NEXT Collaboration(Alvarez, V. et al), Ball, M., Carcel, S., Cervera-Villanueva, A., Diaz, J., Ferrario, P., et al. (2013). Design and characterization of the SiPM tracking system of NEXT-DEMO, a demonstrator prototype of the NEXT-100 experiment. J. Instrum., 8, T05002–18pp.
Abstract: NEXT-100 experiment aims at searching the neutrinoless double-beta decay of the Xe-136 isotope using a TPC filled with a 100 kg of high-pressure gaseous xenon, with 90% isotopic enrichment. The experiment will take place at the Laboratorio Subterraneo de Canfranc (LSC), Spain. NEXT-100 uses electroluminescence (EL) technology for energy measurement with a resolution better than 1% FWHM. The gaseous xenon in the TPC additionally allows the tracks of the two beta particles to be recorded, which are expected to have a length of up to 30 cm at 10 bar pressure. The ability to record the topological signature of the beta beta 0 nu events provides a powerful background rejection factor for the beta beta experiment. In this paper, we present a novel 3D imaging concept using SiPMs coated with tetraphenyl butadiene (TPB) for the EL read out and its first implementation in NEXT-DEMO, a large-scale prototype of the NEXT-100 experiment. The design and the first characterization measurements of the NEXT-DEMO SiPM tracking system are presented. The SiPM response uniformity over the tracking plane drawn from its gain map is shown to be better than 4%. An automated active control system for the stabilization of the SiPMs gain was developed, based on the voltage supply compensation of the gain drifts. The gain is shown to be stabilized within 0.2% relative variation around its nominal value, provided by Hamamatsu, in a temperature range of 10 degrees C. The noise level from the electronics and the SiPM dark noise is shown to lay typically below the level of 10 photoelectrons (pe) in the ADC. Hence, a detection threshold at 10 pe is set for the acquisition of the tracking signals. The ADC full dynamic range (4096 channels) is shown to be adequate for signal levels of up to 200 pe/mu s, which enables recording most of the tracking signals.
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Denis Bacelar, A. M. et al, Algora, A., Molina, F., & Rubio, B. (2013). The population of metastable states as a probe of relativistic-energy fragmentation reactions. Phys. Lett. B, 723(4-5), 302–306.
Abstract: Isomeric ratios have been measured for high-spin states in Po-198,200,206,208(84), At-208,209,210,211(85), Rn-210,211,212,213,214(86), Fr-208,211,212,213,214(87), Ra-210,211,212,214,215(88), and Ac-215(89) following the projectile fragmentation of a 1 AGeV U-238 beam by a Be-9 target at GSI Helmholtzzentrum fur Schwerionenforschung. The fragments were separated in the fragment separator (FRS) and identified by means of energy loss and time-of-flight techniques. They were brought to rest at the centre of the RISING gamma-ray detector array and intensities of gamma rays emitted in the decay of isomeric states with half-lives between 100 ns and 40 μs and spin values up to 55/2 (h) over bar were used to obtain the corresponding isomeric ratios. The data are compared to theoretical isomeric ratios calculated in the framework of the abrasion-ablation model. Large experimental enhancements are obtained for high-spin isomers in comparison to expected values.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Oyanguren, A., & Ruiz Valls, P. (2013). Measurement of the branching fractions of the decays B-s(0) -> (D)over-bar(0)K(-) pi(+) and B-0 -> (D)over-bar(0)K(+) pi(-). Phys. Rev. D, 87(11), 112009–10pp.
Abstract: The first observation of the decay B-s(0) -> (D) over bar K-0(-) pi(+) is reported. The analysis is based on a data sample, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb(-1) of pp collisions, collected with the LHCb detector. The branching fraction relative to that of the topologically similar decay B-0 -> (D) over bar (0)pi(+)pi(-) is measured to be B(B-0 ->(D) over bar K-0(+)pi(-))/B(B-0 ->(D) over bar (0)pi(+)pi(-)) 1.18 +/- 0.05(stat) +/- 0.12(syst). In addition, the relative branching fraction of the decay B-0 -> (D) over bar K-0(+)pi(-) is measured to be B(B-0 ->(D) over bar K-0(+)pi(-))/B(B-0 ->(D) over bar (0)pi(+)pi(-)) = 0.106 +/-(stat) +/- 0.008(syst).
