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At least 883 records · Page 49
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

Shakeup and shakeoff spectra in the electron capture decay of atomic 7 Be

The most stringent laboratory-based experimental limits on the existence of submegaelectronvolt sterile neutrinos are currently set by decay spectroscopy of radioactive 7 Be embedded into superconducting sensors. The systematic uncertainties are dominated by the modeling of the electron shakeup and shakeoff spectra that are not based on state-of-the-art atomic theory and do not include electron correlations or relativistic effects. We have used the multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock formalism to obtain correlated wave functions ab initio and compute all single and double shake processes in the electron capture decay of atomic 7 Be . The simulations can explain some but not all of the observed spectral features, likely because the wave functions are modified by the Ta sensor material that the 7 Be is embedded into. The new models also show that the 𝐿/𝐾 electron capture ratio of 7 Be in Ta has previously been slightly underestimated revising the previous value of 0.070(7) to a new value of 0.0756(20).

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Z α 2 correction to superallowed beta decays in effective field theory and implications for | V u d |

Superallowed ( 0 + → 0 + ) beta decays currently provide the most precise extraction of quark mixing in the Standard Model. Their interpretation as a measurement of | V u d | relies on a reliable first-principles computation of QED radiative corrections expressed as a series in Z α and α . In this work, we provide the first model-independent result for two-loop, O ( Z α 2 ) , long-distance radiative corrections where the nuclei are treated as heavy pointlike particles. We use renormalization group analysis to obtain new results at O ( Z α 3 ) for the coefficient of double logarithms in the ratio of the maximal beta energy to the inverse nuclear size, E m / R - 1 . We use the Kinoshita-Lee-Nauenberg theorem to obtain new results at O ( Z 2 α 3 ) for the coefficient of logarithms in the ratio of maximal beta energy to the electron mass, log ( 2 E m / m ) . We identify a structure-dependent, and, therefore, short-distance, contribution to the traditional Z α 2 correction that should be revisited. We provide the first comprehensive update to the long-distance corrections in almost 40 years and comment on the impact of our findings for extractions of | V u d | . We find that shifts in the long-distance corrections are 2.5 × larger than past estimates of their uncertainty, 1.5 × larger than the statistical uncertainty from the combined fit of superallowed decays, and about 1 / 2 the size of estimated systematic error, which stems dominantly from nuclear structure effects.

Cao, Zehua [Kentucky U.] (ORCID:0009000354256423)↗
DOE OSTI2026

Lattice calculation of short-range contributions to neutrinoless double-beta decay 𝜋 − → 𝜋 + ⁢𝑒⁢𝑒 at physical pion mass

Neutrinoless double-beta (0⁢𝜈⁢𝛽⁢𝛽) decays provide an excellent probe for determining whether neutrinos are Dirac or Majorana fermions. The short-range matrix elements associated with the 𝜋 − → 𝜋 + ⁢𝑒⁢𝑒 process contribute at leading order in the 0⁢𝜈⁢𝛽⁢𝛽 decay channel 𝑛⁢𝑛 → 𝑝⁢𝑝⁢𝑒⁢𝑒 through pion exchange between nucleons. However, current lattice calculations show notable discrepancies in predicting these short-range contributions. To address this issue, we perform a lattice QCD calculation of the 𝜋 − → 𝜋 + ⁢𝑒⁢𝑒 matrix elements using domain wall fermion ensembles at the physical pion mass generated by the RBC/UKQCD Collaboration. To mitigate contamination from around-the-world effects, we develop a new method to reconstruct and subtract them directly from lattice data. We then perform nonperturbative renormalization in the regularization-independent symmetric momentum-subtraction scheme (RI/SMOM), using the (𝛾 𝜇 , 𝛾 𝜇 ) and ($\not{𝑞}$, $\not{𝑞}$) projectors. Compared with previous studies, this work reduces the uncertainties in the matrix elements and provides an independent cross-check that helps to reconcile the discrepancies among previous lattice calculations.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Neutrino signal from proto-neutron star evolution: Effects of opacities from charged-current–neutrino interactions and inverse neutron decay

