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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

How to falsify string theory at a collider

The string landscape accommodates a broad range of possible effective field theories. This poses a challenge for extracting verifiable predictions as well as falsifiable signatures of string theory. Motivated by these considerations, in this work we observe that all known stringy standard models support only low-dimensional representations of the gauge group. While it is in principle possible to produce contrived models with higher-dimensional representations, these generically appear in a tower of states with lighter ones in lower-dimensional representations, i.e., not in isolation. With this in mind, we consider the phenomenologically well-motivated scenario given by adding a single Majorana field in a real, 𝑛-dimensional representation of 𝑆⁢𝑈⁢(2) 𝐿 with 𝑛≥5 and nothing else . This scenario is not realized in any known string construction, and we conjecture that this is true of string theory in general. Detection of this scenario would thus amount to falsifying the (known) string landscape. We recast existing LHC searches for new electroweak states to extract updated bounds on this class of scenarios. Improved limits from future colliders and dark matter detection experiments provide additional routes to potentially falsifying string theory.

extensions of fermion sector↗
DOE OSTI2025

Cosmic structure strikes back: The elimination of vector-mediated nonstandard interaction models as a mechanism for sterile neutrino dark matter production

We revisit sterile neutrino production enabled by nonstandard interactions (NSIs) among active neutrinos mediated by new bosons. We focus on vector mediators, including neutrinophilic, gauged 𝐿 𝜇 −𝐿 𝜏 , and 𝐵−𝐿 realizations, that modify in-medium dispersion and scattering, thereby altering the active-sterile conversion history. Building on a novel production framework with NSI thermal potentials and collision integrals, we compute nonthermal phase-space distributions across sterile neutrino mixing and NSI parameters and map each point to an equivalent thermal warm dark matter particle mass 𝑚 th via linear theory transfer function fitting with the cosmological structure formation Boltzmann solver. This enables a direct reinterpretation of state-of-the-art structure formation limits from Milky Way satellites, strong lensing, and the Lyman-𝛼 forest. These limits, in conjunction with x-ray decay searches, as well as results from a wide variety of particle physics experiments allow for a more complete examination of these models. We find that these vector-mediated models are ruled out when the full combination of current constraints, listed above, are taken into account. NSI scalar-mediated models and models with low reheating temperatures remain viable.

cosmology↗
DOE OSTI2024

Flipped Quartification: Product Group Unification with Leptoquarks

The quartification model is an SU(3) 4 extension with a bi-fundamental fermion sector of the well-known SU(3) 3 bi-fundamentalfication model. An alternative “flipped” version of the quartification model is obtained by rearrangement of the particle assignments. The flipped model has two standard (bi-fundamentalfication) families and one flipped quartification family. In contrast to traditional product group unification models, flipped quartification stands out by featuring leptoquarks and thus allows for new mechanisms to explain the generation of neutrino masses and possible hints of lepton-flavor non-universality.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Scalar-induced neutrinoless double beta decay in SU(5)

We discuss the role of heavy scalar fields in mediating neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ) within the SU(5) Grand Unified Theory framework, extended suitably to include neutrino mass. In such a minimal realistic SU(5) setup for fermion masses, the scalar contributions to 0νββ are extremely suppressed as a consequence of the proton decay bound. We circumvent this problem by imposing a discrete Z 3 symmetry. However, the scalar contributions to 0νββ remain suppressed in this SU(5) x Z 3 model due to the neutrino mass constraint. We find that the 0νββ contribution can be enhanced by extending the scalar sector with an additional 15-dimensional scalar representation with suitable Z 3 charge. Such an extension not only yields realistic fermion mass spectra but also leads to experimentally testable predictions in upcoming ton-scale 0νββ searches, which can be used as a sensitive probe of the new scalars across a broad range, from LHC-accessible scales up to ∼ 10 10 GeV.