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Franca, U., Lineros, R. A., Palacio, J., & Pastor, S. (2013). Probing interactions within the dark matter sector via extra radiation contributions. Phys. Rev. D, 87(12), 123521–6pp.
Abstract: The nature of dark matter is one of the most thrilling riddles for both cosmology and particle physics nowadays. While in the typical models the dark sector is composed only by weakly interacting massive particles, an arguably more natural scenario would include a whole set of gauge interactions which are invisible for the standard model but that are in contact with the dark matter. We present a method to constrain the number of massless gauge bosons and other relativistic particles that might be present in the dark sector using current and future cosmic microwave background data, and provide upper bounds on the size of the dark sector. We use the fact that the dark matter abundance depends on the strength of the interactions with both sectors, which allows one to relate the freeze-out temperature of the dark matter with the temperature of this cosmic background of dark gauge bosons. This relation can then be used to calculate how sizable is the impact of the relativistic dark sector in the number of degrees of freedom of the early Universe, providing an interesting and testable connection between cosmological data and direct/indirect detection experiments. The recent Planck data, in combination with other cosmic microwave background experiments and baryonic acoustic oscillations data, constrains the number of relativistic dark gauge bosons, when the freeze-out temperature of the dark matter is larger than the top mass, to be N less than or similar to 14 for the simplest scenarios, while those limits are slightly relaxed for the combination with the Hubble constant measurements to N less than or similar to 20. Future releases of Planck data are expected to reduce the uncertainty by approximately a factor of 3, which will reduce significantly the parameter space of allowed models.
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Barenboim, G., & Oteo, J. A. (2013). One pendulum to run them all. Eur. J. Phys., 34(4), 1049–1065.
Abstract: The analytical solution for the three-dimensional linear pendulum in a rotating frame of reference is obtained, including Coriolis and centrifugal accelerations, and expressed in terms of initial conditions. This result offers the possibility of treating Foucault and Bravais pendula as trajectories of the same system of equations, each of them with particular initial conditions. We compare them with the common two-dimensional approximations in textbooks. A previously unnoticed pattern in the three-dimensional Foucault pendulum attractor is presented.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Oyanguren, A., & Ruiz Valls, P. (2013). Measurement of CP violation and the B-s(0) meson decay width difference with B-s(0) -> J/psi K+K- and B-s(0) -> J/psi pi(+) pi(-)decays. Phys. Rev. D, 87(11), 112010–21pp.
Abstract: The time-dependent CP asymmetry in B-s(0) -> J/psi K+ K- decays is measured using pp collision data at root s = 7 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1: 0 fb(-1), collected with the LHCb detector. The decay-time distribution is characterized by the decay widths Gamma(L) and Gamma(H) of the light and heavy mass eigenstates of the B-s(0) – (B) over barB(s)(0) system and by a CP-violating phase s. In a sample of 27 617 B-s(0) -> J/psi K+ K- decays, where the dominant contribution comes from B-s(0) -> J/psi K+ K- decays, these parameters are measured to be phi(s) = 0. 07 +/- 0.09(stat) +/- 0. 01(syst) rad, Gamma(s) equivalent to (Gamma(L) + Gamma(L))/2 = 0.663 +/- 0.005(stat) +/- 0.006(syst) ps(-1), and 0.006(syst) ps(-1), and Delta Gamma(s) equivalent to Gamma(L) – Gamma(L) = 0.100 +/- 0.016(stat) +/- 0.003(syst) ps(-1), corresponding to the single most precise determination of phi(s), Delta Gamma(s), and Gamma(s.). The result of performing a combined analysis with B-s(0) -> J/psi pi(+) pi(-) decays gives phi(s) = 0.01 +/- 0.07(stat) +/- 0.01(syst)rad, Gamma(s) = 0.661 +/- 0.004(stat) +/- 0.006(syst) ps(-1), and Delta Gamma(s) = 0.106 +/- 0.011(stat) +/- 0.007(syst) ps(-1). All measurements are in agreement with the Standard Model predictions.
