- Physical Review Journals
All JournalsPhysics Magazine

Physical Review D

Reuse & Permissions

It is not necessary to obtain permission to reuse this article or its components as it is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI are maintained. Please note that some figures may have been included with permission from other third parties. It is your responsibility to obtain the proper permission from the rights holder directly for these figures.

Export citation

Export citation

Choose format for download:

Download Citation
  • Open Access

Muon-induced di-tau production as a probe of new physics

Sudipta Das1,*, Luke Kupari1,†, Mary Hall Reno1,‡, and Sebastian Trojanowski2,3,§

  • *Contact author: sudipta-das@uiowa.edu
  • †Contact author: luke-kupari@uiowa.edu
  • ‡Contact author: mary-hall-reno@uiowa.edu
  • §Contact author: sebastian.trojanowski@ncbj.gov.pl
PDF

Phys. Rev. D 114, 075029 – Published 23 October, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/l3fr-9qlz

Abstract

The muon trident process, which involves coherent scattering to produce tau pairs, is a powerful tool for constraining dark sectors. We propose to explore this channel using future high-energy muon beams with the dedicated active-target detector, High-Energy Muon Electronic Research Apparatus (HEMERA). The detector would complement muon beam-dump searches by resolving prompt signatures and could operate from preparatory facilities involving an individual muon beam of the full muon collider. We illustrate its capabilities for a leptophilic scalar with Yukawa-like couplings that can mediate thermal dark matter production. With 1018 incident TeV-scale muons, even a compact 10 kg silicon-based HEMERA will extend current B-factory and (g−2)μ bounds by over an order of magnitude in coupling strength. In the leptophilic thermal dark matter paradigm, this search offers a way to probe dark sector targets beyond the neutrino floor of dark matter direct detection. This provides an additional compelling motivation for the development of high-energy muon beam infrastructure.

View figure in article

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Article Text

References (112)

