Generalized messengers of supersymmetry breaking and the sparticle mass spectrum

We investigate the sparticle spectrum in models of gauge-mediated supersymmetry breaking. In these models, supersymmetry is spontaneously broken at an energy scale only a few orders of magnitude above the electroweak scale. The breakdown of supersymmetry is communicated to the standard model particles and their superpartners by "messenger" fields through their ordinary gauge interactions. We study the effects of a messenger sector in which the supersymmetry-violating F-term contributions to messenger scalar masses are comparable to the supersymmetry-preserving ones. We also argue that it is not particularly natural to restrict attention to models in which the messenger fields lie in complete SU(5) GUT multiplets, and we identify a much larger class of viable models. Remarkably, however, we find that the superpartner mass parameters in these models are still subject to many significant contraints.Comment: 24 pages, LaTeX, uses epsf.sty, 4 figures. Assumptions clarified, numerical bounds tweaked, typos correcte

One-loop corrections to the metastable vacuum decay

We evaluate the one-loop prefactor in the false vacuum decay rate in a theory of a self interacting scalar field in 3+1 dimensions. We use a numerical method, established some time ago, which is based on a well-known theorem on functional determinants. The proper handling of zero modes and of renormalization is discussed. The numerical results in particular show that quantum corrections become smaller away from the thin-wall case. In the thin-wall limit the numerical results are found to join into those obtained by a gradient expansion.Comment: 31 pages, 7 figure

Superconformal Flavor Simplified

A simple explanation of the flavor hierarchies can arise if matter fields interact with a conformal sector and different generations have different anomalous dimensions under the CFT. However, in the original study by Nelson and Strassler many supersymmetric models of this type were considered to be 'incalculable' because the R-charges were not sufficiently constrained by the superpotential. We point out that nearly all such models are calculable with the use of a-maximization. Utilizing this, we construct the simplest vector-like flavor models and discuss their viability. A significant constraint on these models comes from requiring that the visible gauge couplings remain perturbative throughout the conformal window needed to generate the hierarchies. However, we find that there is a small class of simple flavor models that can evade this bound.Comment: 43 pages, 1 figure; V3: small corrections and clarifications, references adde

On a Light Spinless Particle Coupled to Photons

A pseudoscalar or scalar particle $\phi$ that couples to two photons but not to leptons, quarks and nucleons would have effects in most of the experiments searching for axions, since these are based on the $a \gamma \gamma$ coupling. We examine the laboratory, astrophysical and cosmological constraints on $\phi$ and study whether it may constitute a substantial part of the dark matter. We also generalize the $\phi$ interactions to possess $SU(2) \times U(1)$ gauge invariance, and analyze the phenomenological implications.Comment: LaTex, 20p., 6 figures. Changes in sections 4, 5 and figure 2, our bounds are now more stringent. To be published in Physical Review

Constraints on Very Light Axions from Cavity Experiments

In view of the ongoing galactic (or cosmic) axion detection experiments, we compare the axion-photon-photon coupling $c_{a\gamma\gamma}$'s for various invisible (or very light) axion models.Comment: LaTeX, 1 eps figure include

Hadronic τ\tau decay, the renormalization group, analiticity of the polarization operators and QCD parameters

The ALEPH data on hadronic tau-decay is throughly analysed in the framework of QCD. The perturbative calculations are performed in 1-4-loop approximation. The analytical properties of the polarization operators are used in the whole complex q^2 plane. It is shown that the QCD prediction for R_{tau} agrees with the measured value R_{tau} not only for conventional Lambda^{conv}_3 = (618+-29) MeV but as well as for Lambda^{new}_3 = (1666+-7) MeV. The polarization operator calculated using the renormgroup has nonphysical cut [-Lambda^2_3, 0]. If Lambda_3 = Lambda^{conv}_3, the contribution of only physical cut is deficient in the explanation of the ALEPH experiment. If Lambda_3 = Lambda^{new}_3 the contribution of nonphysical cut is very small and only the physical cut explains the ALEPH experiment. The new sum rules which follow only from analytical properties of polarization operators are obtained. Basing on the sum rules obtained, it is shown that there is an essential disagreement between QCD perturbation theory and the tau-lepton hadronic decay experiment at conventional value Lambda_3. In the evolution upwards to larger energies the matching of r(q^2) (Eq.(12)) at the masses J/psi, Upsilon and 2m_t was performed. The obtained value alpha_s(-m^2_z) = 0.141+-0.004 (at Lambda_3 = Lambda^{new}_3) differs essentially from conventional value, but the calculation of the values R(s) = sigma(e+e- -> hadrons)/sigma(e+e- -> mu+mu-), R_l = Gamma(Z -> hadrons)/Gamma(Z -> leptons), alpha_s(-3 GeV^2), alpha_s(-2.5 GeV^2) does not contradict the experiments.Comment: 20 page

