• Accepted Paper

Quarkoniumlike states above open-flavor thresholds in the Born-Oppenheimer EFT

Nora Brambilla, Roberto Bruschini, Abhishek Mohapatra, Fang-Zheng Peng, and Tommaso Scirpa

Phys. Rev. D - Accepted 24 August, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/tml1-3l7h

Abstract

Many quarkoniumlike states have been observed above open-flavor thresholds, but their organization and internal structure remain unsettled. We study the isoscalar hidden-charm and hidden-bottom sectors in Born-Oppenheimer effective field theory (BOEFT), between the spin-isospin averaged S + S and S + P thresholds. At leading order, heavy-quark spin decouples, and the quarkonium static potential mixes through string breaking with the lowest tetraquark/open-flavor BO potentials of the same quantum numbers. These potentials are constrained by QCD symmetries, their short- and long-distance behavior, and lattice-QCD data. The only calibrated parameter is the lowest 1^{–} adjoint meson mass, fixed from the shallow multiplet associated with the _{c1}(3872). Using T-matrix, K-matrix, and complex-scaling methods, we determine bound states and resonance poles, their masses, pole widths from the included nonstrange S + S channels, normalized pole couplings, and prescription-dependent quarkonium-open-flavor composition measures. Uncoupled hybrid BOEFT multiplets are included as reference levels. The spectrum exhibits a common heavy-quark-spin-symmetry multiplet organization. Most poles are predominantly quarkonium resonances localized at relatively short distances, with the largest open-flavor components closest to threshold. The same equations also generate shallow, spatially extended, open-flavor-dominated states with molecular long-distance characteristics. Their binding energies, radii, and small quarkonium components are highly sensitive to the adjoint meson mass, whereas the higher spectrum is more stable. In addition, the equations predict a more compact open-flavor-dominated resonance in the l = 0 bottomoniumlike sector, approximately 50 MeV above the common spin–isospin averaged threshold, with a P-wave open-flavor component and a 0^{-+}, $^{–} BOEFT multiplet structure. Together with the hybrid reference levels, the spectrum provides multiplet assignments for most experimental candidates. States not naturally accommodated point to the need for hidden-strange and S + P tetraquark/open-flavor BO sectors and for hybrid-tetraquark and hybrid-quarkonium mixings.

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