We propose a scenario in which the spontaneous breakdown of the Peccei-Quinn symmetry leads to monopole production. Both the axion and the monopole contribute to dark matter, and the Witten effect on the axion mass is a built-in feature. In the Kim-Shifman-Vainshtein-Zakharov-type axion model, seemingly different vacua are actually connected by the hidden gauge symmetry, which makes the axionic string unstable and separate into two Alice strings. The Alice string is attached to a single domain wall due to the QCD instanton effect, solving the domain-wall problem. This is in the same spirit of the Lazarides-Shafi mechanism, although the discrete Peccei-Quinn symmetry is not embedded into the center of the original gauge symmetry. In the Dine-Fischler-Srednicki-Zhitnitsky-type axion model, the domain-wall problem is avoided by the Witten effect. If the Peccei-Quinn symmetry is explicitly broken by a small amount, monopoles acquire a tiny electric charge and become minicharged dark matter. Interestingly, the quality of the Peccei-Quinn symmetry is closely tied to darkness of dark matter.

We reexamine big bang nucleosynthesis with large-scale baryon density inhomogeneities when the length scale of the density fluctuations exceeds the neutron diffusion length ($\sim {10}^7–{10}^8\mathrm{cm}$ at BBN), and the amplitude of the fluctuations is sufficiently small to prevent gravitational collapse. In this limit, the final light element abundances can be determined by simply mixing the abundances from regions with different baryon/photon ratios without interactions. We examine Gaussian, log-normal, and gamma distributions for the baryon/photon ratio, $\eta$. We find that the deuterium and lithium-7 abundances increase with the rms fluctuation in $\eta$, while the effect on helium-4 is much smaller. We show that these increases in the deuterium and lithium-7 abundances are a consequence of Jensen’s inequality, and we derive analytic approximations for these abundances in the limit of small rms fluctuations. Observational upper limits on the primordial deuterium abundance constrain the rms fluctuation in $\eta$ to be less than 17% of the mean value of $\eta$. This provides us with a new limit on the graininess of the early Universe.

Inflation may provide a suitable collider to probe physics at very high energies. In this paper we investigate the impact on the cosmic microwave background bispectrum of higher spin fields which are long-lived on super-Hubble scales, e.g., partially massless higher spin fields. We show that distinctive statistical anisotropic signals on the cosmic microwave background three-point correlator are induced and we investigate their detectability.

Cosmological structures grow differently in theories of gravity which are modified as compared to Einstein’s general relativity (GR). Cosmic microwave background (CMB) fluctuation patterns at the last scattering surface are lensed by these structures along the photon path to the observer. The observed CMB pattern therefore keeps trace of the growth history of structures. We show that observations of the CMB lensing bispectrum offer an interesting way to constrain deviations from GR in a broad class of scalar-tensor theories of gravity called “beyond Horndeski”. We quantify how the constraints on generic parameters describing the deviations from GR depend on the effective multipole range of the analysis. Our results further indicate that an accurate nonlinear correction of the matter bispectrum in the modified gravity considered is necessary when the bispectrum is used to probe scales beyond a multipole ${\ell }_{\max }\gtrsim 1500$. We also found that the results are insensitive to details of the implementation of the screening mechanism, at very small scales. We finally demonstrate the potential of the lensing bispectrum to provide a blind reconstruction of the redshift evolution of our modified gravity parameters by combining the analysis of CMB and low-z source lensing data.

We consider the potential for line intensity mapping (IM) experiments to measure the baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) from $3<z<6$. This would constrain the expansion history in a redshift range that is currently unexplored. We calculate the map depths that future IM experiments targeting the CO(1-0) rotational transition line and [CII] ionized carbon fine-structure line would need to achieve in order to measure the BAO. We find that near-future IM experiments could constrain the BAO scale to 5% or better depending on CO/[CII] model amplitude. This measurement is at a precision that could make competitive constraints on models of early dark energy.

The gravitomagnetic monopole is the proposed gravitational analogue of Dirac’s magnetic monopole. However, an observational evidence of this aspect of fundamental physics was elusive. Here, we employ a technique involving three primary X-ray observational methods used to measure a black hole spin to search for the gravitomagnetic monopole. These independent methods give significantly different spin values for an accreting black hole. We demonstrate that the inclusion of one extra parameter due to the gravitomagnetic monopole not only makes the spin and other parameter values inferred from the three methods consistent with each other but also makes the inferred black hole mass consistent with an independently measured value. We argue that this first indication of the gravitomagnetic monopole, within our paradigm, is not a result of fine tuning.

We reemphasize the momentum dependence of the coefficients of the derivative expansion as already explained in our paper [1]. We also discuss how the momentum dependence plagues the time-dependent HALQCD method and what is a necessary condition for the method to yield valid results being independent of the choice of the interpolating operators.