A Solution to the Strong CP Problem with Gauge-Mediated Supersymmetry Breaking

We demonstrate that a certain class of low scale supersymmetric ``Nelson-Barr'' type models can solve the strong and supersymmetric CP problems while at the same time generating sufficient weak CP violation in the $K^{0}-\bar{K}^{0}$ system. In order to prevent one-loop corrections to $\bar{\theta}$ which violate bounds coming from the neutron electric dipole moment (EDM), one needs a scheme for the soft supersymmetry breaking parameters which can naturally give sufficient squark degeneracies and proportionality of trilinear soft supersymmetry-breaking parameters to Yukawa couplings. We show that a gauge-mediated supersymmetry breaking sector can provide the needed degeneracy and proportionality, though that proves to be a problem for generic Nelson-Barr models. The workable model we consider here has the Nelson-Barr mass texture enforced by a gauge symmetry; one also expects a new U(1) gauge superfield with mass in the TeV range. The resulting model is predictive. We predict a measureable neutron EDM and the existence of extra vector-like quark superfields which can be discovered at the LHC. Because the $3\times 3$ Cabbibo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix is approximately real, the model also predicts a flat unitarity triangle and the absence of substantial CP violation in the $B$ system at future $B$ factories. We discuss the general issues pertaining to the construction of such a workable model and how they lead to the successful strategy. A detailed renormalization group study is then used to establish the feasibility of the model considered.Comment: Proof-read version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Renormalization Group Approach to Field Theory at Finite Temperature

Scalar field theory at finite temperature is investigated via an improved renormalization group prescription which provides an effective resummation over all possible non-overlapping higher loop graphs. Explicit analyses for the lambda phi^4 theory are performed in d=4 Euclidean space for both low and high temperature limits. We generate a set of coupled equations for the mass parameter and the coupling constant from the renormalization group flow equation. Dimensional reduction and symmetry restoration are also explored with our improved approach.Comment: 29 pages, can include figures in the body of the text using epsf.st

ZFITTER v.6.21 - A Semi-Analytical Program for Fermion Pair Production in e+e- Annihilation

We describe ZFITTER, a Fortran program based on a semi-analytical approach to fermion pair production in e+e- annihilation at a wide range of centre-of-mass energies, including the PETRA, TRISTAN, LEP1/SLC, and LEP2 energies. A flexible treatment of complete O(alpha) QED corrections and of some higher order contributions is made possible with three calculational chains containing different realistic sets of restrictions in the photon phase space. Numerical integrations are at most one-dimensional. Complete O(alpha) weak loop corrections supplemented by selected higher-order terms may be included. The program calculates Delta r, the Z width, differential cross-sections, total cross-sections, integrated forward-backward asymmetries, left-right asymmetries, and for tau pair production also final-state polarization effects. Various interfaces allow fits to be performed with different sets of free parameters.Comment: 200 pages, Latex2e, 26 figures, 4 tables; uses axodraw, epsfig, epsf, graphicx, espcrc1; typos of v.1 corrected, version for subm. to Comp. Phys. Commu

Searching for spatial variations of alpha^2/mu in the Milky Way

(Abridged) A procedure is suggested to explore the value of F = alpha^2/mu, where mu = m_e/m_p is the electron-to-proton mass ratio, and alpha is the fine-structure constant. The fundamental physical constants, which are measured in different physical environments of high (terrestrial) and low (interstellar) densities of baryonic matter are supposed to vary in chameleon-like scalar field models, which predict that both masses and coupling constant may depend on the local matter density. The parameter Delta F/F = (F_obs - F_lab)/F_lab can be estimated from the radial velocity offset, Delta V = V_rot-V_fs, between the low-laying rotational transitions in carbon monoxide 13CO and the fine-structure transitions in atomic carbon [CI]. A model-dependent constraint on Delta alpha/alpha can be obtained from Delta F/F using Delta mu/mu independently measured from the ammonia method. Currently available radio astronomical datasets provide an upper limit on |Delta V| < 110 m/s (1sigma). When interpreted in terms of the spatial variation of F, this gives |Delta F/F| < 3.7*10^-{7}. An order of magnitude improvement of this limit will allow us to test independently a non-zero value of Delta mu/mu = (2.2 +/- 0.4_stat +/- 0.3_sys)*10^{-8} recently found with the ammonia method. Taking into account that the ammonia method restricts the spatial variation of mu at the level of |Delta mu/mu| <= 3*10^{-8} and assuming that Delta F/F is the same in the entire interstellar medium, one obtains that the spatial variation of alpha does not exceed the value |Delta alpha/alpha| < 2*10^{-7}. Since extragalactic gas clouds have densities similar to those in the interstellar medium, the bound on Delta alpha/alpha is also expected to be less than 2*10^{-7} at high redshift if no significant temporal dependence of alpha is present.Comment: 7 pages, 1 table. Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic