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DOE OSTI2025

Control of wakefield in sub-THz dielectric-lined waveguides using multiple-bunch excitation

Beam-driven wakefield accelerators offer the potential to achieve accelerating fields approaching the sub-GV/m range, paving the way for compact and cost-effective next-generation high-energy colliders. This method typically employs a two-bunch system: a drive bunch that excites an electromagnetic wakefield in a solid-state or plasma medium, and a witness bunch that extracts energy from the wake for acceleration. Our research focuses on two key challenges in wakefield acceleration using structures. First, we investigate strategies to suppress transverse instabilities by employing non-cylindrical geometries that damp dipole modes. Second, we explore methods to precisely terminate the wakefield after the interaction region, thereby improving the efficiency of energy transfer. This paper presents detailed simulation results and the corresponding experimental design developed to validate these concepts. Furthermore, the proposed experiment will be carried out at the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator (AWA) facility, focusing on controlling wakefield duration through tailored drive and witness bunch configurations and evaluating dielectric-lined structures with non-cylindrical cross sections.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Beam test results of the Intermediate Silicon Tracker for sPHENIX

The Intermediate Silicon Tracker (INTT), a two-layer barrel silicon strip tracker, is a key component of the tracking system for sPHENIX at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory. The INTT is designed to enable the association of reconstructed tracks with individual RHIC bunch crossings. To evaluate the performance of preproduction INTT ladders and the readout chain, a beam test was conducted at the Research Center for Accelerator and Radioisotope Science, Tohoku University, Japan. This paper presents the performance of the INTT evaluated through studies of the signal-to-noise ratio, residual distribution, spatial resolution, hit-detection efficiency, and multiple track reconstruction.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

The high level trigger and express data production at STAR

To meet the demands of the Beam Energy Scan phase-II (BES-II) program, the STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) developed a dual real-time framework consisting of a High Level Trigger (HLT) and an Express Data Production system (xProduction). The HLT operates online within the Data Acquisition (DAQ) chain on a dedicated multi-core CPU cluster with the option to offload compute-intensive kernels to Xeon Phi coprocessors. It uses parallelized algorithms, such as the Cellular Automaton (CA) Track Finder, to perform rapid tracking, vertexing, and event filtering. This allows it to select events of interest in real time and provide immediate feedback on detector and beam conditions. In contrast, the xProduction workflow runs concurrently and independently of the DAQ loop. It applies near offline-quality calibration and reconstruction within hours of data collection. The xProduction input is the express data stream, whose content can be enriched by HLT trigger/priority selections under DAQ/HLT resource constraints, and it uses the STAR calibration/conditions framework, incorporating online calibration/QA information when available. This enables early preliminary physics analysis, including the reconstruction of rare signals, such as hyperons and hypernuclei. It also provides collaboration-wide access to analysis-ready datasets. Together, the HLT and xProduction systems form a complementary architecture: the HLT performs online event selection while the xProduction chain delivers high-quality results within a short amount of time. This integrated framework has enabled the prompt reconstruction of the $^5_Λ$ He hypernucleus with high statistical significance and the efficient processing of hundreds of millions of heavy-ion collision events. In conclusion, its demonstrated scalability and robustness establish a model for future high-luminosity experiments requiring both online event filtering and rapid access to analysis-quality data.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

Simulation study for particle identification with the dRICH of the ePIC experiment at the EIC

The dual-radiator Imaging Cherenkov detector (dRICH), employing an aerogel and a gas radiator, is a key component of the forward particle identification system for the ePIC experiment at the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC). This study evaluates the dRICH performance using Geant4 simulations in the context of the global ePIC simulation stack, focusing on the optimization of the aerogel radiator and the impact of sensor noise. We compare two aerogel configurations: the initial design (n = 1.019) and the current default (n = 1.026). The latter, characterized by improved optical properties and a higher refractive index, demonstrates enhanced π/K separation at high momenta, effectively extending the operational overlap with the C 2 F 6 gas radiator (n = 1.00076 at 25 °C, as implemented in the simulation software). Additionally, the study investigates the impact of Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) dark noise, showing that a 300 kHz noise rate per 3mm x 3mm channel leads to a moderate reduction (approximately 1.5 GeV/c) in the 3σ separation threshold. These results validate the current dRICH design and quantify the purity levels achievable for both radiators under expected experimental conditions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

A 24-channel ultra-low-noise preamplifier for dN/dx measurements with drift tube detectors