In this work, we investigate the impact of charged-current–neutrino processes on the formation and evolution of neutrino spectra during the deleptonization of proto-neutron stars. To this end we develop the full kinematics of these reaction rates consistent with the nuclear equation of state, including weak magnetism contributions. This allows us to systematically study the impact of inelastic contributions and weak magnetism on the $ν_e$ and $\bar{ν}_e$ luminosities and average energies. Furthermore, we explore the role of the inverse neutron decay, also known as the direct Urca process, on the emitted spectra of $\bar{ν}_e$. This process is commonly considered in the cooling scenario of cold neutron stars but has so far been neglected in the evolution of hot proto-neutron stars. We find that the inverse neutron decay becomes the dominating opacity source for low-energy $\bar{ν}_e$. Accurate three-flavor Boltzmann neutrino transport enables us to relate the magnitude of neutrino fluxes and spectra to details of the treatment of weak processes. This allows us to quantify the corresponding impact on the conditions relevant for the nucleosynthesis in the neutrino-driven wind, which is ejected from the proto-neutron star surface during the deleptonization phase.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Benchmark neutrinoless double- β decay matrix elements in a light nucleus

We compute nuclear matrix elements of neutrinoless double-β decay mediated by light Majorana-neutrino exchange in the $\textit{A}$ = 6 system. The goal for this work is to benchmark two many-body approaches, the no-core shell model and the multireference in-medium similarity renormalization group (SRG). We use a SRG-evolved next-to-next-to-next-to-leading chiral order two-body potential for the nuclear interaction, and make the approximation that the isospin is conserved. We compare the results of the two approaches as a function of the cutoff on the many-body basis space. Although differences are seen in the predicted nuclear radii, the ground-state energies and neutrinoless double-β decay matrix elements produced by the two approaches show significant agreement. We discuss the implications for calculations in heavier nuclei.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

First direct observation of isomeric decay in neutron-rich odd-odd Ta186

Deexcitation γ rays associated with an isomeric state of 186 Ta were investigated. The isomers were produced in multinucleon transfer reactions between a 136 Xe beam and a natural W target and were collected and separated by the KEK Isotope Separation System. Two γ transitions with energies of 161.1(2) and 186.8(1) keV associated with an isomeric decay were observed for the first time. The half-life of the isomeric state of the neutral atom 186m Ta was deduced as 17(2) s. Based on the comparison with the previous measurements of the isomeric state using the Experimental Storage Ring at GSI Darmstadt and the coupling of angular momenta of individual particle orbitals in odd-odd nuclei, a decay scheme of 186m Ta was proposed.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Measurement of electrons from beauty-hadron decays in $pp$ and Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = $5.02$ TeV

The production of electrons from beauty-hadron decays was measured at midrapidity in proton-proton ($pp$) and central Pb-Pb collisions at center-of-mass energy per nucleon-nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV, using the ALICE detector at the LHC. The cross section measured in p p collisions in the transverse momentum interval $2$ < $p_T$ < $26$ $\mathrm{GeV}$ / $c$ was compared with models based on perturbative quantum chromodynamics calculations. The yield in the 10% most central Pb-Pb collisions, measured in the interval $2$ < $p_T$ < $26$ $\mathrm{GeV}$ / $c$, was used to compute the nuclear modification factor $R_{AA}$, extrapolating the $pp$ reference cross section to $p_T$ larger than 8 $\mathrm{GeV}$ / $c$. The measured $R_{AA}$ shows significant suppression of the yield of electrons from beauty-hadron decays at high $p_T$ and does not show a significant dependence above 8 $\mathrm{GeV}$ / $c$ within uncertainties. The results are described by several theoretical models based on different implementations of the interaction of heavy quarks with a quark-gluon plasma, which predict a smaller energy loss for beauty quarks compared to light and charm quarks.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Tritium β decay and proton-proton fusion in pionless effective field theory

The Gamow-Teller and Fermi matrix elements, 〈 GT 〉 and 〈 F 〉 , respectively, for tritium β decay are calculated to next-to-leading order (NLO) in pionless effective field theory in the absence of Coulomb interactions and isospin violation giving the leading order predictions 〈 GT 〉 0 = 0.9807 and 〈 F 〉 0 = 1 . Using an experimentally determined value for the tritium β decay GT matrix element, the two-body axial current low energy constant is fixed at NLO yielding L 1 , A = 6.01 ± 2.08 fm 3 at the renormalization scale of the physical pion mass, which agrees with predictions based on naive dimensional analysis. The impact of L 1 , A on proton-proton fusion is also discussed. Finally, the consequences of Wigner-SU(4) spin-isospin symmetry are considered for the Gamow-Teller matrix element. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Decay spectroscopy of an isomeric state in Md251

Excited states in Md251 have been populated by decay of an isomeric state at Ex≈1174 keV and studied via delayed γ-ray spectroscopy. We observe the population of two rotational bands, one of which we identify as the Nilsson π72[514] ground-state band and the other we propose is based on the π92[624] configuration. From the observed decay pattern, we suggest that the isomer spin parity is 232+, with the three-quasiparticle configuration π72[514]⊗{ν72[624]⊗ν92[734]}Kπ=8−. We compare our results to theoretical predictions of the single- and multi-quasiparticle structure of Md251.

