876 research outputs found
Electric Charge Quantization
Experimentally it has been known for a long time that the electric charges of
the observed particles appear to be quantized. An approach to understanding
electric charge quantization that can be used for gauge theories with explicit
factors -- such as the standard model and its variants -- is
pedagogically reviewed and discussed in this article. This approach uses the
allowed invariances of the Lagrangian and their associated anomaly cancellation
equations. We demonstrate that charge may be de-quantized in the
three-generation standard model with massless neutrinos, because differences in
family-lepton--numbers are anomaly-free. We also review the relevant
experimental limits. Our approach to charge quantization suggests that the
minimal standard model should be extended so that family-lepton--number
differences are explicitly broken. We briefly discuss some candidate extensions
(e.g. the minimal standard model augmented by Majorana right-handed neutrinos).Comment: 18 pages, LaTeX, UM-P-92/5
Experimental observation of the 'Tilting Mode' of an array of vortices in a dilute Bose-Einstein Condensate
We have measured the precession frequency of a vortex lattice in a
Bose-Einstein condensate of 87Rb atoms. The observed mode corresponds to a
collective motion in which all the vortices in the array are tilted by a small
angle with respect to the z-axis (the symmetry axis of the trapping potential)
and synchronously rotate about this axis. This motion corresponds to excitation
of a Kelvin wave along the core of each vortex and we have verified that it has
the handedness expected for such helical waves, i.e. precession in the opposite
sense to the rotational flow around the vortices. The experimental method used
to excite this collective mode closely resembles that used to study the
scissors mode and excitation of the scissors mode for a condensate containing a
vortex array was used to determine the angular momentum of the system. Indeed,
the collective tilting of the array that we have observed has previously been
referred to as an `anomalous' scissors mode.Comment: 5 pages, 7 figures to be published in PR
An apparatus to search for mirror dark matter via the invisible decay of orthopositronium in vacuum
Mirror matter is a possible dark matter candidate. It is predicted to exist
if parity is an unbroken symmetry of the vacuum. The existence of the mirror
matter, which in addition to gravity is coupled to our world through
photon-mirror photon mixing, would result in orthopositronium (o-Ps) to mirror
orthopositronium (o-Ps') oscillations. The experimental signature of this
effect is the invisible decay of o-Ps in vacuum.
This paper describes the design of the new experiment for a search for the
o-Ps -> invisible decay in vacuum with a sensitivity in the branching ratio of
Br(o-Ps -> invisible)\simeq 10^{-7}, which is an order of magnitude better than
the present limit on this decay mode from the Big Bang Nucleosynthesis. The
experiment is based on a high-efficiency pulsed slow positron beam, which is
also applicable for other experiments with o-Ps, and (with some modifications)
for applied studies. Details of the experimental design and of a new pulsing
method, as well as preliminary results on requirements for the pulsed beam
components are presented. The effects of o-Ps collisions with the cavity walls
as well as the influence of external fields on the o-Ps to o-Ps' oscillation
probability are also discussed.Comment: 28 pages, 8 figure
Solutions of the atmospheric, solar and LSND neutrino anomalies from TeV scale quark-lepton unification
There is a unique gauge model which
allows quarks and leptons to be unified at the TeV scale. It is already known
that the neutrino masses arise radiatively in the model and are naturally
light. We study the atmospheric, solar and LSND neutrino anomalies within the
framework of this model.Comment: Minor changes, 31 page
Implications of TeV scale SU(4)xSU(2)_LxSU(2)_R quark-lepton unification
The alternative gauge model, which
allows unification of the quarks and leptons at the TeV scale, is studied in
detail. We discuss the implications for nucleon decay, B and K rare meson
decays and neutrino masses. We also explain how this model solves the gauge
hierarchy problem without using supersymmetry or extra large dimensions.Comment: About 12 pages, 3 eps figs, late
Energy-dependent solar neutrino flux depletion in the Exact Parity Model and implications for SNO, SuperKamiokande and BOREXINO
Energy-dependent solar neutrino flux reduction caused by the
Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein (MSW) effect is applied to the Exact Parity Model.
