Abstract: Since 2003 many new hadrons, including the lowest-lying positive-parity charm-strange mesons D*(s0) (2317) and D-s1 (2460), have been observed that do not conform with quark-model expectations. It was recently demonstrated that various puzzles in the charm-meson spectrum find a natural resolution if the SU(3) multiplets for the lightest scalar and axial-vector states, among them the D*(s0) (2317) and the D-s1 (2460), owe their existence to the nonperturbative dynamics of Goldstone-boson scattering off D-(s) and D*((s)) mesons. Most importantly the ordering of the lightest strange and nonstrange scalars becomes natural. We demonstrate for the first time that this mechanism is strongly supported by the recent high quality data on the B- -> D+ pi(-)pi(-) provided by the LHCb experiment. This implies that the lowest quark-model positive-parity charm mesons, together with their bottom counterparts, if realized in nature, do not form the ground-state multiplet. This is similar to the pattern that has been established for the scalar mesons made from light up, down, and strange quarks, where the lowest multiplet is considered to be made of states not described by the quark model. In a broader view, the hadron spectrum must be viewed as more than a collection of quark-model states.

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.

Abstract: We propose a new method toward distinguishing the Dirac versus Majorana nature of neutrino masses from the spectrum of gravitational waves (GWs) associated with neutrino mass genesis. Motivated by the principle of generating small neutrino masses without tiny Yukawa couplings, we assume generic seesaw mechanisms for both Majorana and Dirac neutrino masses. For Majorana neutrinos, we further assume a spontaneously broken gauged U(1)B-L symmetry, independently of the type of Majorana seesaw mechanism, which gives a cosmic string induced GW signal flat over a wide range of frequencies. For Dirac neutrinos, we assume the spontaneous breaking of a Z2 symmetry, the minimal symmetry choice associated with all Dirac seesaw mechanisms, which is softly broken, generating a peaked GW spectrum from the annihilation of the resulting domain walls. In fact, the GW spectra for all types of Dirac seesaws with such a broken Z2 symmetry are identical, subject to a mild caveat. As an illustrative example, we study the simplest respective type-I seesaw mechanisms, and show that the striking difference in the shapes of the GW spectra can help differentiate between these Dirac and Majorana seesaws, complementing results of neutrinoless double beta decay experiments. We also discuss detailed implications of the recent NANOGrav data for Majorana and Dirac seesaw models.

Abstract: The beta decays of Br-86 and Rb-91 have been studied using the total absorption spectroscopy technique. The radioactive nuclei were produced at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility in Jyvaskyla and further purified using the JYFLTRAP. Br-86 and Rb-91 are considered to be major contributors to the decay heat in reactors. In addition, Rb-91 was used as a normalization point in direct measurements of mean gamma energies released in the beta decay of fission products by Rudstam et al. assuming that this decaywas well known from high-resolution measurements. Our results show that both decays were suffering from the Pandemonium effect and that the results of Rudstam et al. should be renormalized. The relative impact of the studied decays in the prediction of the decay heat and antineutrino spectrum from reactors has been evaluated.

Abstract: The beta decay of Zr-101,Zr-102 and Tc-109 was studied using the technique of total absorption spectroscopy. The experiment was performed at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory using the Summing NaI(Tl) (SuN) detector in the first-ever application of total absorption spectroscopy with a fast beam produced via projectile fragmentation. The beta-decay feeding intensity and Gamow-Teller transition strength distributions were extracted for these three decays. The extracted distributions were compared to three different quasiparticle random-phase approximation (QRPA) models based on different mean-field potentials. A comparison with calculations from one of the QRPA models was performed to learn about the ground-state shape of the parent nucleus. For Zr-101 and Zr-102, calculations assuming a pure shape configuration (oblate or prolate) were not able to reproduce the extracted distributions. These results may indicate that some type of mixture between oblate and prolate shapes is necessary to reproduce the extracted distributions. For Tc-109, a comparison of the extracted distributions with QRPA calculations suggests a dominant oblate configuration. The other two QRPA models are commonly used to provide beta-decay properties in r-process network calculations. This work shows the importance of making comparisons between the experimental and theoretical beta-decay distributions, rather than just half-lives and beta-delayed neutron emission probabilities, as close to the r-process path as possible.