Cluster counting $(dN/dx)$ is a promising method to enhance particle identification for gaseous detectors, especially in next-generation collider experiments like the FCC-ee, where good $π/K$ separation over a broad momentum range is essential. However, its implementation in large-scale systems has been limited by the challenging requirements for high-resolution signal amplification and readout. This paper presents a 24-channel ultra-low-noise preamplifier board designed for drift tube detectors to enable $dN/dx$ measurements. The three-stage amplification topology employs SiGe transistors and integrates dedicated noise-minimization techniques, achieving a charge gain of 21.11 mV/fC from 0.3 fC to 50 fC, a bandwidth of 542 MHz, and a voltage gain of 47.8 dB. The measured voltage noise density is 0.35 nV/$\sqrt{\textrm{Hz}}$ , surpassing most of the state-of-the-art preamplifiers for gaseous and silicon detectors. Validation tests conducted on the sMDT chambers at the CERN Proton Synchrotron test beam facility demonstrate that the proposed design meets the stringent preamplifier requirements for implementing the $dN/dx$ method in drift-tube detector systems, achieving an equivalent noise charge of 0.14 fC and a signal-to-noise ratio of 73 when operated with a He:iC 4 H 10 (90:10) gas mixture. The design also shows promise for broader application in other gaseous or semiconductor detectors.

Drift tube detector↗

DOE OSTI2026

Robustness of the smartpixels classifier for different simulated sensor geometries and non-ideal detector conditions

Pixel tracking detectors at upcoming collider experiments will see unprecedented charged-particle densities. Real-time data reduction on the detector will enable higher granularity and faster readout, possibly enabling the use of the pixel detector in high-rate online event selection, such as the ATLAS or CMS first-level trigger systems. This data reduction can be accomplished with a neural network (NN) in the readout chip bonded with the sensor that recognizes and rejects tracks with low transverse momentum (p T ) based on the geometrical shape of the charge deposition (“cluster”). To design viable detectors for deployment, the dependence of the NN as a function of the sensor geometry, external magnetic field, irradiation, and noise must be understood. In this paper, we present first studies of the efficiency and data reduction for planar pixel sensors exploring these parameters. For the CMS HL-LHC sensor geometry, we obtain a signal efficiency of (91.9 ± 0.7)% and a data reduction of (29.7 ± 1.0)%. A smaller sensor pitch in the bending direction improves the p T discrimination, but a larger pitch can be partially compensated with detector thickness. Any accumulated radiation damage also changes the cluster shape, reducing the signal efficiency compared to the baseline by approximately 30–60% in absolute terms, but nearly all of the performance can be recovered through retraining of the network and updating the weights. Finally, the impact of noise was investigated, and retraining the network on noise-injected datasets was found to maintain performance within 6% of the baseline network trained and evaluated on noiseless data. •ASIC-compatible track-momentum classifier is robust in realistic detector conditions.•About 90% signal efficiency and 30% data reduction per layer for CMS HL-LHC geometry.•Single-layer signal efficiency increases for smaller pixel pitch or thicker sensors.•Performance with noise or after radiation damage mostly recovered by retraining.

Shekar, Danush [Illinois U., Chicago] (ORCID:00000↗

DOE OSTI2021

Integration of a Wigner effect-based energy storage system with an advanced nuclear reactor

In this work, an innovative energy storage concept based on the purposeful creation of defects in crystalline material by neutron irradiation is presented. Lattice defects are generated when heavy particles collide with the atoms in a crystal structure, i.e., if the incoming particles have enough energy, recoil atoms are displaced from their initial lattice sites. Most of the displaced atoms will eventually combine with nearby vacancies, but some of them will come to rest in non-ideal locations. The energy held by displaced atoms is called Wigner energy. Lattice defects can migrate and form clusters, and the Wigner energy can be released from these groupings if sufficient activation energy is provided. In the nuclear industry, this effect is well-known since it represented an issue for graphite-moderated reactors. This work presents the conceptual design of an engineering system that exploits this physical process to store the energy of neutrons in advanced reactor concepts. In the first part of the paper, the theoretical performance of an energy storage system based on the Wigner effect is described. Given the lattice properties and the compatibility with the harsh reactor environment, graphite was selected as the candidate material for the irradiation targets. Both experimental data and molecular dynamics simulations confirmed that this system can achieve performance comparable with state-of-the-art batteries in terms of stored energy density. In the second part of the paper, the engineering challenges of this innovative technology and the proposed solutions are described. After defining the optimal irradiation conditions, the different steps of the operation of the proposed energy system (from energy storing to energy harvesting) were defined. Finally, the integration of this concept with advanced reactor designs, i.e., a Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor and a Molten Salt-cooled Reactor, was investigated and the corresponding performance was evaluated.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Charge-dependent flow induced by electromagnetic fields in heavy ion collisions

