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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Vacuum stability in inert higgs doublet model with right-handed neutrinos

We analyze the vacuum stability in the inert Higgs doublet extension of the Standard Model (SM), augmented by right-handed neutrinos (RHNs) to explain neutrino masses at tree level by the seesaw mechanism. We make a comparative study of the high- and low-scale seesaw scenarios and the effect of the Dirac neutrino Yukawa couplings on the stability of the Higgs potential. Bounds on the scalar quartic couplings and Dirac Yukawa couplings are obtained from vacuum stability and perturbativity considerations. These bounds are found to be relevant only for low-scale seesaw scenarios with relatively large Yukawa couplings. The regions corresponding to stability, metastability and instability of the electroweak vacuum are identified. These theoretical constraints give a very predictive parameter space for the couplings and masses of the new scalars and RHNs which can be tested at the LHC and future colliders. The lightest non-SM neutral CP-even/odd scalar can be a good dark matter candidate and the corresponding collider signatures are also predicted for the model.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2020

Higgs inflation, vacuum stability, and leptogenesis

We consider the introduction of a complex scalar field carrying a global lepton number charge to the Standard Model and the Higgs inflation framework. The conditions are investigated under which this model can simultaneously ensure Higgs vacuum stability up to the Planck scale, successful inflation, non-thermal Leptogenesis via the pendulum mechanism, and light neutrino masses. These can be simultaneously achieved when the scalar lepton is minimally coupled to gravity, that is, when standard Higgs inflation and reheating proceed without the interference of the additional scalar degrees of freedom. If the scalar lepton also has a non-minimal coupling to gravity, a multi-field inflation scenario is induced, with interesting interplay between the successful inflation constraints and those from vacuum stability and Leptogenesis. The parameter region that can simultaneously achieve the above goals is explored.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Upper bound on the smuon mass from vacuum stability in the light of muon g–2 anomaly

We derive an upper bound on the smuon mass assuming that the muon anomaly is explained by the supersymmetric (SUSY) contribution. In the minimal SUSY standard model, the SUSY contribution to the muon g–2 is enhanced when the Higgsino mass parameter is large. Then, the smuon-smuon-Higgs trilinear coupling is enhanced, which may destabilize the electroweak vacuum. We calculate precisely the decay rate of the electroweak vacuum in such a case. We include one-loop effects which are crucial to determine the overall normalization of the decay rate. Requiring that the theoretical prediction of the muon anomalous magnetic moment is consistent with the observed value at the 1 and 2σ levels (equal to the central value of the observed value), we found that the lightest smuon mass should be smaller than 1.38 and 1.68 TeV (1.20 TeV) for tan β (with tan β being the ratio of the vacuum expectation values of the two Higgs bosons), respectively, and the bound is insensitive to the value of tan β.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Spontaneous symmetry breaking, gauge hierarchy, and electroweak vacuum metastability

The so-called metastability bound asserts that an unnaturally small Higgs mass is a necessary condition for electroweak vacuum metastability, offering a new approach toward solving the hierarchy problem. So far, this result relies on the assumption of a negative Higgs mass parameter, or equivalently, on electroweak spontaneous symmetry breaking. We derive a new, corresponding bound for the case of a positive mass parameter. When the new bound is significantly more restrictive than or comparable to its established counterpart, it may offer an explanation for the sign of the Higgs mass parameter, and thus, spontaneous symmetry breaking itself. New physics at scales O ( 1 – 10 ) TeV can lower these bounds as far as the TeV scale. As an illustration, we consider vacuum stability in the presence of additional TeV-scale fermions with Yukawa couplings to the Higgs, as well as a dimension-six term parametrizing new physics in the UV. This scenario requires new physics that couples strongly to the Higgs, and can potentially be probed at future colliders. Finally, to allow for comparison with concrete mechanisms predicting metastability, we provide the mass-dependent lifetime of the electroweak vacuum for this model. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Benevedes, Sean (ORCID:000000016390198X)↗
DOE OSTI2023

New tools for dissecting the general $\mathrm{2HDM}$

Two Higgs doublet models (2HDM) provide the low energy effective theory (EFT) description in many well motivated extensions of the Standard Model. It is therefore relevant to study their properties, as well as the theoretical constraints on these models. In this article we concentrate on three relevant requirements for the validity of the 2HDM framework, namely the perturbative unitarity bounds, the bounded from below constraints, and the vacuum stability constraints. In this study, we concentrate on the most general renormalizable version of the 2HDM — without imposing any parity symmetry, which may be violated in many UV extensions. We derive novel analytical expressions that generalize those previously obtained in more restrictive scenarios to the most general case. We also discuss the phenomenological implications of these bounds, focusing on CP violation.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Muon $$\mathbf {g-2}$$, neutralino dark matter and stau NLSP