Morse, C↗
DOE OSTI2020

Search for heavy neutral leptons decaying into muon-pion pairs in the MicroBooNE detector

We present upper limits on the production of heavy neutral leptons (HNLs) decaying to $\mu \pi$ pairs using data collected with the MicroBooNE liquid-argon time projection chamber (TPC) operating at Fermilab. This search is the first of its kind performed in a liquid-argon TPC. We use data collected in 2017 and 2018 corresponding to an exposure of $2.0 \times 10^{20}$ protons on target from the Fermilab Booster Neutrino Beam, which produces mainly muon neutrinos with an average energy of $\approx 800$ MeV. HNLs with higher mass are expected to have a longer time-of-flight to the liquid-argon TPC than Standard Model neutrinos. The data are therefore recorded with a dedicated trigger configured to detect HNL decays that occur after the neutrino spill reaches the detector. We set upper limits at the $90\%$ confidence level on the element $\lvert U_{\mu4}\rvert^2$ of the extended PMNS mixing matrix in the range $\lvert U_{\mu4}\rvert^2<(6.6$-$0.9)\times 10^{-7}$ for Dirac HNLs and $\lvert U_{\mu4}\rvert^2<(4.7$-$0.7)\times 10^{-7}$ for Majorana HNLs, assuming HNL masses between $260$ and $385$ MeV and $\lvert U_{e 4}\rvert^2 = \lvert U_{\tau 4}\rvert^2 = 0$.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2020

Khuri-Treiman equations for 3$π$ decays of particles with spin

Khuri-Treiman equations have proven to be a useful theoretical tool in the analysis of three-body decays, especially into the 3$π$ final state. In this work we present in full detail the necessary generalization of the formalism to study the decays of particles with arbitrary spin, parity, and charge conjugation. To this extent, we find it most convenient to work with helicity amplitudes instead of the so-called invariant amplitudes, especially when dealing with the unitarity relations. The isobar expansions in the three possible ( s-, t-, and u- ) final channels are related with the appropriate crossing matrices. We pay special attention to the kinematical singularities and constraints of the helicity amplitudes, showing that these can be derived by means of the crossing matrix.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Search for charginos and neutralinos in final states with two boosted hadronically decaying bosons and missing transverse momentum in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for charginos and neutralinos at the Large Hadron Collider using fully hadronic final states and missing transverse momentum is reported. Pair-produced charginos or neutralinos are explored, each decaying into a high-p T Standard Model weak boson. Fully hadronic final states are studied to exploit the advantage of the large branching ratio, and the efficient rejection of backgrounds by identifying the high-p T bosons using large-radius jets and jet substructure information. An integrated luminosity of 139 fb -1 of proton-proton collision data collected by the ATLAS detector at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV is used. No significant excess is found beyond the Standard Model expectation. Exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level are set on wino or higgsino production with various assumptions about the decay branching ratios and the type of lightest supersymmetric particle. A wino (higgsino) mass up to 1060 (900) GeV is excluded when the lightest supersymmetry particle mass is below 400 (240) GeV and the mass splitting is larger than 400 (450) GeV. The sensitivity to high-mass winos and higgsinos is significantly extended relative to previous LHC searches using other final states.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Search for Higgs boson decays into a pair of pseudoscalar particles in the $bbμμ$ final state with the ATLAS detector in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV

This paper presents a search for decays of the Higgs boson with a mass of 125 GeV into a pair of new pseudoscalar particles, $H→aa$, where one a-boson decays into a b-quark pair and the other into a muon pair. The search uses 139 fb -1 of proton-proton collision data at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV recorded between 2015 and 2018 by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. A narrow dimuon resonance is searched for in the invariant mass spectrum between 16 GeV and 62 GeV. The largest excess of events above the Standard Model backgrounds is observed at a dimuon invariant mass of 52 GeV and corresponds to a local (global) significance of 3.3σ (1.7σ). Upper limits at 95% confidence level are placed on the branching ratio of the Higgs boson to the $bbμμ$ final state, $B(H→aa→bbμμ)$, and are in the range 0.2-4.0×10 -4 , depending on the signal mass hypothesis.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Measurement of inclusive electrons from open heavy-flavor hadron decays in p + p collisions at s = 200 GeV with the STAR detector

