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At least 703 records · Page 39

Observation of the Rare Decay of the 𝜂 Meson to Four Muons

A search for the rare η → μ + μ − μ + μ − double-Dalitz decay is performed using a sample of proton-proton collisions, collected by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC with high-rate muon triggers in 2017-2018 and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 101 fb −1 . A signal having a statistical significance well in excess of 5 standard deviations is observed. Using the η → μ + μ − decay as normalization, the branching fraction B(η → μ + μ − μ + μ − ) = [5.0 ± 0.8 (stat) ± 0.7 (syst) ± 0.7 (B 2μ )] × 10 −9 is measured, where the last term is the uncertainty in the normalization channel branching fraction. This work achieves an improved precision of over five orders of magnitude compared to previous results, leading to the first measurement of this branching fraction, which is found to agree with theoretical predictions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

First Measurement of Discrimination between Helium and Electron Recoils in Liquid Xenon for Low-Mass Dark Matter Searches

We report the first measurement of discrimination between low-energy helium recoils and electron recoils in liquid xenon. This result is relevant to proposed low-mass dark matter searches which seek to dissolve light target nuclei in the active volume of liquid-xenon time projection chambers. Low-energy helium recoils were produced by degrading α particles from Po 210 with a gold foil situated on the cathode of a liquid xenon time-projection chamber. The resulting population of helium recoil events is well separated from electron recoils and is also offset from the expected position of xenon nuclear recoil events. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Dark Matter Induced Power in Quantum Devices

We point out that power measurements of single quasiparticle devices open a new avenue to detect dark matter (DM). The threshold of these devices is set by the Cooper pair binding energy, and is therefore so low that they can detect DM as light as about an MeV incoming from the Galactic halo, as well as the low-velocity thermalized DM component potentially present in the Earth. Using existing power measurements with these new devices, as well as power measurements with SuperCDMS-CPD, we set new constraints on the spin-independent DM scattering cross section for DM masses from about 10 MeV to 10 GeV. We outline future directions to improve sensitivity to both halo DM and a thermalized DM population in the Earth using power deposition in quantum devices. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

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First Results from a Broadband Search for Dark Photon Dark Matter in the 44 to 52 μ eV Range with a Coaxial Dish Antenna

We present first results from a dark photon dark matter search in the mass range from 44 to 52 μ eV (10.7–12.5 GHz) using a room-temperature dish antenna setup called GigaBREAD. Dark photon dark matter converts to ordinary photons on a cylindrical metallic emission surface with area 0.5 m 2 and is focused by a novel parabolic reflector onto a horn antenna. Signals are read out with a low-noise receiver system. A first data taking run with 24 days of data does not show evidence for dark photon dark matter in this mass range, excluding dark photon photon mixing parameters χ ≳ 10 − 12 in this range at 90% confidence level. This surpasses existing constraints by about 2 orders of magnitude and is the most stringent bound on dark photons in this range below 49 μ eV . Published by the American Physical Society 2024

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

First Search for Dark-Trident Processes Using the MicroBooNE Detector

We present a first search for dark-trident scattering in a neutrino beam using a dataset corresponding to 7.2 × 10 20 protons on target taken with the MicroBooNE detector at Fermilab. Proton interactions in the neutrino target at the main injector produce π 0 and η mesons, which could decay into dark-matter (DM) particles mediated via a dark photon A ′ . A convolutional neural network is trained to identify interactions of the DM particles in the liquid-argon time projection chamber (LArTPC) exploiting its imagelike reconstruction capability. In the absence of a DM signal, we provide limits at the 90% confidence level on the squared kinematic mixing parameter ϵ 2 as a function of the dark-photon mass in the range 10 ≤ M A ′ ≤ 400 MeV . The limits cover previously unconstrained parameter space for the production of fermion or scalar DM particles χ for two benchmark models with mass ratios M χ / M A ′ = 0.6 and 2 and for dark fine-structure constants 0.1 ≤ α D ≤ 1 . Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Modification of χ c 1 ( 3872 ) and ψ ( 2 S ) Production in p Pb Collisions at s NN = 8.16 TeV

The LHCb Collaboration measures production of the exotic hadron χ c 1 ( 3872 ) in proton-nucleus collisions for the first time. Comparison with the charmonium state ψ ( 2 S ) suggests that the exotic χ c 1 ( 3872 ) experiences different dynamics in the nuclear medium than conventional hadrons, and comparison with data from proton-proton collisions indicates that the presence of the nucleus may modify χ c 1 ( 3872 ) production rates. This is the first measurement of the nuclear modification factor of an exotic hadron. © 2024 CERN, for the LHCb Collaboration 2024 CERN

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Search for Soft Unclustered Energy Patterns in Proton-Proton Collisions at 13 TeV

