Nonminimal supersymmetric standard model with lepton number violation

We carry out a detailed analysis of the nonminimal supersymmetric standard model with lepton number violation. The model contains a unique trilinear lepton number violating term in the superpotential which can give rise to neutrino masses at the tree level. We search for the gauged discrete symmetries realized by cyclic groups which preserve the structure of the associated trilinear superpotential of this model, and which satisfy the constraints of the anomaly cancellation. The implications of this trilinear lepton number violating term in the superpotential and the associated soft supersymmetry breaking term on the phenomenology of the light neutrino masses and mixing is studied in detail. We evaluate the tree and loop level contributions to the neutrino mass matrix in this model. We search for possible suppression mechanism which could explain large hierarchies and maximal mixing angles.Comment: Latex file, 43 pages, 2 figure

Study of a Neutrino Mass Texture Generated in Supergravity with Bilinear R-Parity Violation

We study a particular texture of the neutrino mass matrix generated in supergravity with bilinear R-Parity violation. The relatively high value of $\tan\beta$ makes the one-loop contribution to the neutrino mass matrix as important as the tree-level one. The atmospheric angle is nearly maximal, and its deviation from maximal mixing is related to the smallness of the ratio between the solar and atmospheric mass scales. There is also a common origin for the small values of the solar and reactor angles, but the later is much smaller due the large mass ratio between the lightest two neutrinos. There is a high dependence of the neutrino mass differences on the scalar mass $m_0$ and the gaugino mass $M_{1/2}$, but a smaller one of the mixing angles on the same sugra parameters. Measurements of branching ratios for the neutralino decays can give important information on the parameters of the model. There are good prospects at a future Linear Collider for these measurements, but a more detailed analysis is necessary for the LHC.Comment: 21 pages, 9 figure

Silica in a Mars analog environment: Ka'u Desert, Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii

Airborne Visible/Near-Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data acquired over the Ka'u Desert are atmospherically corrected to ground reflectance and used to identify the mineralogic components of relatively young basaltic materials, including 250–700 and 200–400 year old lava flows, 1971 and 1974 flows, ash deposits, and solfatara incrustations. To provide context, a geologic surface units map is constructed, verified with field observations, and supported by laboratory analyses. AVIRIS spectral end-members are identified in the visible (0.4 to 1.2 μm) and short wave infrared (2.0 to 2.5 μm) wavelength ranges. Nearly all the spectral variability is controlled by the presence of ferrous and ferric iron in such minerals as pyroxene, olivine, hematite, goethite, and poorly crystalline iron oxides or glass. A broad, nearly ubiquitous absorption feature centered at 2.25 μm is attributed to opaline (amorphous, hydrated) silica and is found to correlate spatially with mapped geologic surface units. Laboratory analyses show the silica to be consistently present as a deposited phase, including incrustations downwind from solfatara vents, cementing agent for ash duricrusts, and thin coatings on the youngest lava flow surfaces. A second, Ti-rich upper coating on young flows also influences spectral behavior. This study demonstrates that secondary silica is mobile in the Ka'u Desert on a variety of time scales and spatial domains. The investigation from remote, field, and laboratory perspectives also mimics exploration of Mars using orbital and landed missions, with important implications for spectral characterization of coated basalts and formation of opaline silica in arid, acidic alteration environments

Nucleon decay in gauge unified models with intersecting D6-branes

Baryon number violation is discussed in gauge unified orbifold models of type II string theory with intersecting Dirichlet branes. We consider setups of D6-branes which extend along the flat Minkowski space-time directions and wrap around 3-cycles of the internal 6-d manifold. The discussion is motivated by the enhancement effect of low energy amplitudes anticipated for M-theory and type II string theory models with matter modes localized at points of the internal manifold. The conformal field theory formalism is used to evaluate the open string amplitudes at tree level. We study the single baryon number violating processes of dimension 6 and 5, involving four quarks and leptons and in supersymmetry models, two pairs of matter fermions and superpartner sfermions. The higher order processes associated with the baryon number violating operators of dimension 7 and 9 are also examined, but in a qualitative way. We discuss the low energy representation of string theory amplitudes in terms of infinite series of poles associated to exchange of string Regge resonance and compactification modes. The comparison of string amplitudes with the equivalent field theory amplitudes is first studied in the large compactification radius limit. Proceeding next to the finite compactification radius case, we present a numerical study of the ratio of string to field theory amplitudes based on semi-realistic gauge unified non-supersymmetric and supersymmetric models employing the Z3 and Z2xZ2 orbifolds. We find a moderate enhancement of string amplitudes which becomes manifest in the regime where the gauge symmetry breaking mass parameter exceeds the compactification mass parameter, corresponding to a gauge unification in a seven dimensional space-time.Comment: 63 pages revtex4. 8 postscript figures. 4 tables. Subsection II.B revised. Several new references added. To appear in Physical Review