Baryon/Lepton Number Violation↗
DOE OSTI2024

Fermion mass, axion dark matter, and leptogenesis in SO(10) GUT

SO(10) grand unified theory with minimum parameters in the Yukawa sector employs the Peccei-Quinn symmetry that solves the strong C P problem. Such an economical Yukawa sector is highly appealing and has been extensively studied in the literature. However, when the running of the renormalization group equations of the Yukawa couplings are considered, this scenario shows some tension with the observed fermion masses and mixing. In this work, we propose an extension of the minimal framework that utilizes lower dimensional representations and alleviates this tension by introducing only a few new parameters. The proposed model consists of a fermion in the fundamental and a scalar in the spinorial representations. While the latter is needed to implement the Peccei-Quinn symmetry successfully, the presence of both is essential in obtaining an excellent fit to the fermion mass spectrum. In our model, axions serve the role of dark matter, and the out-of-equilibrium decays of the right-handed neutrinos successfully generate the matter-antimatter symmetry of the Universe. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Search for Millicharged Particles in Proton-Proton Collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13.6 TeV

We report on a search for elementary particles with charges much smaller than the electron charge using a data sample of proton-proton collisions provided by the CERN Large Hadron Collider in 2023–24, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 124.7 fb −1 at a center-of-mass energy of 13.6 TeV. The analysis presented uses the completed Run 3 milliQan bar detector to set the most stringent constraints to date for particles with charges ≤ 0.24 e and masses ≥ 0.45 GeV.

Extensions of gauge sector↗
DOE OSTI2023

Tree-level Unitarity in $$ \textrm{SU}{(2)}_L\times \textrm{U}{(1)}_Y\times \textrm{U}{(1)}_{Y^{\prime }} $$ Models

Abstract In models with a U(1) gauge extension beyond the Standard Model, one can derive sum rules for the couplings of the theory that are a consequence of tree-level unitarity. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive list of coupling sum rules for a general$$ \textrm{SU}{(2)}_L\times \textrm{U}{(1)}_Y\times \textrm{U}{(1)}_{Y^{\prime }} $$ SU 2 L × U 1 Y × U 1 Y ′ gauge theory coupled to an arbitrary set of fermion and scalar multiplets. These results are of particular interest for models of dark matter that employ an extended gauge sector mediated by a new (dark)Z ′ gauge boson. For the case of a minimal extension of the Standard Model with a$$ \textrm{U}{(1)}_{Y^{\prime }} $$ U 1 Y ′ gauge boson, we clarify the definitions of the weak mixing angle and the electroweakρparameter. We demonstrate the utility of a generalizedρparameter (denoted byρ ′ ) whose definition naturally follows from the unitarity sum rules developed in this paper.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2022

Solving quasi-free and quadratic Lindblad master equations for open fermionic and bosonic systems

The dynamics of Markovian open quantum systems are described by Lindblad master equations. For fermionic and bosonic systems that are quasi-free, i.e. with Hamiltonians that are quadratic in the ladder operators and Lindblad operators that are linear in the ladder operators, we derive the equation of motion for the covariance matrix. This determines the evolution of Gaussian initial states and the steady states, which are also Gaussian. Using ladder super-operators (a.k.a. third quantization), here we show how the Liouvillian can be transformed to a many-body Jordan normal form which also reveals the full many-body spectrum. Extending previous work by Prosen and Seligman, we treat fermionic and bosonic systems on equal footing with Majorana operators, shorten and complete some derivations, also address the odd-parity sector for fermions, give a criterion for the existence of bosonic steady states, cover non-diagonalizable Liouvillians also for bosons, and include quadratic systems. In extension of the quasi-free open systems, quadratic open systems comprise additional Hermitian Lindblad operators that are quadratic in the ladder operators. While Gaussian states may then evolve into non-Gaussian states, the Liouvillian can still be transformed to a useful block-triangular form, and the equations of motion for k-point Green’s functions form a closed hierarchy. Based on this formalism, results on criticality and dissipative phase transitions in such models are discussed in a companion paper.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2023

Search for Low mass Higgs Portal Scalars at the MicroBooNE Detector in the NuMI Beam

