Abstract: The plethora of increasingly precise experiments which hunt for axion-like particles (ALPs), as well as their widely different energy reach, call for the theoretical understanding of ALP couplings at loop-level. We derive the one-loop contributions to ALP-SM effective couplings, including finite corrections. The complete leading-order – dimension five – effective linear Lagrangian is considered. The ALP is left off-shell, which is of particular impact on LHC and accelerator searches of ALP couplings to gamma gamma, ZZ, WW, Z gamma gluons and fermions. All results are obtained in the covariant Rg gauge. A few phenomenological consequences are also explored as illustration, with flavour diagonal channels in the case of fermions: in particular, we explore constraints on the coupling of the ALP to top quarks, that can be extracted from LHC data, from astrophysical sources and from Dark Matter direct detection experiments such as PandaX, LUX and XENONIT. Furthermore, we clarify the relation between alternative ALP bases, the role of gauge anomalous couplings and their interface with chirality-conserving and chirality-flip fermion interactions, and we briefly discuss renormalization group aspects.

Abstract: We construct an axially symmetric solution of Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity coupled to an electromagnetic field in 2 + 1 dimensions including a (negative) cosmological constant term. This is achieved by using a recently developed mapping procedure that allows to generate solutions in certain families of metric-affine gravity theories starting from a known seed solution of General Relativity, which in the present case corresponds to the electrically charged Banados-Teitelboim-Zanelli (BTZ) solution. We discuss the main features of the new configurations, including the modifications to the ergospheres and horizons, the emergence of wormhole structures, and the consequences for the regularity (or not) of these space-times via geodesic completeness.

Abstract: Additional Higgs bosons appear in many extensions of the Standard Model (SM). While most existing searches for additional Higgs bosons concentrate on final states consisting of SM particles, final states containing beyond the SM (BSM) particles play an important role in many BSM models. In order to facilitate future searches for such final states, we develop a simplified model framework for heavy Higgs boson decays to a massive SM boson as well as one or more invisible particles. Allowing one kind of BSM mediator in each decay chain, we classify the possible decay topologies for each final state, taking into account all different possibilities for the spin of the mediator and the invisible particles. Our comparison of the kinematic distributions for each possible model realization reveals that the distributions corresponding to the different simplified model topologies are only mildly affected by the different spin hypotheses, while there is significant sensitivity for distinguishing between the different decay topologies. As a consequence, we point out that expressing the results of experimental searches in terms of the proposed simplified model topologies will allow one to constrain wide classes of different BSM models. The application of the proposed simplified model framework is explicitly demonstrated for the example of a mono-Higgs search. For each of the simplified models that are proposed in this paper we provide all necessary ingredients for performing Monte-Carlo simulations such that they can readily be applied in experimental analyses.

Abstract: Recently, an increasing interest in UV/IR mixing phenomena has drawn attention to the range of validity of standard quantum field theory. Here we explore the consequences of such a limited range of validity in the context of radiative models for neutrino mass generation. We adopt an argument first published by Cohen, Kaplan and Nelson that gravity implies both UV and IR cutoffs, apply it to the loop integrals describing radiative corrections, and demonstrate that this effect has significant consequences for the parameter space of radiative neutrino mass models.

Abstract: We propose a minimal gauged U(1)(B-L) extension of the minimal supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) which resolves the cosmological moduli problem via thermal inflation, and realizes late-time Affleck-Dine leptogensis so as to generate the right amount of baryon asymmetry at the end of thermal inflation. The present relic density of dark matter can be explained by sneutrinos, MSSM neutralinos, axinos, or axions. Cosmic strings from U(1)(B-L) breaking are very thick, and so the expected stochastic gravitational wave background from cosmic string loops has a spectrum different from the one in the conventional Abelian-Higgs model, as would be distinguishable at least at LISA and DECIGO. The characteristic spectrum is due to a flat potential, and may be regarded as a hint of supersymmetry. Combined with the resolution of moduli problem, the expected signal of gravitational waves constrains the U(1)(B-L) breaking scale to be O(10(12-13)) GeV. Interestingly, our model provides a natural possibility for explaining the observed ultra-high-energy cosmic rays thanks to the fact that the core width of strings in our scenario is very large, allowing a large enhancement of particle emissions from the cusps of string loops. Condensation of LHu flat-direction inside of string cores arises inevitably and can also be the main source of the ultra-high-energy cosmic rays accompanied by ultra-high-energy lightest supersymmetric particles.