We invalidate the arguments given in [T. Yamazaki and Y. Kuramashi, Phys. Rev. D 96, 114511 (2017)] over the HAL QCD method for hadron-hadron interactions on the lattice. We also pose questions on the practical usefulness of the method proposed in this reference.

We discuss an example of a subvacuum effect, where a quantum expectation value is below the vacuum level, and is hence negative. The example is the time average of the mean squared electric field in a nonclassical state where one mode is excited. We give some specific examples of such states, and discuss the lower bound on the squared field or its time average. We show when a lower bound can be obtained by diagonalization of the squared electric field operator, and calculate this bound. We also discuss the case of an instant time mean squared electric field, when the operator cannot be diagonalized. In this case, a lower bound still exists but is attained only by the limit of a sequence of quantum states. In general, the optimum lower bound on the mean squared electric field is minus one-half of the mean squared electric field in a one-photon state. This provides a convenient estimate of the subvacuum effect, and may be useful for attempts to experimentally measure this effect.

We develop a general formalism for the quantum kinetics of chiral fermions in a background electromagnetic field based on a semiclassical expansion of covariant Wigner functions in the Planck constant $\hslash$. We demonstrate to any order of $\hslash$ that only the time-component of the Wigner function is independent while other components are explicit derivative. We further demonstrate to any order of $\hslash$ that a system of quantum kinetic equations for multiple-components of Wigner functions can be reduced to one chiral kinetic equation involving only the single-component distribution function. These are remarkable properties of the quantum kinetics of chiral fermions and will significantly simplify the description and simulation of chiral effects in heavy ion collisions and Dirac/Weyl semimetals. We present the unintegrated chiral kinetic equations in four-momenta up to $O({\hslash }^2)$ and the integrated ones in three-momenta up to $O(\hslash )$. We find that some singular terms emerge in the integration over the time component of the four-momentum, which result in a new source term contributing to the chiral anomaly, in contrast to the well-known scenario of the Berry phase term. Finally we rewrite our results in any Lorentz frame with a reference four-velocity and show how the non-trivial transformation of the distribution function in different frames emerges in a natural way.

We study four-dimensional $SU(2)$ Yang-Mills theory with two massless adjoint Weyl fermions. When compactified on a spatial circle of size $L$ much smaller than the strong-coupling scale, this theory can be solved by weak-coupling nonperturbative semiclassical methods. We study the possible realizations of symmetries in the ${\mathbb{R}}^4$ limit and find that all continuous and discrete 0-form and 1-form ’t Hooft anomaly-matching conditions are saturated by a symmetry realization and massless spectrum identical to that found in the small-$L$ limit, with only a single massless flavor-doublet fermion in the infrared. This observation raises the possibility that the class of theories which undergo no phase transition between the analytically solvable small-size circle and strongly coupled infinite-size circle is larger than previously thought and offers new challenges for lattice studies.

The method proposed by Kinoshita and Nio to compute higher order vacuum polarization contributions to the Coulomb potential in muonic hydrogen is generalized to obtain relativistic corrections to their results.

Many extensions of the Standard Model predict new resonances decaying to a $Z$, $W$, or Higgs boson and a photon. This paper presents a search for such resonances produced in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}=13\mathrm{TeV}$ using a data set with an integrated luminosity of $36.1{\mathrm{fb}}^{-1}$ collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The $Z/W/H$ bosons are identified through their decays to hadrons. The data are found to be consistent with the Standard Model expectation in the entire investigated mass range. Upper limits are set on the production cross section times branching fraction for resonance decays to $Z/W+\gamma$ in the mass range from 1.0 to 6.8 TeV and for the first time into $H+\gamma$ in the mass range from 1.0 to 3.0 TeV.

The process $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to p{K}_S^0\overline{n}{K}^{-}+\mathrm{c}.\mathrm{c}.$ and its intermediate processes are studied for the first time, using data samples collected with the BESIII detector at BEPCII at center-of-mass energies of 3.773, 4.008, 4.226, 4.258, 4.358, 4.416, and 4.600 GeV, with a total integrated luminosity of $7.4{\mathrm{fb}}^{-1}$. The Born cross section of $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to p{K}_S^0\overline{n}{K}^{-}+\mathrm{c}.\mathrm{c}.$ is measured at each center-of-mass energy, but no significant resonant structure in the measured cross-section line shape between 3.773 and 4.600 GeV is observed. No evident structure is detected in the $p{K}^{-}$, $n{K}_S^0$, $p{K}_S^0$, $n{K}^{+}$, $p\overline{n}$, or $K_S^0{K}^{-}$ invariant mass distributions except for $\mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)$. The Born cross sections of $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to \mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)\overline{n}{K}_S^0+\mathrm{c}.\mathrm{c}.$ and $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to \mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)\overline{p}{K}^{+}+\mathrm{c}.\mathrm{c}.$ are measured, and the 90% confidence level upper limits on the Born cross sections of $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to \mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)\overline{\mathrm{\Lambda }}(1520)$ are determined at the seven center-of-mass energies. There is an evident difference in line shape and magnitude of the measured cross sections between $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to \mathrm{\Lambda }(1520)(\to p{K}^{-})\overline{n}{K}_S^0$ and $e^{+}{e}^{-}\to p{K}^{-}\overline{\mathrm{\Lambda }}(1520)(\to \overline{n}{K}_S^0)$.