  1. J. P. Delahaye, M. Diemoz, K. Long, B. Mansoulié, N. Pastrone, L. Rivkin, D. Schulte, A. Skrinsky, and A. Wulzer, arXiv:1901.06150.
  2. C. Accettura et al. (International Muon Collider Collaboration), CERN Yellow Rep. Monogr. 2, 176 (2024).
  3. C. Accettura et al. (International Muon Collider Collaboration), arXiv:2504.21417.
  4. C. Cesarotti, S. Homiller, R. K. Mishra, and M. Reece, Phys. Rev. Lett. 130, 071803 (2023).
  5. C. Cesarotti and R. Gambhir, J. High Energy Phys. 05 (2024) 283.
  6. H. T. Klest, Phys. Rev. D 112, L051504 (2025).
  7. L. Calibbi, T. Li, L. Mukherjee, and Y. Yang, Phys. Rev. D 110, 115009 (2024).
  8. A. Ariga, R. Balkin, I. Galon, E. Kajomovitz, and Y. Soreq, Phys. Rev. D 109, 035003 (2024).
  9. R. Mammen Abraham and M. Fieg, Phys. Rev. D 112, 015005 (2025).
  10. B. Batell, H. Davoudiasl, R. Marcarelli, E. T. Neil, and S. Trojanowski, Phys. Rev. D 110, 075039 (2024).
  11. R. Francener, V. P. Goncalves, F. Kling, P. Krack, and J. Rojo, Eur. Phys. J. C 85, 1098 (2025).
  12. R. Francener, V. P. Goncalves, and G. Rabelo-Soares, Nucl. Phys. B1025, 117396 (2026).
  13. H. Sieber, D. Banerjee, P. Crivelli, E. Depero, S. N. Gninenko, D. V. Kirpichnikov, M. M. Kirsanov, V. Poliakov, and L. Molina Bueno, Phys. Rev. D 105, 052006 (2022).
  14. Y. M. Andreev et al. (NA64 Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 132, 211803 (2024).
  15. Y. M. Andreev et al. (NA64 Collaboration), Phys. Rev. D 110, 112015 (2024).
  16. C.-Y. Chen, M. Pospelov, and Y.-M. Zhong, Phys. Rev. D 95, 115005 (2017).
  17. Y. Kahn, G. Krnjaic, N. Tran, and A. Whitbeck, J. High Energy Phys. 09 (2018) 153.
  18. G. Grilli di Cortona and E. Nardi, Phys. Rev. D 105, L111701 (2022).
  19. S. J. Brodsky and S. C. C. Ting, Phys. Rev. 145, 1018 (1966).
  20. J. D. Bjorken and M. C. Chen, Phys. Rev. 154, 1335 (1966).
  21. S. R. Kel’ner, Sov. J. Nucl. Phys. 5, 778 (1967).
  22. G. R. Henry, Phys. Rev. 166, 1553 (1968).
  23. M. J. Tannenbaum, Phys. Rev. 167, 1308 (1968).
  24. V. Ganapathi and J. Smith, Phys. Rev. D 19, 801 (1979).
  25. V. D. Barger, W.-Y. Keung, and R. J. N. Phillips, Phys. Rev. D 20, 630 (1979).
  26. V. Ganapathi and J. Smith, Phys. Rev. D 20, 2213 (1979).
  27. A. A. Akhundov, D. Y. Bardin, N. D. Gagunashvili, and N. M. Shumeiko, Sov. J. Nucl. Phys. 31, 127 (1980).
  28. A. A. Akhundov, D. Y. Bardin, and N. M. Shumeiko, Sov. J. Nucl. Phys. 32, 234 (1980).
  29. V. Ganapathi and J. Smith, Phys. Rev. D 23, 75 (1981).
  30. S. R. Kelner, R. P. Kokoulin, and A. A. Petrukhin, Phys. At. Nucl. 63, 1603 (2000).
  31. A. Bulmahn and M. H. Reno, Phys. Rev. D 79, 053008 (2009).
  32. G. Abbiendi, E. Budassi, C. M. Carloni Calame, A. Gurgone, and F. Piccinini, Phys. Lett. B 854, 138720 (2024).
  33. A. J. Buras, P. Gambino, M. Gorbahn, S. Jager, and L. Silvestrini, Phys. Lett. B 500, 161 (2001).
  34. G. D’Ambrosio, G. F. Giudice, G. Isidori, and A. Strumia, Nucl. Phys. B645, 155 (2002).
  35. V. Cirigliano, B. Grinstein, G. Isidori, and M. B. Wise, Nucl. Phys. B728, 121 (2005).
  36. J. Billard, L. Strigari, and E. Figueroa-Feliciano, Phys. Rev. D 89, 023524 (2014).
  37. A. P. Bulmahn, Lepton pair production in high energy μA scattering: Cross sections, energy loss, and applications to underground lepton production, Ph.D. thesis, Iowa U., 2010.
  38. B. Ruijl, T. Ueda, and J. Vermaseren, arXiv:1707.06453.
  39. C. F. Perdrisat, V. Punjabi, and M. Vanderhaeghen, Prog. Part. Nucl. Phys. 59, 694 (2007).
