398 research outputs found
Spin-Current Relaxation Time in Spin-Polarized Heisenberg Paramagnets
We study the spatial Fourier transform of the spin correlation function
G_q(t) in paramagnetic quantum crystals by direct simulation of a 1d lattice of
atoms interacting via a nearest-neighbor Heisenberg exchange Hamiltonian. Since
it is not practical to diagonalize the s=1/2 exchange Hamiltonian for a lattice
which is of sufficient size to study long-wavelength (hydrodynamic)
fluctuations, we instead study the s -> infinity limit and treat each spin as a
vector with a classical equation of motion. The simulations give a detailed
picture of the correlation function G_q(t) and its time derivatives. At high
polarization, there seems to be a hierarchy of frequency scales: the local
exchange frequency, a wavelength-independent relaxation rate 1/tau that
vanishes at large polarization P ->1, and a wavelength-dependent spin-wave
frequency proportional to q^2. This suggests a form for the correlation
function which modifies the spin diffusion coefficients obtained in a moments
calculation by Cowan and Mullin, who used a standard Gaussian ansatz for the
second derivative of the correlation function.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure
Solar Gamma Rays Powered by Secluded Dark Matter
Secluded dark matter models, in which WIMPs annihilate first into metastable
mediators, can present novel indirect detection signatures in the form of gamma
rays and fluxes of charged particles arriving from directions correlated with
the centers of large astrophysical bodies within the solar system, such as the
Sun and larger planets. This naturally occurs if the mean free path of the
mediator is in excess of the solar (or planetary) radius. We show that existing
constraints from water Cerenkov detectors already provide a novel probe of the
parameter space of these models, complementary to other sources, with
significant scope for future improvement from high angular resolution gamma-ray
telescopes such as Fermi-LAT. Fluxes of charged particles produced in mediator
decays are also capable of contributing a significant solar system component to
the spectrum of energetic electrons and positrons, a possibility which can be
tested with the directional and timing information of PAMELA and Fermi.Comment: 22 pages, 3 figure
Multi-lepton Signatures of a Hidden Sector in Rare B Decays
We explore the sensitivity of flavour changing b -> s transitions to a
(sub-)GeV hidden sector with generic couplings to the Standard Model through
the Higgs, vector and axion portals. The underlying two-body decays of B
mesons, B -> X_s S and B0 -> SS, where S denotes a generic new GeV-scale
particle, may significantly enhance the yield of monochromatic lepton pairs in
the final state via prompt decays of S to a dilepton pair. Existing
measurements of the charged lepton spectrum in neutral-current semileptonic B
decays provide bounds on the parameters of the light sector that are
significantly more stringent than the requirements of naturalness. New search
modes, such as B -> X_s + n(l+l-) and B0 -> n(l+l-) with n > 1 can provide
additional sensitivity to scenarios in which both the Higgs and vector portals
are active, and are accessible to (super-)B factories and hadron colliders.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures; v2: reference added, minor correction
Searches for Long Lived Neutral Particles
An intriguing possibility for TeV scale physics is the existence of neutral
long lived particles (LOLIPs) that subsequently decay into SM states. Such
particles are many cases indistinguishable from missing transverse energy (MET)
at colliders. We propose new methods to search for these particles using
neutrino telescopes. We study their detection prospects, assuming production
either at the LHC or through dark matter (DM) annihilations in the Sun and the
Earth. We find that the sensitivity for LOLIPs produced at the LHC is limited
by luminosity and detection energy thresholds. On the other hand, in the case
of DM annihilation into LOLIPs, the sensitivity of neutrino telescopes is
promising and may extend beyond the reach of upcoming direct detection
experiments. In the context of low scale hidden sectors weakly coupled to the
SM, such indirect searches allow to probe couplings as small as 10^-15.Comment: 22 pages, 6 figure
Physics Opportunities with the FCC-hh Injectors
In this chapter we explore a few examples of physics opportunities using the
existing chain of accelerators at CERN, including potential upgrades. In this
context the LHC ring is also considered as a part of the injector system. The
objective is to find examples that constitute sensitive probes of New Physics
that ideally cannot be done elsewhere or can be done significantly better at
theCERN accelerator complex. Some of these physics opportunities may require a
more flexible injector complex with additional functionality than that just
needed to inject protons into the FCC-hh at the right energy, intensity and
bunch structure. Therefore it is timely to discuss these options concurrently
with the conceptual design of the FCC-hh injector system.Comment: 13 pages, chapter 5 in Physics at the FCC-hh, a 100 TeV pp collide
Stability of Scalar Fields in Warped Extra Dimensions
This work sets up a general theoretical framework to study stability of
models with a warped extra dimension where N scalar fields couple minimally to
gravity. Our analysis encompasses Randall-Sundrum models with branes and bulk
scalars, and general domain-wall models. We derive the Schrodinger equation
governing the spin-0 spectrum of perturbations of such a system. This result is
specialized to potentials generated using fake supergravity, and we show that
models without branes are free of tachyonic modes. Turning to the existence of
zero modes, we prove a criterion which relates the number of normalizable zero
modes to the parities of the scalar fields. Constructions with definite parity
and only odd scalars are shown to be free of zero modes and are hence
perturbatively stable. We give two explicit examples of domain-wall models with
a soft wall, one which admits a zero mode and one which does not. The latter is
an example of a model that stabilizes a compact extra dimension using only bulk
scalars and does not require dynamical branes.Comment: 25 pages, 2 figures; v2: minor changes to text, references added,
matches published versio
Light dark forces at flavor factories
SuperB experiment could represent an ideal environment to test a new U (1)
symmetry related to light dark forces candidates. A promising discovery channel
is represented by the resonant production of a boson U, followed by its decay
into lepton pairs. Beyond approximations adopted in the literature, an exact
tree level calculation of the radiative processes and corresponding QED
backgrounds is performed, including also the most important higher-order
corrections. The calculation is implemented in a release of the generator
BabaYaga@NLO useful for data analysis and interpretation. The distinct features
of U boson production are shown and the statistical significance is analysed
Singlet Portal to the Hidden Sector
Ultraviolet physics typically induces a kinetic mixing between gauge singlets
which is marginal and hence non-decoupling in the infrared. In singlet
extensions of the minimal supersymmetric standard model, e.g. the
next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model, this furnishes a well motivated
and distinctive portal connecting the visible sector to any hidden sector which
contains a singlet chiral superfield. In the presence of singlet kinetic
mixing, the hidden sector automatically acquires a light mass scale in the
range 0.1 - 100 GeV induced by electroweak symmetry breaking. In theories with
R-parity conservation, superparticles produced at the LHC invariably cascade
decay into hidden sector particles. Since the hidden sector singlet couples to
the visible sector via the Higgs sector, these cascades necessarily produce a
Higgs boson in an order 0.01 - 1 fraction of events. Furthermore,
supersymmetric cascades typically produce highly boosted, low-mass hidden
sector singlets decaying visibly, albeit with displacement, into the heaviest
standard model particles which are kinematically accessible. We study
experimental constraints on this broad class of theories, as well as the role
of singlet kinetic mixing in direct detection of hidden sector dark matter. We
also present related theories in which a hidden sector singlet interacts with
the visible sector through kinetic mixing with right-handed neutrinos.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure
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