Selecting the newly observed ${\mathrm{\Xi }}_b(6227{)}^{-}$ by LHCb as a study example, we decode its inner structure by giving the mass spectrum analysis and the investigation of its two-body strong decay behaviors. Our result indicates that the ${\mathrm{\Xi }}_b(6227{)}^{-}$ is a good candidate of the $P$-wave ${\mathrm{\Xi }}_b^{\prime }$ state with $J^P=3/2^{-}$ or $5/2^{-}$. In addition, we further provide the information of the properties of the partners of the ${\mathrm{\Xi }}_b(6227{)}^{-}$. These predicted states include three $2S$ states and the remaining $1P$ states in the bottom-strange baryon family. The calculated sizable Okubo-Zweig-Iizuka–allowed decay widths of these partners show that the experimental search for them becomes possible via LHCb. We have a reason to believe that the present study can be treated as a start point for constructing the highly excited bottom baryon spectroscopy.

We introduce a unified mathematical framework that elegantly describes minimally supersymmetry gauge theories in even dimensions, ranging from six dimensions to zero dimensions, and their dualities. This approach combines and extends recent developments on graded quivers with potentials, higher Ginzburg algebras, and higher cluster categories (also known as $m$-cluster categories). Quiver mutations studied in the context of mathematics precisely correspond to the order-($m+1$) dualities of the gauge theories. Our work indicates that these equivalences of quiver gauge theories sit inside an infinite family of such generalized dualities.

We present a deep neural network representation of the $\mathrm{AdS}/\mathrm{CFT}$ correspondence, and demonstrate the emergence of the bulk metric function via the learning process for given data sets of response in boundary quantum field theories. The emergent radial direction of the bulk is identified with the depth of the layers, and the network itself is interpreted as a bulk geometry. Our network provides a data-driven holographic modeling of strongly coupled systems. With a scalar ${\varphi }^4$ theory with unknown mass and coupling, in unknown curved spacetime with a black hole horizon, we demonstrate that our deep learning (DL) framework can determine the systems that fit given response data. First, we show that, from boundary data generated by the anti–de Sitter (AdS) Schwarzschild spacetime, our network can reproduce the metric. Second, we demonstrate that our network with experimental data as an input can determine the bulk metric, the mass and the quadratic coupling of the holographic model. As an example we use the experimental data of the magnetic response of the strongly correlated material ${\mathrm{Sm}}_{0.6}{\mathrm{Sr}}_{0.4}{\mathrm{MnO}}_3$. This $\mathrm{AdS}/\mathrm{DL}$ correspondence not only enables gravitational modeling of strongly correlated systems, but also sheds light on a hidden mechanism of the emerging space in both AdS and DL.

The recently suggested tangle calculus for knot polynomials is intimately related to topological string considerations and can help to build the HOMFLY-PT invariants from the topological vertices. We discuss this interplay in the simplest example of the Hopf link and link $L_{8n8}$. It turns out that the resolved conifold with four different representations on the four external legs, on the topological string side, is described by a special projection of the four-component link $L_{8n8}$, which reduces to the Hopf link colored with two composite representations. Thus, this provides the first explicit example of non-torus link description through topological vertex. It is not a real breakthrough, because $L_{8n8}$ is just a cable of the Hopf link, still it can help to intensify the development of the formalism towards more interesting examples.

We study nontopological Q-ball solutions of the ($3+1$)-dimensional Friedberg-Lee-Sirlin two-component model. The limiting case of the vanishing potential term yields an example of hairy Q-balls, which possess a long-range massless real field. We discuss the properties of these stationary field configurations and determine their domain of existence. Considering the Friedberg-Lee-Sirlin model, we present numerical evidence for the existence of spinning axially symmetric Q-balls with different parity. A solution of this type exists also in the limiting case of vanishing scalar potential. We find that the hairy Q-balls are classically stable for all range of values of angular frequency.