  40. G. Lee, J. R. Arrington, and R. J. Hill, Phys. Rev. D 92, 013013 (2015).
  41. Z. Ye, J. Arrington, R. J. Hill, and G. Lee, Phys. Lett. B 777, 8 (2018).
  42. Y. M. Andreev and E. V. Bugaev, Phys. Rev. D 55, 1233 (1997).
  43. M. Lindner, W. Rodejohann, and X.-J. Xu, J. High Energy Phys. 03 (2017) 097.
  44. X. Chu, J. Pradler, and L. Semmelrock, Phys. Rev. D 99, 015040 (2019).
  45. G. Peter Lepage, J. Comput. Phys. 27, 192 (1978).
  46. A. Singh, G. D’Ambrosio, and S. K. Vempati, Phys. Rev. D 114, 035038 (2026).
  47. B. Batell, N. Lange, D. McKeen, M. Pospelov, and A. Ritz, Phys. Rev. D 95, 075003 (2017).
  48. B. Batell, A. Freitas, A. Ismail, and D. Mckeen, Phys. Rev. D 98, 055026 (2018).
  49. T. Kinoshita and W. J. Marciano, Adv. Ser. Dir. High Energy Phys. 7, 419 (1990).
  50. C.-Y. Chen, H. Davoudiasl, W. J. Marciano, and C. Zhang, Phys. Rev. D 93, 035006 (2016).
  51. C.-Y. Chen, J. Kozaczuk, and Y.-M. Zhong, J. High Energy Phys. 10 (2018) 154.
  52. N. Aghanim et al. (Planck Collaboration), Astron. Astrophys. 641, A6 (2020); 652, C4(E) (2021).
  53. B. Batell, A. Freitas, A. Ismail, and D. Mckeen, Phys. Rev. D 100, 095020 (2019).
  54. J. Kopp, V. Niro, T. Schwetz, and J. Zupan, Phys. Rev. D 80, 083502 (2009).
  55. R. Garani, F. Gasparotto, P. Mastrolia, H. J. Munch, S. Palomares-Ruiz, and A. Primo, J. High Energy Phys. 12 (2021) 212.
  56. M. Graziani, G. Landini, F. Mescia, C. Toni, and L. Vittorio, arXiv:2605.27513.
  57. W. Altmannshofer, T. Mäkelä, S. Sarkar, S. Trojanowski, K. Xie, and B. Zhou, Phys. Rev. D 110, 072018 (2024).
  58. F. Takahashi et al. (Particle Data Group Collaboration), Int. J. Mod. Phys. A 41, 2630011 (2026).
  59. J. P. Leveille and T. J. Weiler, Nucl. Phys. B147, 147 (1979).
  60. F. Vissani, Astropart. Phys. 15, 217 (2001).
  61. S. Frixione, M. L. Mangano, P. Nason, and G. Ridolfi, Phys. Lett. B 348, 633 (1995).
  62. S. Frixione, P. Nason, and G. Ridolfi, Nucl. Phys. B454, 3 (1995).
  63. N. Agafonova et al. (OPERA Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 115, 121802 (2015).
  64. T. Adams et al. (NuTeV Collaboration), Phys. Rev. D 61, 092001 (2000).
  65. D. E. Groom, N. V. Mokhov, and S. I. Striganov, At. Data Nucl. Data Tables 78, 183 (2001).
  66. B. J. King, AIP Conf. Proc. 435, 334 (1998).
  67. J. Adhikary, K. J. Kelly, F. Kling, and S. Trojanowski, Phys. Rev. D 111, 075019 (2025).
  68. F. Kling, Y. Ma, K. Mäkelä, J. Reuter, and Z. Tabrizi, J. High Energy Phys. 05 (2026) 050.
  69. N. Barchetta, P. Collins, and P. Riedler, Eur. Phys. J. Plus 137, 231 (2022).
  70. E. Cortina Gil et al. (NA62 Collaboration), J. High Energy Phys. 09 (2023) 035.
  71. Y. Hamada, R. Kitano, R. Matsudo, H. Takaura, and M. Yoshida, Prog. Theor. Exp. Phys. 2022, 053B02 (2022).
  72. Muon accelerators for particle physics (muon), edited by M. A. Palmer and K. L. Long, J. Instrum. special issue (2016–2021), https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/1748-0221/page/extraproc46, Article collection; Muon accelerator program (MAP), http://map.fnal.gov (restricted access), https://web.archive.org/web/20210505140022/http://map.fnal.gov/ archived version 5 May 2021 (free access).
  73. D. Neuffer and V. Shiltsev, J. Instrum. 13, T10003 (2018).
  74. A. Ariga et al. (FASER Collaboration), arXiv:1811.10243.
  75. A. Ariga et al. (FASER Collaboration), arXiv:1812.09139.
