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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Henry, L., Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., Remon Alepuz, C., et al. (2021). Precise measurement of the f(s)/f(d) ratio of fragmentation fractions and of B-s(0) decay branching fractions. Phys. Rev. D, 104(3), 032005–20pp.
Abstract: The ratio of the B-s(0) and B-0 fragmentation fractions, f(s)/f(d), in proton-proton collisions at the LHC, is obtained as a function of B-meson transverse momentum and collision center-of-mass energy from the combined analysis of different B-decay channels measured by the LHCb experiment. The results are described by a linear function of the meson transverse momentum or with a function inspired by Tsallis statistics. Precise measurements of the branching fractions of the B-s(0) -> J/psi phi and B-s(0)-> D-s(-)pi(+) decays are performed, reducing their uncertainty by about a factor of 2 with respect to previous world averages. Numerous B-s(0) decay branching fractions, measured at the LHCb experiment, are also updated using the new values of f(s)/f(d) and branching fractions of normalization channels. These results reduce a major source of systematic uncertainty in several searches for new physics performed through measurements of B-s(0) branching fractions.
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n_TOF Collaboration(Lederer-Woods, C. et al.), Domingo-Pardo, C., & Tain, J. L. (2021). Destruction of the cosmic gamma-ray emitter Al-26 in massive stars: Study of the key Al-26(n, p) reaction. Phys. Rev. C, 104(2), L022803–7pp.
Abstract: The Al-26(n, p) Mg-26 reaction is the key reaction impacting on the abundances of the cosmic gamma-ray emitter Al-26 produced in massive stars and impacts on the potential pollution of the early solar system with Al-26 by asymptotic giant branch stars. We performed a measurement of the Al-26(n, p) Mg-26 cross section at the high-flux beam line EAR-2 at the n_TOF facility (CERN). We report resonance strengths for eleven resonances, nine being measured for the first time, while there is only one previous measurement for the other two. Our resonance strengths are significantly lower than the only previous values available. Our cross-section data range to 150 keV neutron energy, which is sufficient for a reliable determination of astrophysical reactivities up to 0.5 GK stellar temperature.
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Figueroa, D. G., Raatikainen, S., Rasanen, S., & Tomberg, E. (2021). Non-Gaussian Tail of the Curvature Perturbation in Stochastic Ultraslow-Roll Inflation: Implications for Primordial Black Hole Production. Phys. Rev. Lett., 127(10), 101302–7pp.
Abstract: We consider quantum diffusion in ultraslow-roll (USR) inflation. Using the Delta N formalism, we present the first stochastic calculation of the probability distribution P(R) of the curvature perturbation during USR. We capture the nonlinearity of the system, solving the coupled evolution of the coarse-grained background with random kicks from the short wavelength modes, simultaneously with the mode evolution around the stochastic background. This leads to a non-Markovian process from which we determine the highly non-Gaussian tail of P(R). Studying the production of primordial black holes in a viable model, we find that stochastic effects during USR increase their abundance by a factor of similar to 10(5) compared with the Gaussian approximation.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Henry, L., Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., Remon Alepuz, C., et al. (2021). Measurement of CP asymmetry in D-0 -> KS0 KS0 decays. Phys. Rev. D, 104(3), L031102–11pp.
Abstract: A measurement of the CP asymmetry in D-0 -> (KSKS0)-K-0 decays is reported, based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions collected by the LHCb experiment from 2015 to 2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 6 fb(-1). The flavor of the D-0 candidate is determined using the charge of the D-*+/- meson, from which the decay is required to originate. The D-0 -> K+K- decay is used as a calibration channel. The time-integrated CP asymmetry for the D-0 -> (KSKS0)-K-0 mode is measured to be A(CP)(D-0 -> (KSKS0)-K-0) = (-3.1 +/- 1.2 +/- 0.4 +/- 0.2), where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is due to the uncertainty on the CP asymmetry of the calibration channel. This is the most precise determination of this quantity to date.
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Ma, E., & De Romeri, V. (2021). Radiative seesaw dark matter. Phys. Rev. D, 104(5), 055004–5pp.
Abstract: The singlet Majoron model of seesaw neutrino mass is appended by one dark Majorana fermion singlet chi with L = 2 and one dark complex scalar singlet zeta with L = 1. This simple setup allows chi to obtain a small radiative mass anchored by the same heavy right-handed neutrinos, whereas the one-loop decay of the standard model Higgs boson to chi chi + (chi) over bar(chi) over bar provides the freeze-in mechanism for chi to be the light dark matter of the Universe.
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ATLAS Collaboration(Aad, G. et al), Aparisi Pozo, J. A., Bailey, A. J., Cabrera Urban, S., Cardillo, F., Castillo, F. L., et al. (2021). Search for bottom-squark pair production in pp collision events at root s=13 TeV with hadronically decaying tau-leptons, b-jets, and missing transverse momentum using the ATLAS detector. Phys. Rev. D, 104(3), 032014–31pp.
