823 research outputs found
Classical and semi-classical energy conditions
The standard energy conditions of classical general relativity are (mostly)
linear in the stress-energy tensor, and have clear physical interpretations in
terms of geodesic focussing, but suffer the significant drawback that they are
often violated by semi-classical quantum effects. In contrast, it is possible
to develop non-standard energy conditions that are intrinsically non-linear in
the stress-energy tensor, and which exhibit much better well-controlled
behaviour when semi-classical quantum effects are introduced, at the cost of a
less direct applicability to geodesic focussing. In this article we will first
review the standard energy conditions and their various limitations. (Including
the connection to the Hawking--Ellis type I, II, III, and IV classification of
stress-energy tensors). We shall then turn to the averaged, nonlinear, and
semi-classical energy conditions, and see how much can be done once
semi-classical quantum effects are included.Comment: V1: 25 pages. Draft chapter, on which the related chapter of the book
"Wormholes, Warp Drives and Energy Conditions" (to be published by Springer),
will be based. V2: typos fixed. V3: small typo fixe
The Evolution of Compact Binary Star Systems
We review the formation and evolution of compact binary stars consisting of
white dwarfs (WDs), neutron stars (NSs), and black holes (BHs). Binary NSs and
BHs are thought to be the primary astrophysical sources of gravitational waves
(GWs) within the frequency band of ground-based detectors, while compact
binaries of WDs are important sources of GWs at lower frequencies to be covered
by space interferometers (LISA). Major uncertainties in the current
understanding of properties of NSs and BHs most relevant to the GW studies are
discussed, including the treatment of the natal kicks which compact stellar
remnants acquire during the core collapse of massive stars and the common
envelope phase of binary evolution. We discuss the coalescence rates of binary
NSs and BHs and prospects for their detections, the formation and evolution of
binary WDs and their observational manifestations. Special attention is given
to AM CVn-stars -- compact binaries in which the Roche lobe is filled by
another WD or a low-mass partially degenerate helium-star, as these stars are
thought to be the best LISA verification binary GW sources.Comment: 105 pages, 18 figure
Brane-World Gravity
The observable universe could be a 1+3-surface (the "brane") embedded in a
1+3+\textit{d}-dimensional spacetime (the "bulk"), with Standard Model
particles and fields trapped on the brane while gravity is free to access the
bulk. At least one of the \textit{d} extra spatial dimensions could be very
large relative to the Planck scale, which lowers the fundamental gravity scale,
possibly even down to the electroweak ( TeV) level. This revolutionary
picture arises in the framework of recent developments in M theory. The
1+10-dimensional M theory encompasses the known 1+9-dimensional superstring
theories, and is widely considered to be a promising potential route to quantum
gravity. At low energies, gravity is localized at the brane and general
relativity is recovered, but at high energies gravity "leaks" into the bulk,
behaving in a truly higher-dimensional way. This introduces significant changes
to gravitational dynamics and perturbations, with interesting and potentially
testable implications for high-energy astrophysics, black holes, and cosmology.
Brane-world models offer a phenomenological way to test some of the novel
predictions and corrections to general relativity that are implied by M theory.
This review analyzes the geometry, dynamics and perturbations of simple
brane-world models for cosmology and astrophysics, mainly focusing on warped
5-dimensional brane-worlds based on the Randall--Sundrum models. We also cover
the simplest brane-world models in which 4-dimensional gravity on the brane is
modified at \emph{low} energies -- the 5-dimensional Dvali--Gabadadze--Porrati
models. Then we discuss co-dimension two branes in 6-dimensional models.Comment: A major update of Living Reviews in Relativity 7:7 (2004)
"Brane-World Gravity", 119 pages, 28 figures, the update contains new
material on RS perturbations, including full numerical solutions of
gravitational waves and scalar perturbations, on DGP models, and also on 6D
models. A published version in Living Reviews in Relativit
Limits on Anomalous Triple Gauge Couplings in ppbar Collisions at sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV
We present a search for anomalous triple gauge couplings (ATGC) in WW and WZ
boson production. The boson pairs are produced in ppbar collisions at
sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV, and the data sample corresponds to 350 pb-1 of integrated
luminosity collected with the CDF II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. In this
search one W decays to leptons, and the other boson (W or Z) decays
hadronically. Combining with a previously published CDF measurement of Wgamma
boson production yields ATGC limits of -0.18 < lambda < 0.17 and -0.46 < Delta
kappa < 0.39 at the 95% confidence level, using a cut-off scale Lambda=1.5 TeV.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev.