  76. G. Acampora et al. (SND@LHC Collaboration), J. Instrum. 19, P05067 (2024).
  77. L. A. Anchordoqui et al., Phys. Rep. 968, 1 (2022).
  78. J. L. Feng et al., J. Phys. G 50, 030501 (2023).
  79. J. Adhikary et al., Eur. Phys. J. C 85, 430 (2025).
  80. H. Abreu et al. (FASER Collaboration), Eur. Phys. J. C 80, 61 (2020).
  81. H. Abreu et al. (FASER Collaboration), arXiv:2001.03073.
  82. J. L. Feng, I. Galon, F. Kling, and S. Trojanowski, Phys. Rev. D 97, 035001 (2018).
  83. S. Navas et al. (Particle Data Group Collaboration), Phys. Rev. D 110, 030001 (2024).
  84. J. P. Lees et al. (BABAR Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 181801 (2020).
  85. D. Biswas et al. (Belle Collaboration), Phys. Rev. D 109, 032002 (2024).
  86. I. Adachi et al. (Belle-II Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 121802 (2023).
  87. J. Alda, G. Levati, P. Paradisi, S. Rigolin, and N. Selimovic, J. High Energy Phys. 06 (2025) 008.
  88. J. Aalbers et al. (LZ Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 011802 (2025).
  89. E. Aprile et al. (XENON Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 137, 051003 (2026).
  90. C. A. J. O’Hare, Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 251802 (2021).
  91. S. Schael et al. (ALEPH, DELPHI, L3, OPAL, SLD, LEP Electroweak Working Group, SLD Electroweak Group, SLD Heavy Flavour Group Collaboration), Phys. Rep. 427, 257 (2006).
  92. E. J. Chun and J. Kim, J. High Energy Phys. 07 (2016) 110.
  93. J. Abdallah et al. (DELPHI Collaboration), Eur. Phys. J. C 38, 1 (2004).
  94. G. W. Bennett et al. (Muon g-2 Collaboration), Phys. Rev. D 73, 072003 (2006).
  95. B. Abi et al. (Muon g-2 Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 126, 141801 (2021).
  96. D. P. Aguillard et al. (Muon g-2 Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 161802 (2023).
  97. D. P. Aguillard et al. (Muon g-2 Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 101802 (2025).
  98. R. Aliberti et al., Phys. Rep. 1143, 1 (2025).
  99. DELPHI Collaboration, Eur. Phys. J. C 35, 159 (2004).
  100. G. Aad et al. (ATLAS Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 151802 (2023).
  101. A. Tumasyan et al. (CMS Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 151803 (2023).
  102. X. Chen and Y. Wu, J. High Energy Phys. 10 (2019) 089.
  103. A. Crivellin, M. Hoferichter, and J. M. Roney, Phys. Rev. D 106, 093007 (2022).
  104. A. Hayrapetyan et al. (CMS Collaboration), Phys. Rev. Lett. 137, 131801 (2026).
  105. E. J. Chun and T. Mondal, Phys. Lett. B 802, 135190 (2020).
  106. E. J. Chun and T. Mondal, J. High Energy Phys. 07 (2021) 044.
  107. L.-B. Jia, Eur. Phys. J. C 82, 321 (2022).
  108. M. Dam, SciPost Phys. Proc. 1, 041 (2019).
  109. W. Altmannshofer, S. Gori, M. Pospelov, and I. Yavin, Phys. Rev. D 89, 095033 (2014).
  110. J. Aebischer, W. Dekens, E. E. Jenkins, A. V. Manohar, D. Sengupta, and P. Stoffer, J. High Energy Phys. 07 (2021) 107.
  111. Zenodo, https://zenodo.org/records/20834526.
  112. Github, https://github.com/LuKupari/HEMERA.

Outline

Information

Phys. Rev. D 114, 075029– Published 23 October, 2026
  • Received 25 June 2026
  • Accepted 6 October 2026
Crossmark - Check for updates button
Creative Commons Logo

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by SCOAP3.

Published by the American Physical Society

Sign In to Your Journals Account

Filter

Filter

Article Lookup

Enter a citation