Esser, F., Madigan, M., Sanz, V., & Ubiali, M. (2023). On the coupling of axion-like particles to the top quark. J. High Energy Phys., 09(9), 063–39pp.
Abstract: In this paper we explore the coupling of a light axion-like particle (ALP) to top quarks. We use high-energy LHC probes, and examine both the direct probe to this coupling in associated production of a top-pair with an ALP, and the indirect probe through loop-induced gluon fusion to an ALP leading to top pairs. Using the latest LHC Run II data, we provide the best limit on this coupling. We also compare these limits with those obtained from loop-induced couplings in diboson final states, finding that the +MET channel is the best current handle on this coupling.
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Beenakker, W., Caron, S., Kip, J., Ruiz de Austri, R., & Zhang, Z. (2023). New energy spectra in neutrino and photon detectors to reveal hidden dark matter signals. J. High Energy Phys., 11(11), 028–13pp.
Abstract: Neutral particles capable of travelling cosmic distances from a source to detectors on Earth are limited to photons and neutrinos. Examination of the Dark Matter annihilation/decay spectra for these particles reveals the presence of continuum spectra (e.g. due to fragmentation and W or Z decay) and peaks (due to direct annihilations/decays). However, when one explores extensions of the Standard Model (BSM), unexplored spectra emerge that differ significantly from those of the Standard Model (SM) for both neutrinos and photons. In this paper, we argue for the inclusion of important spectra that include peaks as well as previously largely unexplored entities such as boxes and combinations of box, peak and continuum decay spectra.
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Contreras, T., Martins, A., Stanford, C., Escobar, C. O., Guenette, R., Stancari, M., et al. (2023). A method to characterize metalenses for light collection applications. J. Instrum., 18(9), T09004–11pp.
Abstract: Metalenses and metasurfaces are promising emerging technologies that could improve light collection in light collection detectors, concentrating light on small area photodetectors such as silicon photomultipliers. Here we present a detailed method to characterize metalenses to assess their efficiency at concentrating monochromatic light coming from a wide range of incidence angles, not taking into account their imaging quality.
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Albaladejo, M., Nieves, J., & Ruiz Arriola, E. (2023). Femtoscopic signatures of the lightest S-wave scalar open-charm mesons. Phys. Rev. D, 108, 014020–7pp.
Abstract: We predict femtoscopy correlation functions for S-wave D(s)ϕ pairs of lightest pseudoscalar open-charm mesons and Goldstone bosons from next-to-leading-order unitarized heavy-meson chiral perturbation theory amplitudes. The effect of the two-state structure around 2300 MeV can be clearly seen in the (S,I)=(0,1/2) Dπ, Dη, and Ds¯K correlation functions, while in the scalar-strange (1,0) sector, the D∗s0(2317)± state lying below the DK threshold produces a depletion of the correlation function near threshold. These exotic states owe their existence to the nonperturbative dynamics of Goldstone-boson scattering off D(s). The predicted correlation functions could be experimentally measured and will shed light into the hadron spectrum, confirming that it should be viewed as more than a collection of quark model states.
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Pich, A., Solomonidi, E., & Vale Silva, L. (2023). Final-state interactions in the CP asymmetries of charm-meson two-body decays. Phys. Rev. D, 108, 036026–25pp.
Abstract: Urgent theoretical progress is needed in order to provide an estimate in the Standard Model of the recent measurement by LHCb of direct CP violation in charm-meson two-body decays. Rescattering effects must be taken into account for a meaningful theoretical description of the amplitudes involved in such category of observables, as signaled by the presence of large strong phases. We discuss the computation of the latter effects based on a two-channel coupled dispersion relation, which exploits isospin-zero phase shifts and inelasticity parametrizations of data coming from the rescattering processes ππ→ππ, πK→πK, and ππ→K¯K. The determination of the subtraction constants of the dispersive integrals relies on the leading contributions to the transition amplitudes from the 1/NC counting, where NC is the number of QCD colors. Furthermore, we use the measured values of the branching ratios to help in selecting the nonperturbative inputs in the isospin limit, from which we predict values for the CP asymmetries. We find that the predicted level of CP violation is much below the experimental value.
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Sanchis-Gual, N., & del Rio, A. (2023). Precessing binary black holes as engines of electromagnetic helicity. Phys. Rev. D, 108, 044052–11pp.
Abstract: We show that binary black hole mergers with precessing evolution can potentially excite photons from the quantum vacuum in such a way that total helicity is not preserved in the process. Helicity violation is allowed by quantum fluctuations that spoil the electric-magnetic duality symmetry of the classical Maxwell theory without charges. We show here that precessing binary black hole systems in astrophysics generate a flux of circularly polarized gravitational waves which, in turn, provides the required helical background that triggers this quantum effect. Solving the fully nonlinear Einstein’s equations with numerical relativity we explore the parameter space of binary systems and extract the detailed dependence of the quantum effect with the spins of the two black holes. We also introduce a set of diagrammatic techniques that allows us to predict when a binary black hole merger can or cannot emit circularly polarized gravitational radiation, based on mirror-symmetry considerations. This framework allows to understand and to interpret correctly the numerical results, and to predict the outcomes in potentially interesting astrophysical systems.
