Asymmetric dark matter (ADM) is motivated by the similar cosmological mass densities measured for ordinary and dark matter. We present a comprehensive theory for ADM that addresses the mass density similarity, going beyond the usual ADM explanations of similar number densities. It features an explicit matter-antimatter asymmetry generation mechanism, has one fully worked out thermal history and suggestions for other possibilities, and meets all phenomenological, cosmological and astrophysical constraints. Importantly, it incorporates a deep reason for why the dark matter mass scale is related to the proton mass, a key consideration in ADM models. Our starting point is the idea of mirror matter, which offers an explanation for dark matter by duplicating the standard model with a dark sector related by a $Z_2$ parity symmetry. However, the dark sector need not manifest as a symmetric copy of the standard model in the present day. By utilizing the mechanism of “asymmetric symmetry breaking” with two Higgs doublets in each sector, we develop a model of ADM where the mirror symmetry is spontaneously broken, leading to an electroweak scale in the dark sector that is significantly larger than that of the visible sector. The weak sensitivity of the ordinary and dark QCD confinement scales to their respective electroweak scales leads to the necessary connection between the dark matter and proton masses. The dark matter is composed of either dark neutrons or a mixture of dark neutrons and metastable dark hydrogen atoms. Lepton asymmetries are generated by the $CP$-violating decays of heavy Majorana neutrinos in both sectors. These are then converted by sphaleron processes to produce the observed ratio of visible to dark matter in the universe. The dynamics responsible for the kinetic decoupling of the two sectors emerges as an important issue that we only partially solve.

We study in some detail the cosmology of oscillating dark energy described by concrete equations-of-state introduced recently in the literature. In particular, we compute the statefinder parameters, the growth index, as well as the combination parameter $A=f{\sigma }_8$, and a comparison with the concordance $\mathrm{\Lambda }\mathrm{CDM}$ is made.

We analyze the role, on large cosmological scales and laboratory experiments, of the leading curvature squared contributions to the low-energy effective action of gravity. We argue for a natural relationship $c_0{\lambda }^2\simeq 1$ at low energy between the ${\mathcal{R}}^2$ coefficients $c_0$ of the Ricci scalar squared term in this expansion and the dark energy scale $\mathrm{\Lambda }=(\lambda M_{\mathrm{Pl}}{)}^4$ in four-dimensional Planck mass units. We show how the compatibility between the acceleration of the expansion rate of the Universe, local tests of gravity and the quantum stability of the model all converge to select such a relationship up to a coefficient which should be determined experimentally. When embedding this low-energy theory of gravity into candidates for its ultraviolet completion, we find that the proposed relationship is guaranteed in string-inspired supergravity models with modulus stabilization and supersymmetry breaking leading to de Sitter compactifications. In this case, the scalar degree of freedom of ${\mathcal{R}}^2$ gravity is associated to a volume modulus. Once written in terms of a scalar-tensor theory, the effective theory corresponds to a massive scalar field coupled with the universal strength $\beta =1/\sqrt{6}$ to the matter stress-energy tensor. When the relationship $c_0{\lambda }^2\simeq 1$ is realized, we find that on astrophysical scales and in cosmology the scalar field is ultralocal and therefore no effect arises on such large scales. On the other hand, the scalar field mass is tightly constrained by the nonobservation of fifth forces in torsion pendulum experiments such as Eöt-Wash. It turns out that the observation of the dark energy scale in cosmology implies that the scalar field could be detectable by fifth-force experiments in the near future.

The radio technique for the detection of high-energy cosmic rays consists in measuring the electric field created by the particle showers created inside a medium by the primary cosmic ray. The electric field is then used to infer the properties of the primary particle. Nowadays, the radio technique is a standard, well-established technique. While most current experiments measure the field at frequencies above 20 MHz, several experiments have reported a large emission at low frequencies, below 10 MHz. The EXTASIS experiment aims at measuring again and understanding this low-frequency electric field. Since at low frequencies the standard far-field approximation for the calculation of the electric field does not necessarily hold, in order to comprehend the low-frequency emission we need to go beyond the far-field approximation. We present in this work a formula for the electric field created by a particle track inside a dielectric medium that is valid for all frequencies. We then implement this formula in the SELFAS Monte Carlo code and calculate the low-frequency electric field of the extensive air shower (EAS). We also study the electric field of a special case of the transition radiation mechanism when the EAS particles cross the air-soil boundary. We introduce the sudden death pulse, the direct emission caused by the coherent deceleration of the shower front at the boundary, as a first approximation to the whole electric field for the air-soil transition, and study its properties. We show that at frequencies larger than 20 MHz and distances larger than 100 m, the standard far-field approximation for the horizontal polarizations of the field is always accurate at the 1% level.