Abstract We explore the implications of resolving the muon $$g-2$$ g - 2 anomaly in a $$SU(4)_c \times SU(2)_L \times SU(2)_R$$ S U ( 4 ) c × S U ( 2 ) L × S U ( 2 ) R model, where the soft supersymmetry breaking scalar and gaugino masses break the left-right (LR) symmetry. A 2 $$\sigma $$ σ resolution of the anomaly requires relatively light sleptons, chargino and LSP neutralino. The stau turns out to be the NLSP of mass $$m_{\tilde{\tau }}\lesssim 400$$ m τ ~ ≲ 400 GeV, and the sleptons from the first two families can be as heavy as about 800 GeV. The chargino is also required to be lighter than about 600 GeV to accommodate the muon $$g-2$$ g - 2 solutions consistent with the dark matter relic density constraint. The dominant right-handed nature of the light slepton states suppress the sensitivity of possible signals which can be probed in Run3 experiments at the LHC. We also discuss the impact of accommodating the Higgs boson mass and the vacuum stability of the scalar potential for these solutions. Although a light stau can be compatible with the stability of the scalar potential, the Higgs boson mass constraint has a strong impact on the solutions with $$\tan \beta $$ tan β bounded from above, namely $$\tan \beta \lesssim 20$$ tan β ≲ 20 . The Higgsinos are heavier than about 4 TeV, and the LSP neutralino has the correct relic density if it is Bino-like. We identify stau–neutralino coannihilation as the dominant mechanism for realizing the desired dark matter relic density, with sneutrino–neutralino coannihiliation playing a minor role. These bino-like dark matter solutions can yield a spin-independent scattering cross-section on the order of $$10^{-13}$$ 10 - 13 pb which hopefully, can be expected to be tested in the near future.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Conformal boundary conditions for a 4d scalar field

We construct unitary, stable, and interacting conformal boundary conditions for a free massless scalar in four dimensions by coupling it to edge modes living on a boundary. The boundary theories we consider are bosonic and fermionic QED _3 3 with N_f N f flavors and a Chern-Simons term at level k k , in the large- N_f N f limit with fixed k/N_f k / N f . We find that interacting boundary conditions only exist when k≠ 0 k ≠ 0 . To obtain this result we compute the \beta β functions of the classically marginal couplings at the first non-vanishing order in the large- N_f N f expansion, and to all orders in k/N_f k / N f and in the couplings. To check vacuum stability we also compute the large- N_f N f effective potential. We compare our results with the the known conformal bootstrap bounds.

Di Pietro, Lorenzo (ORCID:0000000174965276)↗
DOE OSTI2021

$R^2$/Higgs inflation and the hierarchy problem

We analyse Starobinsky inflation in the presence of the Brout Englert Higgs (BEH) boson with a non-minimal coupling to the Ricci scalar, $R$. The latter induces a coupling of the massive scaleron associated with the $R^2$ term to the BEH boson and this leads to a radiative correction to the BEH mass that must be fine tuned to keep the scalar light. For the case of $R^2$ driven inflation this requires a high level of fine tuning of order 1 part in $10^{8}$; for the case of Higgs inflation it is very much greater. We consider a scale invariant extension of the $R^2$/Higgs model and find that for $R^2$ driven inflation but not for Higgs inflation the required fine tuning is significantly reduced to one part in $10^{3-4}$. We consider the vacuum stability of the fine tuned model and its reheating and dilaton abundance after inflation. We also discuss possible gravitational wave signals associated with the model and the constraint on the mass of scalar or fermion dark matter candidates if they are produced by the gravitational couplings of the scalaron.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Gravity-improved metastability bounds for the Type-I seesaw mechanism

Right-handed neutrinos (RHN) destabilize the electroweak vacuum by increasing its decay rate. In the SM, the latter is dominated by physics at the RG scale at which λ reaches its minimum, ${\mu}_{\ast}^{\textrm{SM}}$ ~10 17 GeV. For large neutrino Yukawa coupling Y ν , RHNs can push μ* beyond the Planck scale, implying that gravitational effects need to be taken into account. In this work, we perform the first comprehensive study of electroweak vacuum metastability in the type-I seesaw mechanism including these effects. Our analysis covers both low- and high-scale seesaw models, with two as well as three RHNs and for multiple values of the Higgs’ non-minimal coupling to gravity. We find that gravitational effects can significantly stabilize the vacuum, leading to weaker metastability bounds. We show that metastability sets the strongest bounds for low-scale seesaws with M N > 1 TeV. For high-scale seesaws, we find upper bounds on the allowed masses for the RHNs, which are relevant for high-scale leptogenesis. We also point out that Tr(${Y}_{\nu}^{\dagger}$Y ν ), which is commonly used to express these metastability bounds, cannot be used for all of parameter space. Instead, we argue that bounds can always be expressed reliably through Tr(${Y}_{\nu}^{\dagger}$Y ν ${Y}_{\nu}^{\dagger}$Y ν ). Lastly, we use this insight to develop a new technique for an easier RG analysis applicable to scenarios with degenerate RHN masses.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Decaying scalar dark matter in the minimal left-right symmetric model