Abstract: A search for pair production of bottom squarks in events with hadronically decaying t-leptons, b-tagged jets, and large missing transverse momentum is presented. The analyzed dataset is based on proton-proton collisions at root s = 13 TeV delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded by the ATLAS detector from 2015 to 2018, and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1). The observed data are compatible with the expected Standard Model background. Results are interpreted in a simplified model where each bottom squark is assumed to decay into the second-lightest neutralino (chi) over tilde (0)(2) and a bottom quark, with (chi) over tilde (0)(2) decaying into a Higgs boson and the lightest neutralino (chi) over tilde1(0). The search focuses on final states where at least one Higgs boson decays into a pair of hadronically decaying t-leptons. This allows the acceptance and thus the sensitivity to be significantly improved relative to the previous results at low masses of the (chi) over tilde (0)(2), where bottom-squark masses up to 850 GeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level, assuming a mass difference of 130 GeV between (chi) over tilde (0)(2) and (chi) over tilde (0)(1). Model-independent upper limits are also set on the cross section of processes beyond the Standard Model.
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Esposito, R. et al, & Domingo-Pardo, C. (2021). Design of the third-generation lead-based neutron spallation target for the neutron time-of-flight facility at CERN. Phys. Rev. Accel. Beams, 24(9), 093001–17pp.
Abstract: The neutron time-of-flight (n_TOF) facility at the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN) is a pulsed white-spectrum neutron spallation source producing neutrons for two experimental areas: the Experimental Area 1 (EAR1), located 185 m horizontally from the target, and the Experimental Area 2 (EAR2), located 20 m above the target. The target, based on pure lead, is impacted by a high-intensity 20-GeV/c pulsed proton beam. The facility was conceived to study neutron-nucleus interactions for neutron kinetic energies between a few meV to several GeV, with applications of interest for nuclear astrophysics, nuclear technology, and medical research. After the second-generation target reached the end of its lifetime, the facility underwent a major upgrade during CERN's Long Shutdown 2 (LS2, 2019-2021), which included the installation of the new third-generation neutron target. The first- and second-generation targets were based on water-cooled massive lead blocks and were designed focusing on EAR1, since EAR2 was built later. The new target is cooled by nitrogen gas to avoid erosion-corrosion and contamination of cooling water with radioactive lead spallation products. Moreover, the new design is optimized also for the vertical flight path and EAR2. This paper presents an overview of the target design focused on both physics and thermomechanical performance, and includes a description of the nitrogen cooling circuit and radiation protection studies.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., Remon Alepuz, C., & Ruiz Vidal, J. (2021). Observation of the Mass Difference Between Neutral Charm-Meson Eigenstates. Phys. Rev. Lett., 127(11), 111801–12pp.
Abstract: A measurement of mixing and CP violation in neutral charm mesons is performed using data reconstructed in proton-proton collisions collected by the LHCb experiment from 2016 to 2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.4 fb(-1). A total of 30.6 million D0 -> K-s(0)pi(+)pi(-) decays are analyzed using a method optimized for the measurement of the mass difference between neutral charmmeson eigenstates. Allowing for CP violation in mixing and in the interference between mixing and decay, the mass and decay-width differences are measured to be x(CP) = [3.97 +/- 0.46(stat) +/- 0.29(syst)] x 10(-3) and y(CP) = [4.59 +/- 1.20(stat) +/- 0.85(syst)] x 10(-3), respectively. The CP-violating parameters are measured as Delta x= [-0.27 +/- 0.18(stat)+/- 0.01(syst)] x 10 (-3) and Delta y = [0.20 +/- 0.36(stat) +/- 0.13(syst)] x 10(-3). This is the first observation of a nonzero mass difference in the D-0 meson system, with a significance exceeding seven standard deviations. The data are consistent with CP symmetry and improve existing constraints on the associated parameters.
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LHCb Collaboration(Aaij, R. et al), Jashal, B. K., Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., Remon Alepuz, C., & Ruiz Vidal, J. (2021). Branching Fraction Measurements of the Rare B-s(0) -> phi mu(+)mu(-) and B-s(0)-> f(2)' (1525)mu(+)mu(-) Decays. Phys. Rev. Lett., 127(15), 151801–11pp.
Abstract: The branching fraction of the rare B-s(0) -> phi mu(+)mu(-) decay is measured using data collected by the LHCb experiment at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8, and 13 TeV, corresponding to integrated luminosities of 1, 2, and 6 fb(-1), respectively. The branching fraction is reported in intervals of q(2), the square of the dimuon invariant mass. In the q(2) region between 1.1 and 6.0 GeV2/c(4) , the measurement is found to lie 3.6 standard deviations below a standard model prediction based on a combination of light cone sum rule and lattice QCD calculations. In addition, the first observation of the rare B-s(0)-> f(2)' (1525)mu(+)mu(-) decay is reported with a statistical significance of 9 standard deviations and its branching fraction is determined.
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n_TOF Collaboration(Lederer-Woods, C. et al.), Domingo-Pardo, C., & Tain, J. L. (2021). Destruction of the cosmic gamma-ray emitter Al-26 in massive stars: Study of the key Al-26(n, alpha) reaction. Phys. Rev. C, 104(3), L032803–6pp.
Abstract: Neutron destruction reactions of the cosmic gamma-ray emitter Al-26 are of importance to determine the amount of Al-26 ejected into our galaxy by supernova explosions and for Al-26 production in asymptotic giant branch stars. We performed a new measurement of the Al-26(n, alpha) reaction up to 160-keV neutron energy at the neutron time-of-flight facilities n_TOF at CERN and GELINA at EC-JRC. We provide strengths for ten resonances, six of them for the first time. We use our data to calculate astrophysical reactivities for stellar temperatures up to 0.7 GK. Our results resolve a discrepancy between the two previous direct measurements of this reaction, and indicate higher stellar destruction rates than the most recently recommended reactivity.
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