An indirect measurement of the antiproton flux in cosmic rays is possible as the particles undergo deflection by the geomagnetic field. This effect can be measured by studying the deficit in the flux, or shadow, created by the Moon as it absorbs cosmic rays that are headed toward the Earth. The shadow is displaced from the actual position of the Moon due to geomagnetic deflection, which is a function of the energy and charge of the cosmic rays. The displacement provides a natural tool for momentum/charge discrimination that can be used to study the composition of cosmic rays. Using 33 months of data comprising more than 80 billion cosmic rays measured by the High Altitude Water Cherenkov observatory, we have analyzed the Moon shadow to search for TeV antiprotons in cosmic rays. We present our first upper limits on the $\overline{p}/p$ fraction, which in the absence of any direct measurements provide the tightest available constraints of $\sim 1\%$ on the antiproton fraction for energies between 1 and 10 TeV.

We study the $B_c\to \psi (2S)\mathrm{K}$, ${\eta }_c(2S)\mathrm{K}$, $\psi (3770)\mathrm{K}$ decays with perturbative QCD approach based on $k_T$ factorization. The new orbitally excited charmonium distribution amplitudes $\psi (1{{}^{3}D}_1)$ based on the Schrödinger wave function of the $n=1$, $l=2$ state for the harmonic-oscillator potential are employed. By using the corresponding distribution amplitudes, we calculate the branching ratio of $B_c\to \psi (2S)\mathrm{K}$, ${\eta }_c(2S)\mathrm{K}$, $\psi (3770)\mathrm{K}$ decays and the form factors $A_{0,1,2}$ and $V$ for the transition $B_c\to \psi (1{{}^{3}D}_1)$. We obtain the branching ratio of both $B_c\to \psi (2S)\mathrm{K}$ and $B_c\to {\eta }_c(2S)\mathrm{K}$ are at the order of ${10}^{-5}$. The effects of two sets of the S-D mixing angle $\theta =-12°$ and $\theta =27°$ for the decay $B_c\to \psi (3770)\mathrm{K}$ are studied first in this paper. Our calculations show that the branching ratio of the decay $B_c\to \psi (3770)\mathrm{K}$ can be raised from the order of ${10}^{-6}$ to the order of ${10}^{-5}$ at the mixing angle $\theta =-12°$, which can be tested by the running LHC-b experiments.

Oscillons are long-lived, spherically symmetric, attractor scalar field configurations that emerge as certain field configurations evolve in time. It has been known for many years that there is a direct correlation between the initial configuration’s shape and the resulting oscillon lifetime: a shape memory. In this paper, we use an information-entropic measure of spatial complexity known as differential configurational entropy (DCE) to obtain estimates of oscillon lifetimes in scalar field theories with symmetric and asymmetric double-well potentials. The time-dependent DCE is built from the Fourier transform of the two-point correlation function of the energy density of the scalar field configuration. We obtain a scaling law correlating oscillon lifetimes and measures obtained from its evolving DCE. For the symmetric double well, for example, we show that we can apply DCE to predict an oscillon’s lifetime with an average accuracy of 6% or better. We also show that the DCE acts as a pattern discriminator, able to distinguish initial configurations that evolve into long-lived oscillons from other nonperturbative short-lived fluctuations.

The anomalous magnetic moment (AMM) for excited states of an electron in a constant magnetic field has been calculated within the framework of two-dimensional electrodynamics. The analytical results for the interaction energy of the anomalous magnetic moment with the external magnetic field are obtained in two limiting cases of nonrelativistic and relativistic energy values in a comparatively weak magnetic field. It is shown that the interaction energy of the spin with the external field does not contain infrared divergence and tends to zero as magnetic field decreases, while the electron’s AMM increases logarithmically.

Two-Higgs-doublet models (2HDMs) are minimal extensions of the Standard Model (SM) that may still be discovered at the LHC. The quartic couplings of their potentials can be determined from the measurement of the masses and branching ratios of their extended scalar sectors. We show that the evolution of these couplings through renormalization group equations can determine whether the observed 2HDM is a low energy manifestation of a more fundamental theory, as for instance, supersymmetry, which fixes the quartic couplings in terms of the gauge couplings. At leading order, the minimal supersymmetric extension of the SM (MSSM) dictates all the quartic couplings, which can be translated into a predictive structure for the scalar masses and mixings at the weak scale. Running these couplings to higher scales, one can check if they converge to their MSSM values, and more interestingly, whether one can infer the supersymmetry breaking scale. Although we study this question in the context of supersymmetry, this strategy could be applied to any theory whose ultraviolet completion unambiguously predicts all scalar quartic couplings.