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Balbinot, R., & Fabbri, A. (2023). Quantum energy momentum tensor and equal time correlations in a Reissner-Nordström black hole. Phys. Rev. D, 108, 045004–9pp.
Abstract: We consider a Reissner-Nordström black hole formed by the collapse of a charged null shell. The renormalized expectation values of the energy-momentum tensor operator for a massless scalar field propagating in the two-dimensional section of this spacetime are given. We then analyze the across-the-horizon correlations of the related energy density operator for free-falling observers to reveal the correlations between the Hawking particles and their interior partners.
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Winney, D., Fernandez-Ramirez, C., Pilloni, A., Hiller Blin, A. N., Albaladejo, M., Bibrzycki, L., et al. (2023). Dynamics in near-threshold J/ψ photoproduction. Phys. Rev. D, 108, 054018–15pp.
Abstract: The study of J/ψ photoproduction at low energies has consequences for the understanding of multiple aspects of nonperturbative QCD, ranging from mechanical properties of the proton to the binding inside nuclei and the existence of hidden-charm pentaquarks. Factorization of the photon-c¯c and nucleon dynamics or vector meson dominance are often invoked to justify these studies. Alternatively, open-charm intermediate states have been proposed as the dominant mechanism underlying J/ψ photoproduction. As the latter violates this factorization, it is important to estimate the relevance of such contributions. We analyze the latest differential and integrated photoproduction cross sections from the GlueX and J/ψ−007 experiments. We show that the data can be adequately described by a small number of partial waves, which we parametrize with generic models enforcing low-energy unitarity. The results suggest a non-negligible contribution from open-charm intermediate states. Furthermore, most of the models present an elastic scattering length incompatible with previous extractions based on vector meson dominance and thus call into question its applicability to heavy mesons. Our results indicate a wide array of physics possibilities that are compatible with present data and need to be disentangled.
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Dorigo, T. et al, Ramos, A., & Ruiz de Austri, R. (2023). Toward the end-to-end optimization of particle physics instruments with differentiable programming. Rev. Phys., 10, 100085– pp.
Abstract: The full optimization of the design and operation of instruments whose functioning relies on the interaction of radiation with matter is a super-human task, due to the large dimensionality of the space of possible choices for geometry, detection technology, materials, data-acquisition, and information-extraction techniques, and the interdependence of the related parameters. On the other hand, massive potential gains in performance over standard, “experience-driven” layouts are in principle within our reach if an objective function fully aligned with the final goals of the instrument is maximized through a systematic search of the configuration space. The stochastic nature of the involved quantum processes make the modeling of these systems an intractable problem from a classical statistics point of view, yet the construction of a fully differentiable pipeline and the use of deep learning techniques may allow the simultaneous optimization of all design parameters.
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Nieves, J., & Sobczyk, J. E. (2017). In medium dispersion relation effects in nuclear inclusive reactions at intermediate and low energies. Ann. Phys., 383, 455–496.
Abstract: In a well-established many-body framework, successful in modeling a great variety of nuclear processes, we analyze the role of the spectral functions (SFs) accounting for the modifications of the dispersion relation of nucleons embedded in a nuclear medium. We concentrate in processes mostly governed by one-body mechanisms, and study possible approximations to evaluate the particle hole propagator using SFs. We also investigate how to include together SFs and long-range RPA-correlation corrections in the evaluation of nuclear response functions, discussing the existing interplay between both type of nuclear effects. At low energy transfers (<= 50 MeV), we compare our predictions for inclusive muon and radiative pion captures in nuclei, and charge-current (CC) neutrino-nucleus cross sections with experimental results. We also present an analysis of intermediate energy quasi-elastic neutrino scattering for various targets and both neutrino and antineutrino CC driven processes. In all cases, we pay special attention to estimate the uncertainties affecting the theoretical predictions. In particular, we show that errors on the a,,sigma(mu)/sigma(e) ratio are much smaller than 5%, and also much smaller than the size of the SF+RPA nuclear corrections, which produce significant effects, not only in the individual cross sections, but also in their ratio for neutrino energies below 400 MeV. These latter nuclear corrections, beyond Pauli blocking, turn out to be thus essential to achieve a correct theoretical understanding of this ratio of cross sections of interest for appearance neutrino oscillation experiments. We also briefly compare our SF and RPA results to predictions obtained within other representative approaches.
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