The MicroBooNE experiment exploits Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) technology to detect neutrinos from two beams at Fermilab, Chicago: on-axis Booster Neutrino Beam (BNB) and the off-axis Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam. While the aim of the experiment is to study the low-energy excess of electron neutrino events observed by the MiniBooNE experiment, to search for eV-scale sterile neutrinos and to characterise neutrino interactions on argon, it could also be exploited to probe Beyond Standard Model (BSM) Physics. This thesis presents a BSM search for low-mass Higgs Portal Scalars at MicroBooNE in the NuMI beam using data collected during the Run 1 and Run 3 data-taking periods with a total exposure corresponding to $7.01 \times 10^{20}$ protons on target (POT). The Higgs Portal Model is an extension to the Standard Model in which a dark-sector scalar, $S$, mixes with the Higgs boson with mixing angle $\theta$ and acquires a coupling to the Standard Model fermions via the Higgs Yukawa coupling. We search for low-mass Higgs Portal scalars, in the mass range $100-200$ MeV, at MicroBooNE via the production channel $K \rightarrow \pi + S$, where scalars are produced from kaons decaying at rest in the NuMI target and beam dump, as well as kaons decaying in flight in the decay pipe of the NuMI beam. In the MicroBooNE detector, we search for the decay channel $S \rightarrow e^+e^-$, which is the only decay channel available to the scalars in the mass range of our search. The results are expressed as limits, at the 95\% confidence level, on the scalar-Higgs mixing angle $\theta$ for scalars in the mass range $100-200$ MeV.Date of Award1 Aug 2023Original languageEnglishAwarding InstitutionThe University of ManchesterSupervisorStefan Soldner-Rembold (Supervisor) & Justin Evans (Supervisor)

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2024

Impact of new experimental data on the C2HDM: the strong interdependence between LHC Higgs data and the electron EDM

The complex two-Higgs doublet model (C2HDM) is one of the simplest extensions of the Standard Model with a source of CP-violation in the scalar sector. It has a $\mathbb{Z}$ 2 symmetry, softly broken by a complex coefficient. There are four ways to implement this symmetry in the fermion sector, leading to models known as Type-I, Type-II, Lepton Specific and Flipped. In the latter three models, there is a priori the surprising possibility that the 125 GeV Higgs boson couples mostly as a scalar to top quarks, while it couples mostly as a pseudoscalar to bottom quarks. This “maximal” scenario was still possible with the data available in 2017. Since then, there have been more data on the 125 GeV Higgs boson, direct searches for CP-violation in angular correlations of $τ$-leptons produced in Higgs boson decays, new results on the electron electric dipole moment, new constraints from LHC searches for additional Higgs bosons and new results on $b$ → $sγ$ transitions. Highlighting the crucial importance of the physics results of LHC’s Run 2, we combine all these experiments and show that the “maximal” scenario is now excluded in all models. Still, one can have a pseudoscalar component in $hτ\overline{τ}$ couplings in the Lepton-Specific case as large as 87% of the scalar component for all mass orderings of the neutral scalar bosons.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Dijet and electroweak limits on a Z ′ boson coupled to quarks

An insightful way of presenting the LHC limits on dijet resonances is the coupling-mass plot for a Z ′ boson that has flavor-independent quark interactions. This also illustrates the comparison of low-mass LHC sensitivity with constraints on the flavor-independent Z ′ boson from electroweak and quarkonium measurements. To derive these constraints, we compute the Z ′ mixing with the Z , the photon, and the ϒ meson, emphasizing the logarithmic dependence on the masses of the new electroweak-charged fermions (“anomalons”) required to cancel the gauge anomalies. We update the coupling-mass plot, extending it for Z ′ masses from 5 GeV to 5 TeV. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

From oversimplified to overlooked: The case for exploring rich dark sectors

The Standard Model (SM) of particle physics provides a very successful description of fundamental particles and their interactions but it is incomplete, as neutrino masses, dark matter and the baryon asymmetry of the Universe indicate. In addition, the origin of masses and of the approximate fundamental symmetries call out for deeper explanations. The quest for a New SM Theory, that extends the SM to a more general theory, is ongoing. For decades the main focus has been on the TeV scale, but despite an impressive theoretical and experimental effort, no hints of new physics at such scale has been found in experiments. Dark sectors provide an interesting alternative to TeV scale extensions of the SM to explain the open questions in particle and astroparticle physics. Going beyond minimal models, rich dark sectors extend the SM to a complex theory with multiple particles and interactions, in analogy to the SM itself. They have a wealth of theoretical and astrophysical/cosmological consequences and can lead to phenomenological signatures that can be markedly different to that of minimal ones. These include short-lived particles and semi-visible decay signatures, as opposed to minimal models where new states are typically long-lived and purely visible or invisible resonances. Given the experimental configurations and analysis strategies, current dark sector searches might miss such signatures. We advocate a dedicated programme of searches for rich dark sectors that overcomes the assumptions on minimality and on the long lifetime of particles and encompasses a broader range of possibilities. Here, we discuss a prototype model that includes a complex structure akin to the SM: multiple generations of fermions charged under a new spontaneously-broken gauge symmetry.

Dark matter↗