Abstract: Using a nonrelativistic constituent quark model in which the degrees of freedom are quarkantiquark and meson- meson components, we have recently shown that the Dd((*))K thresholds play an important role in lowering the mass of the c (S) over bar states associated with the physical D-s0(*)(2317) and D-s1(2460) mesons. This observation is also supported by other theoretical approaches such as latticeregularized QCD or chiral unitary theory in coupled channels. Herein, we extend our computation to the lowest P- wave Bs mesons, taking into account the corresponding J(P) = 0(+), 1(-) and 2(+) bottomstrange states predicted by the naive quark model and the BK and B* K thresholds. We assume that mixing with B-s((*))eta and isospin-violating decays to B-s((*))pi are negligible. This computation is important because there is no experimental data in the b (S) over bar sector for the equivalent j(q)(p) = 1/2(+) (D-s0(*)(2317), D-s1 (2460)) heavy-quark multiplet and, as it has been seen in the c (s) over bar sector, the naive theoretical result can be wrong by more than 100 MeV. Our calculation allows us to introduce the coupling with the D-wave B*K channel and to compute the probabilities associated with the different Fock components of the physical state.

Abstract: We construct a neutrino model of three twin neutrinos in light of the neutrino appearance excesses at LSND and MiniBooNE. The model, which includes a twin parity, naturally predicts identical lepton Yukawa structures in the Standard Model and the twin sectors. As a result, a universal mixing angle controls all three twin neutrino couplings to the Standard Model charged leptons. This mixing angle is predicted to be the ratio of the electroweak scale over the composite scale of the Higgs boson and has the right order of magnitude to fit the data. The heavy twin neutrinos decay within the experimental lengths into active neutrinos plus a long-lived Majoron and can provide a good fit, at around the 4 sigma confidence level, to the LSND and MiniBooNE appearance data while simultaneously satisfying the disappearance constraints. For the Majorana neutrino case, the fact that neutrinos have a larger scattering cross section than antineutrinos provides a natural explanation to MiniBooNE's observation of a larger antineutrino appearance excess.

Abstract: A class of hybrid compact star equations of state is investigated that joins by a Maxwell construction a low-density phase of hadronic matter, modeled by a relativistic mean-field approach with excluded nucleon volume, with a high-density phase of color superconducting two-flavor quark matter, described within a nonlocal covariant chiral quark model. It is found that the occurrence of a stable branch of hybrid compact stars requires a nonvanishing vector meson coupling in the quark model that exceeds a minimal value which depends on the presence of a diquark condensate. It is shown that these hybrid stars do not form a third family disconnected from the second family of ordinary neutron stars unless additional (de) confining effects are introduced with a density-dependent bag pressure. A suitably chosen density dependence of the vector meson coupling assures that at the same time the 2M(circle dot) maximum mass constraint is fulfilled on the hybrid star branch. A twofold interpolation method is realized which implements both the density dependence of a confining bag pressure at the onset of the hadron-to-quark matter transition and the stiffening of quark matter at higher densities by a density-dependent vector meson coupling. For three parametrizations of this class of hybrid equation of state the properties of corresponding compact star sequences are presented, including mass twins of neutron and hybrid stars at 2.00, 1.39 and 1.20 M-circle dot, respectively, and the hybrid compact star (third) families. The sensitivity of the hybrid equation of state and the corresponding compact star sequences to variations of the interpolation parameters at the 10% level is investigated and it is found that the feature of third family solutions for compact stars is robust against such a variation. This advanced description of hybrid star matter allows us to interpret GW170817 as a merger not only of two neutron stars but also of a neutron star with a hybrid star or of two hybrid stars.