Measuring the $CP$ symmetry in the Higgs sector is one of the key tasks of the LHC and a crucial ingredient for precision studies, for example in the language of effective Lagrangians. We systematically analyze which LHC signatures offer dedicated $CP$ measurements in the Higgs-gauge sector and discuss the nature of the information they provide. Based on the Fisher information measure, we compare the maximal reach for $CP$-violating effects in weak boson fusion, associated $ZH$ production, and Higgs decays into four leptons. We find a subtle balance between more theory-independent approaches and more powerful analysis channels, indicating that rigorous evidence for $CP$ violation in the Higgs-gauge sector will likely require a multistep process.

Numerical lattice quantum chromodynamics studies of the strong interaction are important in many aspects of particle and nuclear physics. Such studies require significant computing resources to undertake. A number of proposed methods promise improved efficiency of lattice calculations, and access to regions of parameter space that are currently computationally intractable, via multi-scale action-matching approaches that necessitate parametric regression of generated lattice datasets. The applicability of machine learning to this regression task is investigated, with deep neural networks found to provide an efficient solution even in cases where approaches such as principal component analysis fail. The high information content and complex symmetries inherent in lattice QCD datasets require custom neural network layers to be introduced and present opportunities for further development.

The Kibble Zurek mechanism in a relativistic ${\varphi }^4$ scalar field theory in $D=(1+1)$ is studied using uniform matrix product states. The equal time two point function in momentum space $G_2(k)$ is approximated as the system is driven through a quantum phase transition at a variety of different quench rates ${\tau }_Q$. We focus on looking for signatures of topological defect formation in the system and demonstrate the consistency of the picture that the two point function $G_2(k)$ displays two characteristic scales, the defect density $n$ and the kink width $d_K$. Consequently, $G_2(k)$ provides a clear signature for the formation of defects and a well defined measure of the defect density in the system. These results provide a benchmark for the use of tensor networks as powerful nonperturbative nonequilibrium methods for relativistic quantum field theory, providing a promising technique for the future study of high energy physics and cosmology.

Algebraic Ansätze for the Poincaré-covariant Bethe-Salpeter wave functions of the pion and kaon are used to calculate their light-front wave functions, parton distribution amplitudes, parton quasidistribution amplitudes, valence parton distribution functions, and parton quasidistribution functions (PqDFs). The light-front wave functions are broad, concave functions, and the scale of flavor-symmetry violation in the kaon is roughly 15%, being set by the ratio of emergent masses in the $s$- and $u$-quark sectors. Parton quasidistribution amplitudes computed with longitudinal momentum $P_z=1.75\mathrm{GeV}$ provide a semiquantitatively accurate representation of the objective parton distribution amplitude, but even with $P_z=3\mathrm{GeV}$, they cannot provide information about this amplitude’s end point behavior. On the valence-quark domain, similar outcomes characterize PqDFs. In this connection, however, the ratio of kaon-to-pion $u$-quark PqDFs is found to provide a good approximation to the true parton distribution function ratio on $0.4\lesssim x\lesssim 0.8$, suggesting that with existing resources computations of ratios of parton quasidistributions can yield results that support empirical comparison.

In this work, we study strong and radiative decays of S-wave $D\mathrm{\Xi }$ molecular state, which is related to the ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}$ states newly observed at LHCb. The coupling between the $D\mathrm{\Xi }$ molecular state and its constituents $D$ and $\mathrm{\Xi }$ is calculated by using the compositeness condition. With the obtained coupling, the partial decay widths of the $D\mathrm{\Xi }$ molecular state into the ${\mathrm{\Xi }}_c^{+}{K}^{-}$, ${\mathrm{\Xi }}_c^{\prime +}{K}^{-}$, and ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(2695)\gamma$ final states through hadronic loop are calculated with the help of the effective Lagrangians. By comparison with the LHCb observation, the current results of total decay width support the ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3119)$ or ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3050)$ as $D\mathrm{\Xi }$ molecule while the decay width of the ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3000)$, ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3066)$, and ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3090)$ can not be well reproduced in the molecular state picture. The partial decay widths are also presented and helpful to further understand the internal structures of ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3119)$ and ${\mathrm{\Omega }}_c^{*}(3050)$.