We report a new measurement of the production cross section for inclusive electrons from open heavy-flavor hadron decays as a function of transverse momentum (p T ) at midrapidity (|y| < 0.7) in p + p collisions at √s = 200 GeV. Overall, the result is presented for 2.5 < P T < 10 GeV/c with an improved precision above 6 GeV/c with respect to the previous measurements, providing more constraints on perturbative QCD calculations. Moreover, this measurement also provides a high-precision reference for measurements of nuclear modification factors for inclusive electrons from open-charm and -bottom hadron decays in heavy-ion collisions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Long-exposure NuSTAR constraints on decaying dark matter in the Galactic halo

Here, we present two complementary NuSTAR x-ray searches for keV-scale dark matter decaying to monoenergetic photons in the Milky Way halo. In the first, we utilize the known intensity pattern of unfocused stray light across the detector planes—the dominant source of photons from diffuse sources—to separate astrophysical emission from internal instrument backgrounds using ~7- Ms/detector deep blank-sky exposures. In the second, we present an updated parametric model of the full NuSTAR instrument background, allowing us to leverage the statistical power of an independent ~20-Ms/detector stacked exposures spread across the sky. Finding no evidence of anomalous x-ray lines using either method, we set limits on the active-sterile mixing angle sin 2 ⁡(2⁢θ) for sterile-neutrino masses 6–40 keV. The first key result is that we strongly disfavor a ~7-keV sterile neutrino decaying into a 3.5-keV photon. The second is that we derive leading limits on sterile neutrinos with masses ~15–18 keV and ~25–40 keV, reaching or extending below the big bang nucleosynthesis limit. In combination with previous results, the parameter space for the neutrino minimal standard model is now nearly closed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

First search for the weak radiative decays Λ$^+_c$ → Σ + γ and Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ 0 γ

We present the first search for the weak radiative decays Λ$^+_c$ → Σ + γ and Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ 0 γ using a data sample of 980 fb -1 collected by the Belle detector operating at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e + e - collider. There are no evident Λ$^+_c$ → Σ + γ or Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ 0 γ signals. Taking the decays Λ$^+_c$ → pK - π + and Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ - π + as normalization channels, the upper limits at 90% credibility level on the ratios of branching fractions $\mathcal{B}$(Λ$^+_c$ → Σ + γ)/$\mathcal{B}$(Λ$^+_c$ → pK - π + ) < 4.0 x 10 -3 and $\mathcal{B}$(Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ 0 γ)/$\mathcal{B}$(Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ - π + ) < 1.2 x 10 -2 are determined. We obtain the upper limits at 90% credibility level on the absolute branching fractions $\mathcal{B}$(Λ$^+_c$ → Σ + γ) < 2.6 x 10 -4 and $\mathcal{B}$(Ξ$^0_c$ → Ξ 0 γ) < 1.8 x 10 -4 .

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Measurements of the branching fractions of the inclusive decays D 0 ( D + ) → π + π + π - X

Using e + ⁢e - annihilation data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.93 fb -1 taken at a center-of-mass energy of 3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector, we report the first measurements of the branching fractions of the inclusive decays D 0 → π + π + π - X and D + → π + π + π - X, where pions from $K^0_S$ decays have been excluded from the → π + π + π - system and X denotes any possible particle combination. The branching fractions of D 0 ⁡(D + ) → π + π + π - X are determined to be B⁡(D 0 → π + π + π - X) = (17.60 ± 0.11 ± 0.22)% and B(D + → π + π + π - X) = (15.25 ± 0.09 ± 0.18)%, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Measurement of the B + /B 0 production ratio in e + e - collisions at the $\Upsilon$ (4S) resonance using B → J/Ψ($\ell\ell$)K decays at Belle

We measure the ratio of branching fractions for the $\Upsilon$ (4S) decays to B + B - and B 0 $\bar{B}$ 0 using B + → J/Ψ($\ell\ell$)K + and B 0 → J/Ψ($\ell\ell$)K 0 samples, where J/Ψ($\ell\ell$) stands for J/Ψ → $\ell$ + $\ell$ - ($\ell$ = e or μ), with 711 fb -1 of data collected at the $\Upsilon$ (4S) resonance with the Belle detector. We find the decay rate ratio of $\Upsilon$ (4S) → B + B - over $\Upsilon$ (4S) → B 0 $\bar{B}$ 0 to be 1.065 ± 0.012 ± 0.019 ± 0.047, which is the most precise measurement to date. The first and second uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively, and the third uncertainty is due to the assumption of isospin symmetry in B → J/Ψ($\ell\ell$) K.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