29 research outputs found
Non-Standard Neutrino Interactions from a Triplet Seesaw Model
We investigate non-standard neutrino interactions (NSIs) in the triplet
seesaw model featuring non-trivial correlations between NSI parameters and
neutrino masses and mixing parameters. We show that sizable NSIs can be
generated as a consequence of a nearly degenerate neutrino mass spectrum. Thus,
these NSIs could lead to quite significant signals of lepton flavor violating
decays such as \mu^- \to e^- \nu_e anti\nu_\mu and \mu^+ \to e^+ anti\nu_e
\nu_\mu at a future neutrino factory, effects adding to the uncertainty in
determination of the Earth matter density profile, as well as characteristic
patterns of the doubly charged Higgs decays observable at the Large Hadron
Collider.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures and 1 table; v2: minor corrections, Sect. IV
revise
Non-standard antineutrino interactions at Daya Bay
We study the prospects of pinning down the effects of non-standard
antineutrino interactions in the source and in the detector at the Daya Bay
neutrino facility. It is well known that if the non-standard interactions in
the detection process are of the same type as those in the production, their
net effect can be subsumed into a mere shift in the measured value of the
leptonic mixing angle theta_13. Relaxing this assumption, the ratio of the
antineutrino spectra measured by the Daya Bay far and near detectors is
distorted in a characteristic way, and good fits based on the standard
oscillation hypothesis are no longer viable. We show that, under certain
conditions, three years of Daya Bay running can be sufficient to provide a
clear hint of non-standard neutrino physics.Comment: 31 pages, 12 figures; a brief discussion of systematics added in v2,
published versio
Soft masses in SUSY SO(10) GUTs with low intermediate scales
The specific shape of the squark, slepton and gaugino mass spectra, if
measured with suficient accuracy, can provide invaluable information not only
about the dynamics underpinning their origin at some very high scale such as
the unification scale MG, but also about the intermediate scale physics
encountered throughout their RGE evolution down to the energy scale accessible
for the LHC. In this work, we study general features of the TeV scale soft SUSY
breaking parameters stemming from a generic mSugra configuration within certain
classes of SUSY SO(10) GUTs with different intermediate symmetries below MG. We
show that particular combinations of soft masses show characteristic deviations
from the mSugra limit in different models and thus, potentially, allow to
distinguish between these, even if the new intermediate scales are outside the
energy range probed at accelerators. We also compare our results to those
obtained for the three minimal seesaw models with mSugra boundary conditions
and discuss the main differences between those and our SO(10) based models.Comment: 18 pages, 12 figures, 5 table
A unified leptoquark model confronted with lepton non-universality in B-meson decays
The anomalies in the B-meson sector, in particular RK(⁎) and RD(⁎), are often interpreted as hints for physics beyond the Standard Model. To this end, leptoquarks or a heavy Z′ represent the most popular SM extensions which can explain the observations. However, adding these fields by hand is not very satisfactory as it does not address the big questions like a possible embedding into a unified gauge theory. On the other hand, light leptoquarks within a unified framework are challenging due to additional constraints such as lepton flavor violation. The existing accounts typically deal with this issue by providing estimates on the relevant couplings. In this letter we consider a complete model based on the SU(4)C⊗SU(2)L⊗U(1)R gauge symmetry, a subgroup of SO(10), featuring both scalar and vector leptoquarks. We demonstrate that this setup has, in principle, all the potential to accommodate RK(⁎) and RD(⁎) while respecting bounds from other sectors usually checked in this context. However, it turns out that KL→e±μ∓ severely constraints not only the vector but also the scalar leptoquarks and, consequently, also the room for any sizeable deviations of RK(⁎) from 1. We briefly comment on the options for extending the model in order to conform this constraint. Moreover, we present a simple criterion for all-orders proton stability within this class of models
Argon plasma irradiation of polypropylene
a b s t r a c t Polypropylene samples were exposed to argon plasma discharge and the changes of the PP surface properties were studied by different methods. Surface wettability was derived from contact angle measured by standard goniometry and chemical structure of the plasma modified PP was studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS), surface morphology and roughness of samples using AFM. Zeta potential of pristine and modified PP was determined with the SurPASS. The presence of incorporated oxygen in the PP surface layer, about 60 nm thick, was observed in RBS spectra. Oxygen concentration is a decreasing function of the depth. With progressing aging time the oxygen concentration on the PP surface decreases. Plasma treatment results in a rapid decrease of the contact angle, which increases again with increasing aging time. In XPS measurement the oxygen containing structures, created by the plasma treatment, were found on the very surface of the modified PP and the zeta potential being changed too. The significant difference in zeta potential between pristine and plasma treated PP clearly indicates that the plasma treatment leads to a more hydrophilic PP surface
Hefty MSSM-like light Higgs in extended gauge models
It is well known that in the MSSM the lightest neutral Higgs h^0 must be, at
the tree level, lighter than the Z boson and that the loop corrections shift
this stringent upper bound up to about 130 GeV. Extending the MSSM gauge group
in a suitable way, the new Higgs sector dynamics can push the tree-level mass
of h^0 well above the tree-level MSSM limit if it couples to the new gauge
sector. This effect is further pronounced at the loop level and h^0 masses in
the 140 GeV ballpark can be reached easily. We exemplify this for a sample
setting with a low-scale U(1)_R x U(1)_B-L gauge symmetry in which neutrino
masses can be implemented via the inverse seesaw mechanism.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures; references added, typos corrected; published
versio
Searches for baryon number violation in neutrino experiments: a white paper
Baryon number conservation is not guaranteed by any fundamental symmetry within the standard model, and therefore has been a subject of experimental and theoretical scrutiny for decades. So far, no evidence for baryon number violation has been observed. Large underground detectors have long been used for both neutrino detection and searches for baryon number violating processes. The next generation of large neutrino detectors will seek to improve upon the limits set by past and current experiments and will cover a range of lifetimes predicted by several Grand Unified Theories. In this White Paper, we summarize theoretical motivations and experimental aspects of searches for baryon number violation in neutrino experiments
Webometrics benefitting from web mining? An investigation of methods and applications of two research fields
Webometrics and web mining are two fields where research is focused on quantitative analyses of the web. This literature review outlines definitions of the fields, and then focuses on their methods and applications. It also discusses the potential of closer contact and collaboration between them. A key difference between the fields is that webometrics has focused on exploratory studies, whereas web mining has been dominated by studies focusing on development of methods and algorithms. Differences in type of data can also be seen, with webometrics more focused on analyses of the structure of the web and web mining more focused on web content and usage, even though both fields have been embracing the possibilities of user generated content. It is concluded that research problems where big data is needed can benefit from collaboration between webometricians, with their tradition of exploratory studies, and web miners, with their tradition of developing methods and algorithms
Construction status and prospects of the Hyper-Kamiokande project
The Hyper-Kamiokande project is a 258-kton Water Cherenkov together with a 1.3-MW high-intensity neutrino beam from the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC). The inner detector with 186-kton fiducial volume is viewed by 20-inch photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) and multi-PMT modules, and thereby provides state-of-the-art of Cherenkov ring reconstruction with thresholds in the range of few MeVs. The project is expected to lead to precision neutrino oscillation studies, especially neutrino CP violation, nucleon decay searches, and low energy neutrino astronomy. In 2020, the project was officially approved and construction of the far detector was started at Kamioka. In 2021, the excavation of the access tunnel and initial mass production of the newly developed 20-inch PMTs was also started. In this paper, we present a basic overview of the project and the latest updates on the construction status of the project, which is expected to commence operation in 2027