Several scenarios are possible, depending on the region of parameter space
chosen. The interplay between intergenerational MSW transitions and vacuum
``intragenerational'' ordinary-mirror neutrino oscillations is discussed.
Expectations for the ratio of charged to neutral current event rates at the
Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) are estimated. The implications of the
various scenarios for the Boron neutrino energy spectrum and BOREXINO are
briefly discussed. The consequences of MSW-induced solar neutrino depletion
within the Exact Parity Model differ in interesting ways from the standard
and cases. The physical causes of
these differences are determined.Comment: 43 pages, 8 figures, RevTeX; to appear in Phys. Rev. D, accepted
versio
Active-sterile neutrino oscillations in the early Universe: asymmetry generation at low |delta m^2| and the Landau-Zener approximation
It is well established that active-sterile neutrino oscillations generate
large neutrino asymmetries for very small mixing angles (), negative values of and provided that
. By numerically solving the quantum
kinetic equations, we show that the generation still occurs at much lower
values of . We also describe the borders of the generation at
small mixing angles and show how our numerical results can be analytically
understood within the framework of the Landau-Zener approximation thereby
extending previous work based on the adiabatic limit. This approximate approach
leads to a fair description of the MSW dominated regime of the neutrino
asymmetry evolution and is also able to correctly reproduce its final value. We
also briefly discuss the impact that neutrino asymmetry generation could have
on big bang nucleosynthesis, CMBR and relic neutrinos.Comment: 29 pages, 8 figures; to appear on Phys. ReV. D; figure 7 added, new
curves in figure 5a, new figure
Detailed study of BBN implications of neutrino oscillation generated neutrino asymmetries in some four neutrino models
We re-examine the evolution of neutrino asymmetries in several four neutrino
models. The first case involves the direct creation of by oscillations. In the second case, we consider the mass
hierarchy where oscillations generate a large and some of
this asymmetry is converted into by oscillations. We estimate the implications for BBN for a range of
cosmologically interesting values. The present paper improves on
previous published work by taking into account the finite repopulation rate and
the time dependence of the distortions to the neutrino momentum distributions.
The treatment of chemical decoupling is also improved.Comment: Expanded discussion on the sign of the neutrino asymmetr
Sterile Neutrinos in E_6 and a Natural Understanding of Vacuum Oscillation Solution to the Solar Neutrino Puzzle
If Nature has chosen the vacuum oscillation solution to the Solar neutrino
puzzle, a key theoretical challenge is to understand the extreme smallness of
the () required for the purpose.
We find that in a class of models such as [SU(3)]^3 or its parent group E_6,
which contain one sterile neutrino, for each family, the is proportional to the cube of the lepton Yukawa
coupling. Therefore fitting the atmospheric neutrino data then predicts the
mass difference square to be , where the atmospheric neutrino data is assumed to be
solved via the oscillation. This provides a natural
explanation of the vacuum oscillation solution to the solar neutrino problem.Comment: 7 pages, UMD-PP-99-109; new references added; no other chang
Neutrino physics and the mirror world: how exact parity symmetry explains the solar neutrino deficit, the atmospheric neutrino anomaly and the LSND experiment
Evidence for oscillations has been
reported at LAMPF using the LSND detector. Further evidence for neutrino mixing
comes from the solar neutrino deficit and the atmospheric neutrino anomaly. All
of these anomalies require new physics. We show that all of these anomalies can
be explained if the standard model is enlarged so that an unbroken parity
symmetry can be defined. This explanation holds independently of the actual
model for neutrino masses. Thus, we argue that parity symmetry is not only a
beautiful candidate for a symmetry beyond the standard model, but it can also
explain the known neutrino physics anomalies.Comment: 27 pages, LaTeX, no figures, additional discussion on big bang
nucleosynthesis, some additional references, to appear in Phys. Rev.
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