f(R) theories
Over the past decade, f(R) theories have been extensively studied as one of
the simplest modifications to General Relativity. In this article we review
various applications of f(R) theories to cosmology and gravity - such as
inflation, dark energy, local gravity constraints, cosmological perturbations,
and spherically symmetric solutions in weak and strong gravitational
backgrounds. We present a number of ways to distinguish those theories from
General Relativity observationally and experimentally. We also discuss the
extension to other modified gravity theories such as Brans-Dicke theory and
Gauss-Bonnet gravity, and address models that can satisfy both cosmological and
local gravity constraints.Comment: 156 pages, 14 figures, Invited review article in Living Reviews in
Relativity, Published version, Comments are welcom
Measurement of the Lambda_b Lifetime in Lambda_b --> J/psi Lambda0 in p-pbar Collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96 TeV
We report a measurement of the Lambda_b lifetime in the exclusive decay
Lambda_b --> J/psi Lambda0 in p-pbar collisions at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV using an
integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb^{-1} of data collected by the CDF II detector
at the Fermilab Tevatron. Using fully reconstructed decays, we measure
tau(Lambda_b) = 1.593 ^{+0.083}_{-0.078} (stat.) +- 0.033 (syst.) ps. This is
the single most precise measurement of tau(Lambda_b) and is 3.2 sigma higher
than the current world average.Comment: 7 Pages, 2 Figures, 1 Table. Submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Search for Pair Production of Scalar Top Quarks Decaying to a tau Lepton and a b Quark in ppbar Collisions at sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV
We search for pair production of supersymmetric top quarks (~t_1), followed
by R-parity violating decay ~t_1 -> tau b with a branching ratio beta, using
322 pb^-1 of ppbar collisions at sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV collected by the CDF II
detector at Fermilab. Two candidate events pass our final selection criteria,
consistent with the standard model expectation. We set upper limits on the
cross section sigma(~t_1 ~tbar_1)*beta^2 as a function of the stop mass
m(~t_1). Assuming beta=1, we set a 95% confidence level limit m(~t_1)>153
GeV/c^2. The limits are also applicable to the case of a third generation
scalar leptoquark (LQ_3) decaying LQ_3 -> tau b.Comment: 7 pages, 2 eps figure
Precision measurement of the top quark mass from dilepton events at CDF II
We report a measurement of the top quark mass, M_t, in the dilepton decay
channel of
using an integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb^{-1} of p\bar{p} collisions collected
with the CDF II detector. We apply a method that convolutes a leading-order
matrix element with detector resolution functions to form event-by-event
likelihoods; we have enhanced the leading-order description to describe the
effects of initial-state radiation. The joint likelihood is the product of the
likelihoods from 78 candidate events in this sample, which yields a measurement
of M_{t} = 164.5 \pm 3.9(\textrm{stat.}) \pm 3.9(\textrm{syst.})
\mathrm{GeV}/c^2, the most precise measurement of M_t in the dilepton channel.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, version includes changes made prior to
publication by journa
Cross Section Measurements of High- Dilepton Final-State Processes Using a Global Fitting Method
We present a new method for studying high- dilepton events
(, , ) and simultaneously
extracting the production cross sections of , , and p\bar{p} \to \ztt at a center-of-mass energy of TeV. We perform a likelihood fit to the dilepton data in a parameter
space defined by the missing transverse energy and the number of jets in the
event. Our results, which use of data recorded with the CDF
II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider, are pb, pb, and
\sigma(\ztt) =291^{+50}_{-46} pb.Comment: 20 pages, 2 figures, to be submitted to PRD-R
Measurement of the Ratios of Branching Fractions B(Bs -> Ds pi pi pi) / B(Bd -> Dd pi pi pi) and B(Bs -> Ds pi) / B(Bd -> Dd pi)
Using 355 pb^-1 of data collected by the CDF II detector in \ppbar collisions
at sqrt{s} = 1.96 TeV at the Fermilab Tevatron, we study the fully
reconstructed hadronic decays B -> D pi and B -> D pi pi pi. We present the
first measurement of the ratio of branching fractions B(Bs -> Ds pi pi pi) /
B(Bd -> Dd pi pi pi) = 1.05 pm 0.10 (stat) pm 0.22 (syst). We also update our
measurement of B(Bs -> Ds pi) / B(Bd -> Dd pi) to 1.13 pm 0.08 (stat) pm 0.23
(syst) improving the statistical uncertainty by more than a factor of two. We
find B(Bs -> Ds pi) = [3.8 pm 0.3 (stat) pm 1.3 (syst)] \times 10^{-3} and B(Bs
-> Ds pi pi pi) = [8.4 pm 0.8 (stat) pm 3.2 (syst)] \times 10^{-3}.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
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