Phenomenological analysis connecting proton-proton and antiproton-proton elastic scattering

Based on the behavior of the elastic scattering data, we introduce an almost model-independent parametrization for the imaginary part of the scattering amplitude, with the energy and momentum transfer dependences inferred on empirical basis and selected by rigorous theorems and bounds from axiomatic quantum field theory. The corresponding real part is analytically evaluated by means of dispersion relations, allowing connections between particle-particle and particle-antiparticle scattering. Simultaneous fits to proton-proton and antiproton-proton experimental data in the forward direction and also including data beyond the forward direction, lead to a predictive formalism in both energy and momentum transfer. We compare our extrapolations with predictions from some popular models and discuss the applicability of the results in the normalization of elastic rates that can be extracted from present and future accelerator experiments (Tevatron, RHIC and LHC).Comment: 17 pages, 17 figures, to appear in Eur. Phys. J.

Photon and Z induced heavy charged lepton pair production at a hadron supercollider

We investigate the pair production of charged heavy leptons via photon-induced processes at the proposed CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Using effective photon and Z approximations, rates are given for $L^+L^-$ production due to $\gamma \gamma$ fusion and $Z \gamma$ fusion for the cases of inelastic, elastic and semi-elastic $pp$ collisions. These are compared with the corresponding rates for production via the gluon fusion and Drell-Yan mechanisms. Various $\gamma \gamma$ and $Z \gamma$ differential luminosities for $pp$ collisions are also presented.Comment: 22 pages, RevTex 3.0, 6 uuencoded and compressed postscript figures included. Reference to one paper changed from the original preprint number to the published version. Everything else unchange

Relic Neutrino Absorption Spectroscopy

Resonant annihilation of extremely high-energy cosmic neutrinos on big-bang relic anti-neutrinos (and vice versa) into Z-bosons leads to sizable absorption dips in the neutrino flux to be observed at Earth. The high-energy edges of these dips are fixed, via the resonance energies, by the neutrino masses alone. Their depths are determined by the cosmic neutrino background density, by the cosmological parameters determining the expansion rate of the universe, and by the large redshift history of the cosmic neutrino sources. We investigate the possibility of determining the existence of the cosmic neutrino background within the next decade from a measurement of these absorption dips in the neutrino flux. As a by-product, we study the prospects to infer the absolute neutrino mass scale. We find that, with the presently planned neutrino detectors (ANITA, Auger, EUSO, OWL, RICE, and SalSA) operating in the relevant energy regime above 10^{21} eV, relic neutrino absorption spectroscopy becomes a realistic possibility. It requires, however, the existence of extremely powerful neutrino sources, which should be opaque to nucleons and high-energy photons to evade present constraints. Furthermore, the neutrino mass spectrum must be quasi-degenerate to optimize the dip, which implies m_{nu} >~ 0.1 eV for the lightest neutrino. With a second generation of neutrino detectors, these demanding requirements can be relaxed considerably.Comment: 19 pages, 26 figures, REVTeX

Three-generation flavor transitions and decays of supernova relic neutrinos

If neutrinos have mass, they can also decay. Decay lifetimes of cosmological interest can be probed, in principle, through the detection of the redshifted, diffuse neutrino flux produced by all past supernovae--the so-called supernova relic neutrino (SRN) flux. In this work, we solve the SRN kinetic equations in the general case of three-generation flavor transitions followed by invisible (nonradiative) two-body decays. We then use the general solution to calculate observable SRN spectra in some representative decay scenarios. It is shown that, in the presence of decay, the SRN event rate can basically span the whole range below the current experimental upper bound--a range accessible to future experimental projects. Radiative SRN decays are also briefly discussed.Comment: 25 pages, including 7 figure