The colliding heavy ions create extremely strong magnetic and electric fields that significantly affect the evolution of the produced quark-gluon plasma (QGP). The knowledge of these fields is essential for establishing the role of topological fluctuations in the QGP through the chiral magnetic effect and related anomaly-induced phenomena. In this talk, we describe our work on the evolution of the QGP in electric and magnetic fields in the framework of hydrodynamics supplemented, in a perturbative fashion, by the dynamical electromagnetism. The evolution of the QGP fluid is described within the iEBE-VISHNU framework. We find that the electromagnetically induced currents result in a charge-odd directed flow Δv 1 and a charge-odd Δv 3 flow both of which are odd in rapidity. Furthermore, while the predicted magnitude of these charge-odd flows agrees with the data from RHIC and LHC, the sign of the predicted asymmetry between the flows of positive and negative hadrons is opposite to the data.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2021

How EIC can help us to understand heavy-ion collisions

In this work, I give a brief overview of the science cases of the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) with a particular emphasis on the connections to the physics of ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Interplaying mechanisms behind inclusive jet R and extraction of jet energy loss distributions

The observed inclusive jet suppression in heavy-ion collisions at LHC has a very weak p T dependence over a large range of p T =50–1000 GeV and is almost independent of the colliding energy, though the initial energy density of the bulk medium has increased from √s=2.76 to 5.02 TeV by about 20%. This interesting phenomenon is investigated in the linear Boltzmann transport (LBT) model for jet propagation in an event-by-event 3+1D hydro background. We show that the p T dependence of jet R AA is determined by the initial spectrum in p+p collisions and p T dependence of jet energy loss. Furthermore, jet energy loss distributions for inclusive jet and γ-jet at both LHC energies are extracted directly from experimental data through the state-of-art Bayesian analysis. Additionally, the averaged jet energy loss has a weak p T dependence and the scaled jet energy loss distributions have a large width, both of which are consistent with the LBT simulations and indicate that jet quenching is caused by only a few out-of-cone jet medium scatterings.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2021

The BEST framework for the search for the QCD critical point and the chiral magnetic effect

The Beam Energy Scan Theory (BEST) Collaboration was formed with the goal of providing a theoretical framework for analyzing data from the Beam Energy Scan (BES) program at the relativistic heavy ion collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory. The physics goal of the BES program is the search for a conjectured QCD critical point as well as for manifestations of the chiral magnetic effect. We describe progress that has been made over the previous five years. This includes studies of the equation of state and equilibrium susceptibilities, the development of suitable initial state models, progress in constructing a hydrodynamic framework that includes fluctuations and anomalous transport effects, as well as the development of freezeout prescriptions and hadronic transport models. Lastly, we address the challenge of integrating these components into a complete analysis framework. This document describes the collective effort of the BEST Collaboration and its collaborators around the world.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Testing new physics in oscillations at a neutrino factory

A neutrino factory is a potential successor to the upcoming generation of neutrino oscillation experiments and a possible precursor to next-generation muon colliders. Such a machine would provide a well characterized beam of , , , and neutrinos with comparable statistics. Here we show the sensitivity of a neutrino factory to new oscillation physics scenarios such as vector neutrino non-standard interactions and CPT violation. We study two different potential setups for a neutrino factory with different assumptions on charge identification in the far detector. We find that a neutrino factory can improve over most of the current constraints on these scenarios and over forecasted constraints by DUNE, even when doubling DUNE's statistics. Additionally, we find that a neutrino factory can break degeneracies between the standard oscillation parameters and neutrino non-standard interaction parameters present at DUNE.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Exploring the hidden valley at MATHUSLA

Hidden valley models naturally predict numerous long-lived particles, the distinctive signatures of which would be compelling evidence for a hidden valley scenario. As these are typically low-energy particles, they pose a challenge in terms of passing energy triggers in traditional searches at the Large Hadron Collider. The MATHUSLA (MAssive Timing Hodoscope for Ultra-Stable neutraL pArticles) experiment is specifically designed for the purpose of detecting long-lived particles. It also has the capability of detecting lower energy particles relative to ATLAS and CMS. In this paper, we assess MATHUSLA's potential for effectively probing hidden valley models. As a benchmark, we assume the hidden valley sector communicates with Standard Model sectors via a heavy vector propagator that couples to Standard Model quarks as well as hidden valley quarks. We model the showering and hadronization in the hidden valley sector using PYTHIA and study the detector acceptance as a function of the hidden valley meson's lifetime. We find that MATHUSLA possesses significant capabilities to explore previously uncharted parameter space within hidden valley models.