In this paper, we study the homogeneous interiors of black holes possessing SU(2) Yang-Mills fields subject to corrections inspired by loop quantum gravity. The systems studied possess both magnetic and induced electric Yang-Mills fields. We consider the system of equations both with and without Wilson loop corrections to the Yang-Mills potential. The structure of the Yang-Mills Hamiltonian, along with the restriction to homogeneity, allows for an anomaly-free effective quantization. In particular, we study the bounce which replaces the classical singularity and the behavior of the Yang-Mills fields in the quantum corrected interior, which possesses topology $R\times S^2$. Beyond the bounce, the magnitude of the Yang-Mills electric field asymptotically grows monotonically. This results in an ever-expanding $R$ sector even though the two-sphere volume is asymptotically constant. The results are similar with and without Wilson loop corrections on the Yang-Mills potential.

We examine the holographic entanglement entropy in hyperscaling violating backgrounds. Precisely in such theories, by semianalytic computation, we use holographic methods to derive the universal terms of entanglement entropy in various dimensions. We also find such terms when the bulk action includes higher-order curvature terms. We make further comments on the mutual information in hyperscaling violating backgrounds with higher curvature interactions. We explore the sign of tripartite information, which results in a monogamy property on mutual information. It is shown that for various hyperscaling parameters, the mutual and tripartite information are always positive and negative, respectively. This indicates that mutual information is monogamous in theories with hyperscaling violation.

We integrate numerically axially symmetric stationary Einstein equations describing self-gravitating disks around spinless black holes. The numerical scheme is based on a method developed by Shibata, but contains important new ingredients. We derive a new general-relativistic Keplerian rotation law for self-gravitating disks around spinning black holes. Former results concerning rotation around spinless black holes emerge in the limit of a vanishing spin parameter. These rotation curves might be used for the description of rotating stars, after appropriate modification around the symmetry axis. They can be applied to the description of compact torus–black hole configurations, including active galactic nuclei or products of coalescences of two neutron stars.

We study the prospects for discovering heavy neutral leptons at Forward Search Experiment (FASER), the newly proposed detector at the LHC. Previous studies showed that a relatively small detector with $\sim 10\mathrm{m}$ length and $\lesssim 1{\mathrm{m}}^2$ cross sectional area can probe large unconstrained parts of parameter space for dark photons and dark Higgs bosons. In this work, we show that FASER will also be sensitive to heavy neutral leptons that have mixing angles with the active neutrinos that are up to an order of magnitude lower than current bounds. In particular, this is true for heavy neutral leptons produced dominantly in $B$-meson decays, in which case FASER’s discovery potential is comparable to the proposed SHiP detector. We also illustrate how the search for heavy neutral leptons at FASER will be complementary to ongoing searches in high-$p_T$ experiments at the LHC and can shed light on the nature of dark matter and the process of baryogenesis in the early Universe.

In this paper, we examine the consistency of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) data collected during Runs 1 and 2 by the ATLAS and CMS experiments with the predictions of a 2-Higgs doublet model embedding vectorlike quarks (VLQs) for $pp\to H$, $A$ production and $H$, $A\to \gamma \gamma$ decay mechanisms, respectively, of (nearly) degenerate $CP$-even ($H$) and $CP$-odd ($A$) Higgs bosons. We show that a scenario containing one single VLQ with electromagnetic charge $2/3$ can explain the above ATLAS and CMS data for masses in the region $350\mathrm{GeV}\le m_{\mathrm{VLQ}}\le 1.5\mathrm{TeV}$ or so, depending on $\tan \beta$, and for several values of the mixing angle between the top quark ($t$) and its VLQ counterpart ($T$). We then perform a global fit onto the model by including all relevant experimental as well as theoretical constraints. The surviving samples of our analysis are discussed within $2\sigma$ of the LHC measurements. Additionally, we also comment on the recent anomalous result reported by CMS using Run 2 data on the associated Standard Model Higgs boson production with top quark pairs $pp\to t\overline{t}h$ with an observed significance of $3.3\sigma$. Other than these specific examples, we also present a phenomenological analysis of the main features of the model, including the most promising $T$ decay channels.

We consider a Standard Model (SM) extension by a heavy charged scalar gauged only under the $U_Y(1)$ weak hypercharge gauge group. Such an extension, being gauge invariant with respect to the SM gauge group, is a simple special case of the well-known Zee model. Since the interactions of the charged scalar with the Standard Model fermions turn out to be significantly suppressed compared to the Standard Model interactions, the charged scalar provides an example of a long-lived charged particle being interesting to search for at the LHC. We present the pair and single production cross sections of the charged scalar at different colliders and the possible decay widths for various boson masses. It is shown that the current ATLAS and CMS searches at 8 and 13 TeV collision energy lead to the bounds on the scalar boson mass of about 300–320 GeV. The limits are expected to be much larger for higher collision energies and, assuming $15a{b}^{-1}$ integrated luminosity, reach about 2.7 TeV at future 27 TeV LHC thus covering the most interesting mass region.