From the Bethe-Salpeter equation to non-relativistic approaches with effective two-body interactions

It is known that binding energies calculated from the Bethe-Salpeter equation in ladder approximation can be reasonably well accounted for by an energy-dependent interaction, at least for the lowest states. It is also known that none of these approaches gives results close to what is obtained by using the same interaction in the so-called instantaneous approximation, which is often employed in non-relativistic calculations. However, a recently proposed effective interaction was shown to account for the main features of both the Bethe-Salpeter equation and the energy-dependent approach. In the present work, a detailed comparison of these different methods for calculating binding energies of a two-particle system is made. Some improvement, previously incorporated for the zero-mass boson case in the derivation of the effective interaction, is also employed for massive bosons. The constituent particles are taken to be distinguishable and spinless. Different masses of the exchanged boson (including a zero mass) as well as states with different angular momenta are considered and the contribution of the crossed two-boson exchange diagram is discussed. With this respect, the role played by the charge of the exchanged boson is emphasized. It is shown that the main difference between the Bethe-Salpeter results and the instantaneous approximation ones are not due to relativity as often conjectured.Comment: 38 pages, 12 eps figures, uses elsart.cls (included

On photoexcitation of baryon antidecuplet

We show that the photoexcitation of the baryon antidecuplet, suggested by the soliton classification of low-lying baryons, is strongly suppressed on the proton target. The process occurs mostly on the neutron target. This qualitative prediction can be useful in identifying the non-exotic members of the antidecuplet in the known baryon spectrum. We also analyze the interrelation between photocouplings of various baryon multiplets in the soliton picture and in the nonrelativistic quark model.Comment: 9 pages, one Latex figur

Silica coatings on young Hawaiian basalts: Constraints on formation mechanism from silicon isotopes

Young basalts from Kilauea, on the big island of Hawai’i, frequently feature visually striking, white, orange and blue coatings, consisting of a 10-50 μm layer of amorphous silica, capped, in some cases, by a ~1 μm layer of Fe-Ti oxide [1]. The coatings provide an opportunity to study the early onset of acid-sulfate weathering, a process common to many volcanic environments. Silicon isotopes fractionate with the precipitation of clays and opaline silica, and have been demonstrated to be an indicator of weathering intensity [2,3]. Here we report in situ measurements of δ^(30)_Si of the silica coatings and their implications for coating formation

Photoproduction and Radiative Decay of Spin 1/2 and 3/2 Pentaquarks

We study photoproduction and radiative decays of pentauqarks paying particular attention to the differences between spin-1/2 and spin-3/2, positive and negative parities of pentaquarks. Detailed study of these processes can not only give crucial information about the spin, but also the parity of pentaquarks.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figure

Octet, decuplet and antidecuplet magnetic moments in the chiral quark soliton model revisited

We reanalyse the magnetic moments of the baryon octet, decuplet, and antidecuplet within the framework of the chiral quark-soliton model, with SU(3) symmetry breaking taken into account. We consider the contributions of the mixing of higher representations to the magnetic moment operator arising from the SU(3) symmetry breaking. Dynamical parameters of the model are fixed by experimental data for the magnetic moments of the baryon octet and from the masses of the octet, decuplet and of $\Theta^{+}$. The magnetic moment of $\Theta^{+}$ depends rather strongly on the pion-nucleon sigma term and reads $-1.19 {\rm n.m.}$ to $-0.33 {\rm n.m.}$ for $\Sigma_{\pi N} = 45$ and 75 MeV respectively. The recently reported mass of $\Xi^{--}_{\bar{10}}(1862)$ is compatible with $\Sigma_{\pi N} = 73$ MeV. As a byproduct the strange magnetic moment of the nucleon is obtained with a value of $\mu^{(s)}_N =+0.39$ n.m.Comment: RevTeX is used. 12 pages, 3 figures, final version for publication in Phys. Rev.

Effects of R-parity violation on direct CP violation in B decays and extraction of γ\gamma

In the standard model, direct CP-violating asymmetries for $B^\pm \to \pi^\pm K$ are roughly 2% based on perturbative calculation. Rescattering effects might enhance it to at most (20-25)%. We show that lepton-number-violating couplings in supersymmetric models without R-parity are capable of inducing as large as 100% CP asymmetry in this channel. Such effects drastically modify the allowed range of the CKM parameter $\gamma$ arising from the combinations of the observed charged and neutral B decays in the $\pi K$ modes. With a multichannel analysis in B decays, one can either discover this exciting new physics, or significantly improve the existing constraints on it.Comment: Latex, 5 pages; minor changes, to appear in Phys Rev Let