Heavy quarkonium: progress, puzzles, and opportunities

A golden age for heavy quarkonium physics dawned a decade ago, initiated by the confluence of exciting advances in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and an explosion of related experimental activity. The early years of this period were chronicled in the Quarkonium Working Group (QWG) CERN Yellow Report (YR) in 2004, which presented a comprehensive review of the status of the field at that time and provided specific recommendations for further progress. However, the broad spectrum of subsequent breakthroughs, surprises, and continuing puzzles could only be partially anticipated. Since the release of the YR, the BESII program concluded only to give birth to BESIII; the $B$-factories and CLEO-c flourished; quarkonium production and polarization measurements at HERA and the Tevatron matured; and heavy-ion collisions at RHIC have opened a window on the deconfinement regime. All these experiments leave legacies of quality, precision, and unsolved mysteries for quarkonium physics, and therefore beg for continuing investigations. The plethora of newly-found quarkonium-like states unleashed a flood of theoretical investigations into new forms of matter such as quark-gluon hybrids, mesonic molecules, and tetraquarks. Measurements of the spectroscopy, decays, production, and in-medium behavior of c\bar{c}, b\bar{b}, and b\bar{c} bound states have been shown to validate some theoretical approaches to QCD and highlight lack of quantitative success for others. The intriguing details of quarkonium suppression in heavy-ion collisions that have emerged from RHIC have elevated the importance of separating hot- and cold-nuclear-matter effects in quark-gluon plasma studies. This review systematically addresses all these matters and concludes by prioritizing directions for ongoing and future efforts.Comment: 182 pages, 112 figures. Editors: N. Brambilla, S. Eidelman, B. K. Heltsley, R. Vogt. Section Coordinators: G. T. Bodwin, E. Eichten, A. D. Frawley, A. B. Meyer, R. E. Mitchell, V. Papadimitriou, P. Petreczky, A. A. Petrov, P. Robbe, A. Vair

Model-independent analysis of Higgs spin and CP properties in the process e+e−→ttˉΦe^+ e^- \to t \bar t \Phi

In this paper we investigate methods to study the $t\bar{t}$ Higgs coupling. The spin and CP properties of a Higgs boson are analysed in a model-independent way in its associated production with a $t\bar{t}$ pair in high-energy $e^+e^-$ collisions. We study the prospects of establishing the CP quantum numbers of the Higgs boson in the CP-conserving case as well as those of determining the CP-mixing if CP is violated. We explore in this analysis the combined use of the total cross section and its energy dependence, the polarisation asymmetry of the top quark and the up-down asymmetry of the antitop with respect to the top-electron plane. We find that combining all three observables remarkably reduces the error on the determination of the CP properties of the Higgs Yukawa coupling. Furthermore, the top polarisation asymmetry and the ratio of cross sections at different collider energies are shown to be sensitive to the spin of the particle produced in association with the top quark pair

QCD Corrections and Non-standard Three Vector Boson Couplings in W+W−W^+W^- Production at Hadron Colliders

The process p\,p\hskip-7pt\hbox{^{^{(\!-\!)}}} \rightarrow W^{+} W^{-} + X \rightarrow \ell^+_1 \nu_1 \ell^-_2 \bar \nu_2 + X is calculated to ${\cal O}(\alpha_s)$ for general $C$ and $P$ conserving $WWV$ couplings ($V=\gamma,\, Z$). The prospects for probing the $WWV$ couplings in this reaction are explored. The impact of ${\cal O}(\alpha_s)$ QCD corrections and various background processes on the observability of non-standard $WWV$ couplings in $W^+ W^-$ production at the Tevatron and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is discussed in detail. Sensitivity limits for anomalous $WWV$ couplings are derived at next-to-leading order for the Tevatron and LHC center of mass energies, and are compared to the bounds which can be achieved in other processes. Unless a jet veto or a cut on the total transverse momentum of the hadrons in the event is imposed, the ${\cal O}(\alpha_s)$ QCD corrections and the background from top quark production decrease the sensitivity of p\,p\hskip-7pt\hbox{^{^{(\!-\!)}}} \rightarrow W^{+} W^{-} + X \rightarrow \ell^+_1 \nu_1 \ell^-_2 \bar \nu_2 + X to anomalous $WWV$ couplings by a factor two to five.Comment: REVTEX 3, 62 pages, 21 Figures (not included available upon request), the postscript file of the complete paper is available at ftp://ucdhep.ucdavis.edu/han/ww/ww_paper.p

Search for leptophobic Z ' bosons decaying into four-lepton final states in proton-proton collisions at root s=8 TeV

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Search for heavy resonances decaying into a vector boson and a Higgs boson in final states with charged leptons, neutrinos, and b quarks

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