Hidden sector↗

DOE OSTI2019

Hamiltonian nature of monopole dynamics

Classical electromagnetism with magnetic monopoles is not a Hamiltonian field theory because the Jacobi identity for the Poisson bracket fails. The Jacobi identity is recovered only if all of the species have the same ratio of electric to magnetic charge or if an electron and a monopole can never collide. Without the Jacobi identity, there are no local canonical coordinates or Lagrangian action principle. In order to build a quantum field of magnetic monopoles, we either must explain why the positions of electrons and monopoles can never coincide or we must resort to new quantization techniques.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2020

Higgs boson pair production via gluon fusion at N 3 LO in QCD

We present next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order ( N 3 LO ) QCD predictions for the Higgs boson pair production via gluon fusion at hadron colliders in the infinite top-quark mass limit. Besides the inclusive total cross sections at various collision energies, we also provide the invariant mass distribution of the Higgs boson pair. Our results show that the N 3 LO QCD corrections enhance the next-to-next-to-leading order cross section by 3.0% (2.7%) at s = 13 ( 100 ) TeV , while the scale uncertainty is reduced substantially below 3% (2%). We also find that a judicious scale choice can significantly improve the perturbative convergence. For the invariant mass distribution, our calculation demonstrates that the N 3 LO corrections improve the scale dependence but almost do not change the shape.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Measurement of azimuthal anisotropy of muons from charm and bottom hadrons in Pb+Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector

Azimuthal anisotropies of muons from charm and bottom hadron decays are measured in Pb+Pb collisions at s NN = 5.02 TeV . The data were collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider in 2015 and 2018 with integrated luminosities of 0.5 nb - 1 and 1.4 n b - 1 , respectively. The kinematic selection for heavy-flavor muons requires transverse momentum 4 <lt; p T < 30 GeV and pseudorapidity | η | < 2.0 . The dominant sources of muons in this p T range are semi-leptonic decays of charm and bottom hadrons. These heavy-flavor muons are separated from light-hadron decay muons and punch-through hadrons using the momentum imbalance between the measurements in the tracking detector and in the muon spectrometers. Azimuthal anisotropies, quantified by flow coefficients, are measured via the event-plane method for inclusive heavy-flavor muons as a function of the muon p T and in intervals of Pb+Pb collision centrality. Heavy-flavor muons are separated into contributions from charm and bottom hadron decays using the muon transverse impact parameter with respect to the event primary vertex. Non-zero elliptic ( v 2 ) and triangular ( v 3 ) flow coefficients are extracted for charm and bottom muons, with the charm muon coefficients larger than those for bottom muons for all Pb+Pb collision centralities. The results indicate substantial modification to the charm and bottom quark angular distributions through interactions in the quark-gluon plasma produced in these Pb+Pb collisions, with smaller modifications for the bottom quarks as expected theoretically due to their larger mass.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Measurement of the associated production of a Higgs boson decaying into b-quarks with a vector boson at high transverse momentum in pp collisions at s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The associated production of a Higgs boson with a W or Z boson decaying into leptons and where the Higgs boson decays to a $b\bar{b}$ pair is measured in the high vector-boson transverse momentum regime, above 250 GeV, with the ATLAS detector. The analysed data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb -1 , were collected in proton–proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider between 2015 and 2018 at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV. The measured signal strength, defined as the ratio of the measured signal yield to that predicted by the Standard Model, is $0.72^{+0.39}_{-0.36}$ corresponding to an observed (expected) significance of 2.1 (2.7) standard deviations. Cross-sections of associated production of a Higgs boson decaying into b quark pairs with a W or Z gauge boson, decaying into leptons, are measured in two exclusive vector boson transverse momentum regions, 250–400 GeV and above 400 GeV, and interpreted as constraints on anomalous couplings in the framework of a Standard Model effective field theory.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2021

Measurement of the absolute branching fraction of Λ c + → p K S 0 η decays

Based on 586 pb -1 of e + e - annihilation data collected at a center-of-mass energy of √s = 4.6 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, the absolute branching fraction of $Λ^+_c$ → $pK^0_Sη$ decays is measured for the first time to be $B$($Λ^+_c$ → $pK^0_Sη$) = (0.414±0.084±0.028)%, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. The result is compatible with a previous CLEO result on the relative branching fraction B ( Λ c + → p K S 0 η ) B ( Λ c + → p K − π + ) , and consistent with theoretical predictions of SU(3) flavor symmetry.

$Λ^+_c$, Charmed baryon decays↗