6D6 liquid scintillators. Resonance parameters obtained from this work are on average in excellent agreement with the ones reported in evaluated libraries. In the unresolved resonance region, this work yields a cross section in agreement with evaluated libraries up to 80 keV, while for higher energies our results are significantly higher.

Abstract: We study the development of caustics in shift-symmetric scalar field theories by focusing on simple waves with an SO(p)-symmetry in an arbitrary number of space dimensions. We show that the pure Galileon, the DBI-Galileon, and the extreme-relativistic Galileon naturally emerge as the unique set of caustic-free theories, highlighting a link between the caustic-free condition for simple SO(p)-waves and the existence of either a global Galilean symmetry or a global (extreme-) relativistic Galilean symmetry.