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Hernandez, E., Nieves, J., & Vicente Vacas, M. J. (2013). Single pion production in neutrino-nucleus scattering. Phys. Rev. D, 87(11), 113009–11pp.
Abstract: We study 1 pi production in both charged and neutral current neutrino-nucleus scattering for neutrino energies below 2 GeV. We use a theoretical model for one pion production at the nucleon level that we correct for medium effects. The results are incorporated into a cascade program that apart from production also includes the pion final state interaction inside the nucleus. Besides, in some specific channels coherent pi production is also possible and we evaluate its contribution as well. Our results for total and differential cross sections are compared with recent data from the MiniBooNE Collaboration. The model provides an overall acceptable description of the data, better for neutral-current than for charged-current channels, although the theory is systematically below the data. Differential cross sections, folded with the full neutrino flux, show that most of the missing pions lie in the forward direction and at high energies.
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DEPFET collaboration(Alonso, O. et al), Boronat, M., Esperante-Pereira, D., Fuster, J., Garcia, I. G., Lacasta, C., et al. (2013). DEPFET Active Pixel Detectors for a Future Linear e(+)e(-) Collider. IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 60(2), 1457–1465.
Abstract: The DEPFET collaboration develops highly granular, ultra-transparent active pixel detectors for high-performance vertex reconstruction at future collider experiments. The characterization of detector prototypes has proven that the key principle, the integration of a first amplification stage in a detector-grade sensor material, can provide a comfortable signal to noise ratio of over 40 for a sensor thickness of 50-75 μm. ASICs have been designed and produced to operate a DEPFET pixel detector with the required read-out speed. A complete detector concept is being developed, including solutions for mechanical support, cooling, and services. In this paper, the status of the DEPFET R & D project is reviewed in the light of the requirements of the vertex detector at a future linear e(+)e(-) collider.
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Volpe, C., Vaananen, D., & Espinoza, C. (2013). Extended evolution equations for neutrino propagation in astrophysical and cosmological environments. Phys. Rev. D, 87(11), 113010–17pp.
Abstract: We derive the evolution equations for a system of neutrinos interacting among themselves and with a matter background, based upon the Bogoliubov-Born-Green-Kirkwood-Yvon hierarchy. This theoretical framework gives an (unclosed) set of first-order coupled integro-differential equations governing the evolution of the reduced density matrices. By employing the hierarchy, we first rederive the mean-field evolution equations for the neutrino one-body density matrix associated with a system of neutrinos and antineutrinos interacting with matter and with an anisotropic neutrino background. Then, we derive extended evolution equations to determine neutrino flavor conversion beyond the commonly used mean-field approximation. To this aim we include neutrino-antineutrino pairing correlations to the two-body density matrix. The inclusion of these new contributions leads to an extended evolution equation for the normal neutrino density and to an equation for the abnormal one involving the pairing mean field. We discuss the possible impact of neutrino-antineutrino correlations on neutrino flavor conversion in the astrophysical and cosmological environments, and possibly upon the supernova dynamics. Our results can be easily generalized to an arbitrary number of neutrino families.
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Aguilar, A. C., Ibañez, D., & Papavassiliou, J. (2013). Ghost propagator and ghost-gluon vertex from Schwinger-Dyson equations. Phys. Rev. D, 87(11), 114020–14pp.
Abstract: We study an approximate version of the Schwinger-Dyson equation that controls the nonperturbative behavior of the ghost-gluon vertex in the Landau gauge. In particular, we focus on the form factor that enters in the dynamical equation for the ghost dressing function, in the same gauge, and derive its integral equation, in the “one-loop dressed” approximation. We consider two special kinematic configurations, which simplify the momentum dependence of the unknown quantity; in particular, we study the soft gluon case and the well-known Taylor limit. When coupled with the Schwinger-Dyson equation of the ghost dressing function, the contribution of this form factor provides considerable support to the relevant integral kernel. As a consequence, the solution of this coupled system of integral equations furnishes a ghost dressing function that reproduces the standard lattice results rather accurately, without the need to artificially increase the value of the gauge coupling.
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