The first search for soft unclustered energy patterns (SUEPs) is performed using an integrated luminosity of 138 fb −1 of proton-proton collision data at $\sqrt{𝑠}$ = 13 TeV, collected in 2016–2018 by the CMS detector at the LHC. Such SUEPs are predicted by hidden valley models with a new, confining force with a large ’t Hooft coupling. In events with boosted topologies, selected by high-threshold hadronic triggers, the multiplicity and sphericity of clustered tracks are used to reject the background from standard model quantum chromodynamics. With no observed excess of events over the standard model expectation, limits are set on the cross section for production via gluon fusion of a scalar mediator with SUEP-like decays.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Search for Fractionally Charged Particles in Proton-Proton Collisions at $\sqrt{𝑠}$ = 13 TeV

A search is presented for fractionally charged particles with charges below 1⁢𝑒, using their small energy loss in the tracking detector as a key variable to observe a signal. The analyzed dataset corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb −1 of proton-proton collisions collected at $\sqrt{𝑠}$ = 13 TeV in 2016–2018 at the CERN LHC. This is the first search at the LHC for new particles with a charge between 𝑒/3 and 0.9⁢𝑒, including an extension of previous results at a charge of 2⁢𝑒/3. Masses up to 640 GeV and charges as low as 𝑒/3 are excluded at 95% confidence level. These are the most stringent limits to date for the considered Drell-Yan-like production mode.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Search for a Hidden Sector Scalar from Kaon Decay in the Dimuon Final State at ICARUS

We present a search for long-lived particles (LLPs), produced in kaon decays, that decay to two muons inside the ICARUS neutrino detector. This channel would be a signal of hidden sector models that can address outstanding issues in particle physics such as the strong CP problem and the microphysical origin of dark matter. The search is performed with data collected in the Neutrinos at the Main Injector (NuMI) beam at Fermilab corresponding to 2.41 × 10 20 protons-on-target. No new physics signal is observed, and we set world leading limits on heavy QCD axions, as well as for the Higgs portal scalar among dedicated searches. Limits are also presented in a model-independent way applicable to any new physics model predicting the process 𝐾 → 𝜋 + 𝑆⁡(→ 𝜇⁢𝜇), for a LLP 𝑆. This result is the first search for new physics performed with the ICARUS detector at Fermilab. It paves the way for the future program of LLP searches at ICARUS.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

New Constraints on Axionlike Particles with the NEON Detector at a Nuclear Reactor

We report new constraints on axionlike particles (ALPs) using data from the NEON experiment, which features 16.7 kg of NaI(Tl) target located 23.7 m from a 2.8 GW thermal power nuclear reactor. Analyzing a total exposure of 3063 kg · day , with 1596 kg · day during reactor-on and 1467 kg · day during reactor-off periods, we compared energy spectra to search for ALP-induced signals. No significant signal was observed, enabling us to set exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level. These limits probe previously unexplored regions of the ALP parameter space, particularly for axion masses ( m a ) near 1 MeV / c 2 . For ALP-photon coupling ( g a γ ), limits reach as low as 6.24 × 10 − 6 GeV − 1 at m a = 3.0 MeV / c 2 , while for ALP-electron coupling ( g a e ), limits reach 4.95 × 10 − 8 at m a = 1.02 MeV / c 2 . This Letter demonstrates the potential for future reactor experiments to probe unexplored ALP parameter space. Published by the American Physical Society 2025

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Semitauonic b-hadron decays: A lepton flavor universality laboratory

The study of lepton flavor universality violation (LFUV) in semitauonic b-hadron decays has become increasingly important in light of long-standing anomalies in their measured branching fractions, and the large datasets anticipated from the LHC experiments and Belle II. Here, in this review, a comprehensive survey of the experimental environments and methodologies for semitauonic LFUV measurements at the B factories and LHCb is undertaken, along with an overview of the theoretical foundations and predictions for a wide range of semileptonic decay observables. The future prospects of controlling systematic uncertainties down to the percent level, matching the precision of standard model (SM) predictions, are examined. Furthermore, new perspectives and caveats on combinations of the LFUV data are discussed and the world averages for the R(D(*)) ratios are revisited. Here it is demonstrated that different treatments for the correlations of uncertainties from D** excited states can vary the current 3σ tension with the SM within a 1σ range. Prior experimental overestimates of D**τν contributions may further exacerbate this. The precision of future measurements is also estimated; their power to exploit full differential information, and solutions to the inherent difficulties in self-consistent new physics interpretations of LFUV observables, are explored.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Effects of shape/phase transition regions on neutron capture cross sections

Abstract A recent study found a new, purely empirical correlation between two-neutron separation energies and neutron capture cross sections in keV neutron energy regimes. In shape/phase transition regimes, such as that near A= 150, S $$_{2n}$$ 2 n values show an anomaly—a flattening of the normal near linear decrease with neutron number. This paper addresses two questions: (1) Using this new correlation, is this anomaly in S $$_{2n}$$ 2 n values sizeable enough to produce an observable effect in capture cross sections? and (2) Can the correlation be used to quantitatively reproduce the cross sections in the transition region? It is found that the answer to both questions is in the affirmative. Possible relations to the r -process are briefly discussed.

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