Tree-level metastability bounds for the most general two Higgs doublet model

Within two Higgs doublet models, it is possible that the current vacuum is not the global minimum, in which case it could possibly decay at a later stage. We discuss the tree-level conditions which must be obeyed by the most general scalar potential in order to preclude that possibility. We propose a new procedure which is not only more general but also easier to implement than the previously published one, including CP conserving as well as CP violating scalar sectors. We illustrate these conditions within the context of the Z2 model, softly broken by a complex, CP violating parameter.Comment: RevTex, 13 pages, 3 figure

A CP-conserving multi-Higgs model without real basis

Models beyond the Standard Model (bSM) often involve elaborate Higgs sectors, which can be a source of CP-violation. It brings up the question of recognizing in an efficient way whether a model is CP-violating. There is a diffuse belief that the issue of explicit CP invariance can be linked to the existence of a basis in which all coefficients are real; with even a theorem proposed a decade ago claiming that the scalar sector of any multi-Higgs doublet model is explicitly CP-conserving if and only if all of its coefficients can be made real by a basis change. This is compounded by the fact that in all specific multi Higgs models considered so far, the calculations complied with this claim. Here, we present the first counterexample to this statement: a CP-conserving three-Higgs-doublet model for which no real basis exists. We outline the phenomenological consequences of this model, and notice that the extra neutral Higgs bosons are neither CP-even nor CP-odd but are "half-odd" under the generalized CP-symmetry of the model.Comment: 6 pages; v2: abstract, introduction, conclusions reformulated, all the results stay unchange

Generalized CP Invariance and the Yukawa sector of Two-Higgs Models

We analyze generalized CP symmetries of two-Higgs doublet models, extending them from the scalar to the fermion sector of the theory. We show that, with a single exception, those symmetries imply massless fermions. The single model which accommodates a fermionic mass spectrum compatible with experimental data possesses a remarkable feature. It displays a new type of spontaneous CP violation, which occurs not in the scalar sector responsible for the symmetry breaking mechanism but, rather, in the fermion sector.Comment: RevTex, 4 pages, no figures Version2: Remarkable additional conclusion => title & text changes; section adde

The present development of time service in Brazil, with the application of the TV line-10 method for coordination and synchronization of atomic clocks

Various methods presently used for the dissemination of time at several levels of precision are described along with future projects in the field. Different aspects of time coordination are reviewed and a list of future laboratories participating in a National Time Scale will be presented. A Brazilian Atomic Time Scale will be obtained from as many of these laboratories as possible. The problem of intercomparison between the Brazilian National Time Scale and the International one will be presented and probable solutions will be discussed. Needs related to the TV Line-10 method will be explained and comments will be made on the legal aspects of time dissemination throughout the country