NEXT Collaboration(Renner, J. et al), Alvarez, V., Carcel, S., Cervera-Villanueva, A., Diaz, J., Ferrario, P., et al. (2015). Ionization and scintillation of nuclear recoils in gaseous xenon. Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res. A, 793, 62–74.
Abstract: Ionization and scintillation produced by nuclear recoils in gaseous xenon at approximately 14 bar have been simultaneously observed in an electroluminescent time projection chamber. Neutrons from radioisotope a-Be neutron sources were used to induce xenon nuclear recoils, and the observed recoil spectra were compared to a detailed Monte Carlo employing estimated ionization and scintillation yields for nuclear recoils. The ability to discriminate between electronic and nuclear recoils using the ratio of ionization to primary scintillation is demonstrated. These results encourage further investigation on the use of xenon in the gas phase as a detector medium in dark matter direct detection experiments.
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Albaladejo, M., Nielsen, M., & Oset, E. (2015). Ds0*(+/-)(2317) and K D scattering from Bs(0) decay. Phys. Lett. B, 746, 305–310.
Abstract: We study the (B) over bar (0)(s) -> D-s(-)(KD)(+) weak decay, and look at the KD invariant mass distribution, for which we use recent lattice QCD results for the KDinteraction from where the D-s0*(2317) resonance appears as a KD bound state. Since there are not yet experimental data on this reaction, in a second step we propose an analysis method to obtain information on the D-s0* (2317) resonance from the future experimental KD mass distribution in this decay. For this purpose, we generate synthetic data taking a few points from our theoretical distribution, to which we add a 5% or 10% error. With this analysis method, we prove that one can obtain from these “data” the existence of a bound KD state, the KD scattering length and effective range, and most importantly, the KD probability in the wave function of the bound state obtained, which was found to be largely dominant in lattice QCD studies. This means that one can obtain information on the nature of the D-s0*(+) (2317) resonance from the implementation of this experiment, in the line of finding the structure of resonances, which is one of the main aims in hadron spectroscopy.
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Pallis, C. (2015). Kinetically modified nonminimal chaotic inflation. Phys. Rev. D, 91(12), 123508–6pp.
Abstract: We consider supersymmetric (SUSY) and non-SUSY models of chaotic inflation based on the phi(n) potential with 2 <= n <= 6. We show that the coexistence of a nonminimal coupling to gravity f(R) = 1 + c(R)phi(n/2) with a kinetic mixing of the form f(K) = c(K)f(R)(m) can accommodate inflationary observables favored by the BICEP2/Keck Array and Planck results for 0 <= m <= 4 and 2.5 x 10(-4) <= r(RK) = c(R)/c(K)(n/4) <= 1, where the upper limit is not imposed for n 2. Inflation can be attained for sub-Planckian inflaton values with the corresponding effective theories retaining the perturbative unitarity up to the Planck scale.
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CMS and LHCb Collaborations(Khachatryan, V. et al), Martinez-Vidal, F., Oyanguren, A., Ruiz Valls, P., & Sanchez Mayordomo, C. (2015). Observation of the rare B-s(0)->mu(+)mu(-) decay from the combined analysis of CMS and LHCb data. Nature, 522(7554), 68–72.
Abstract: The standard model of particle physics describes the fundamental particles and their interactions via the strong, electromagnetic and weak forces. It provides precise predictions for measurable quantities that can be tested experimentally. The probabilities, or branching fractions, of the strange B meson (B-s(0)) and the B-0 meson decaying into two oppositely charged muons (mu(+) and mu(-)) are especially interesting because of their sensitivity to theories that extend the standard model. The standard model predicts that the B-s(0)->mu(+)mu(-) and B-0 ->mu(+)mu(-) decays are very rare, with about four of the former occurring for every billion B-s(0) mesons produced, and one of the latter occurring for every ten billion B-0 mesons(1). A difference in the observed branching fractions with respect to the predictions of the standard model would provide a direction in which the standard model should be extended. Before the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN2 started operating, no evidence for either decay mode had been found. Upper limits on the branching fractions were an order of magnitude above the standard model predictions. The CMS (Compact Muon Solenoid) and LHCb(Large Hadron Collider beauty) collaborations have performed a joint analysis of the data from proton-proton collisions that they collected in 2011 at a centre-of-mass energy of seven teraelectronvolts and in 2012 at eight teraelectronvolts. Here we report the first observation of the B-s(0)->mu(+)mu(-) decay, with a statistical significance exceeding six standard deviations, and the best measurement so far of its branching fraction. Furthermore, we obtained evidence for the B-0 ->mu(+)mu(-) decay with a statistical significance of three standard deviations. Both measurements are statistically compatible with standard model predictions and allow stringent constraints to be placed on theories beyond the standard model. The LHC experiments will resume taking data in 2015, recording proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 teraelectronvolts, which will approximately double the production rates of B-s(0) and B-0 mesons and lead to further improvements in the precision of these crucial tests of the standard model.
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Davesne, D., Navarro, J., Becker, P., Jodon, R., Meyer, J., & Pastore, A. (2015). Extended Skyrme pseudopotential deduced from infinite nuclear matter properties. Phys. Rev. C, 91(6), 064303–6pp.
Abstract: We discuss the contributions to the equation of state for the NlLO Skyrme pseudopotential (l = 2,3). We show that by adding fourth- and sixth-order gradient terms, it is possible to fairly reproduce the spin/isospin decomposition of an equation of state obtained from ab initio methods. Moreover, by inspecting the partial-wave decomposition of the equation of state, we show for the first time a possible way to add explicit constraints on the sign of the tensor terms of the Skyrme interaction.
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