In the minimal left-right symmetric theory, the dark matter candidate is usually ascribed to the lightest right-handed neutrino. Here we present an alternative decaying dark matter candidate in this model in terms of the lightest neutral scalar from the 𝑆⁢𝑈⁢(2) 𝑅 -triplet field. This setup requires a vast hierarchy between the scalar mass and the left-right symmetry breaking scale, which renders the scalar dark matter sufficiently stable on cosmological time scales. The stability of the dark matter imposes constraints on the right-handed neutrino mass, which has consequences for the neutrino mass generation, as well as for leptogenesis. Although somewhat fine-tuned, it provides a very economical scenario wherein the minimal left-right model can simultaneously explain dark matter, neutrino masses, and the matter-antimatter asymmetry of the Universe.

baryogenesis↗
DOE OSTI2020

Phase Measurements of a 140-GHz Confocal Gyro-Amplifier

The phase stability of a 140-GHz, 1-kW pulsed gyro-amplifier system and the phase dependence on the cathode voltage were experimentally measured. To optimize the measurement precision, the amplifier was operated at 47 kV and 1 A, where the output power was ~ 30 W. The phase was determined to be stable both pulse-to-pulse and during each pulse, so far as the cathode voltage and electron beam current are constant. The phase variation with voltage was measured and found to be 130 ± 30° /kV, in excellent agreement with simulations. The electron gun used in this device is non-adiabatic, resulting in a steep slope of the beam pitch factor with respect to cathode voltage. This was discovered to be the dominant factor in the phase dependence on voltage. The use of an adiabatic electron gun is predicted to yield a significantly smaller phase sensitivity to voltage, and thus a more phase-stable performance. To our knowledge, these are the first phase measurements reported for a gyro-amplifier operating at a frequency above W-band.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Foam-insulated cryo-compressed hydrogen storage vessels for buses

Here, large reductions (40 % vs. compressed gaseous hydrogen vessels and 17 % vs. vacuum insulated cryo-compressed vessels) in hydrogen storage system cost are possible by operating buses with foam-insulated cryo-compressed hydrogen (CcH 2 ) vessels. Detailed thermodynamic analysis reveals that large size and rapid H 2 consumption in buses compensate for the poor performance of foam insulation (∼100 times more conductive than vacuum multilayer insulation), resulting in compact and inexpensive H 2 storage systems with sufficient H 2 capacity for the longest routes (500 km) while maintaining previously identified advantages of CcH 2 systems: increased autonomy, rapid high density refueling, and improved safety, while simultaneously avoiding vacuum insulation stability problems resulting from composite resin outgassing.

Cryo-compressed↗
DOE OSTI2023

Combined Stress Testing of Perovskite Solar Cells for Stable Operation in Space

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) could provide new low-cost opportunities for powering spacecraft. Here we are designing a PSC resilient to lunar surface conditions, focusing on contact/barrier layers combinations that maximize stability. Thermal vacuum stress shows cells with gold back-contacts and SiOx protection retain >90% of initial efficiency and indium tin oxide (ITO)-contacted cells retain ~100% of initial efficiency after five months of stress. SiO x mitigates mechanical aspects of contact stress, retaining 99% of initial efficiency, whereas cells with silicone/cover glass decreased 27%. We further exposed cells to combined illumination, 75 °C heat, and 10 -6 Torr vacuum for 24 h and found that ITO-contacted cells outperformed Au-contacted cells.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Mass generation in an Abelian gauge theory with multiple scalar fields and no tree-level dimensionful couplings

We study the Abelian Higgs model with multiple scalar fields, but without mass terms. Solving the model nonperturbatively order-by-order in the number of scalar fields, we find that radiative corrections generate masses for the scalar and gauge boson, without spontaneous symmetry breaking. The mass scales are set by the Λ -parameter of the electroweak running coupling, thereby naturally avoiding the hierarchy problem. No part of our calculation employs a weak-coupling expansion, and we find that the perturbative vacuum is metastable, and hence must decay to the stable nonperturbative vacuum of the theory, which we identify. Although the field content of our Lagrangian is standard, our results predict the existence of two heavy scalar resonances in addition to the Higgs. We believe that these predicted resonances will ultimately allow experimentalists to discriminate between our method and standard solutions of the Higgs model. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Applicability of semiclassical theories in the strong-field plasma regime

For many purposes, classical plasma dynamics models can work surprisingly well, even for strong electromagnetic fields, approaching the Schwinger critical fields, and high frequencies, approaching the Compton frequency. However, the applicability of classical models tends to depend rather sensitively on the details of the problem. In the present paper, we study the specific case of plasma oscillations to draw a line between the classical and quantum relativistic regimes. Here, due to the field geometry of study, mechanisms like radiation reaction and Breit-Wheeler pair production, which tend to be important for electromagnetic fields, are rather effectively suppressed. Moreover, we find that the polarization current due to the electron spin is generally negligible for frequencies below the Compton frequency, compared with the free current, whose magnitude is well-approximated by the classical Vlasov theory. However, we show that pair creation due to the Schwinger mechanism can sometimes be important for surprisingly modest field strengths, of the order of 10% of the critical field or even smaller. A rough guideline for when the classical Vlasov theory can be applied is given.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