High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)

Abstract: We examine the Sommerfeld enhancement effect for the puffy self-interacting dark matter. We find out two new parameters to classify the self-scattering cross section into the Born, the resonance and the classical regimes for the puffy dark matter. Then we observe that the resonance peaks for the puffy dark matter self-scattering and for the Sommerfeld enhancement effect have the same locations. Further, we find that for a large ratio between $R_{\chi}$ (radius of a puffy dark matter particle) and $1/m_{\phi}$ (force range), the Sommerfeld enhancement factor approaches to 1 (no enhancement). Finally, for the puffy SIDM scenario to solve the small-scale problems, the values of the Sommerfeld enhancement factor are displayed in the allowed parameter regions.

Abstract: Light (sub-GeV) dark matter is of growing interest in direct detection. Accelerated dark matter presents itself as a promising candidate capable of generating detectable nuclear recoil energy within the sub-GeV range. Due to the large kinetic energy, its interactions with the nucleus are predominantly governed by inelastic scattering, including quasi-elastic and deep inelastic scattering. In this work, we calculate the inelastic effects in the dark matter-Earth scattering mediated by a vector particle. Our analysis reveals that the impact of the inelastic scattering relies on the mediator mass and the kinetic energy spectrum of dark matter. The results exhibit a significant disparity, with the upper bounds of the exclusion limit for the spin-independent cross section between accelerated dark matter and nuclei via a heavy mediator differing by several tens of times when inelastic scattering is taken into account.

Abstract: We discuss the process $\ell^+\ell^- \to N W^{\pm} \ell^{\mp}$, where $N$ is a heavy Majorana neutrino and $\ell = e, \mu$. Large cross sections are expected for these processes at high center-of-mass energies, which can be reached at future lepton-lepton colliders. The Monte Carlo simulation of the studied processes is produced within the framework of the seesaw type-I model, where the Majorana neutrinos (or heavy neutral leptons, HNL), are introduced in the standard leptonic sector. Recently the possibility to search for the direct HNL production was studied in the $\ell^+\ell^- \to N \nu_{\ell}$ process with the subsequent decay $N \to W^{\pm} \ell^{\mp}$. In this paper we investigate an alternative process $\ell^+\ell^- \to N W^{\pm} \ell^{\mp} \to W^{\pm}W^{\pm}\,\ell^{\mp}\,\ell^{\mp}$ with the lepton number violation by two units. The similar processes appear in collisions with the same-sign beams, $e^-e^- \to N W^-\,e^- \to W^-\,W^-\,e^+\,e^-$ or $\mu^+\mu^+ \to N W^+\,\mu^+ \to W^+\,W^+\,\mu^+\,\mu^-$. The cross sections of the processes under consideration are enhanced by the soft photon exchange in the $t$-channel. We calculate the cross sections for the signals and potential Standard Model backgrounds for the $e^+e^-$ beam collisions at the 1 TeV center-of-mass energy and the $\mu^+\mu^-$ collisions at 3 TeV and 10 TeV. Due to the diagrams with soft $t$-channel photons and respective interference the promptly emitted leptons are produced in the direction close to the corresponding beam. These leptons will be lost in the beam pipe or badly measured by forward detectors. However, the signal events can be well separated from backgrounds using the rest of the event containing the $WW\ell$ particles. Finally, the expected upper limits on the mixing parameters $|V_{\ell N}|^2$ as a function of M($N$) are calculated.

Abstract: We analyse the two purely isospin-violating decays $\Lambda_b\rightarrow \Sigma^0 \phi$ and $\Lambda_b\rightarrow \Sigma^0 J/\psi$, proceed merely via the exchange topologies, in the framework of perturbative QCD approach. Assuming $\Sigma^0$ baryon belongs to the idealized isospin triplet with quark components of $usd$, the branching ratios of the two decay modes are predicted to be tiny, of the order $10^{-8}-10^{-9}$, leading to a difficulty in observing them. We then extend our study to include the $\Sigma-\Lambda$ mixing.It is found that the mixing has significant effect on the $\Lambda_b\rightarrow \Sigma$ decays, especially it can greatly increase the rate of the $J/\psi$ process, by as much as two orders of magnitude, yield $10^{-7}$, which should be searchable in the future. We also estimate a set of asymmetry observables with and without the mixing effect, which will be tested in coming experiments.

Abstract: In this paper, the new particle $X(3842)$ discovered by the LHCb Collaboration is identified to be the $\psi_{_3}(1^3D_{_3})$ state. We study its strong decays with the combination of the Bethe-Salpeter method and the $^3P_{_0}$ model. Its electromagnetic (EM) decay is also calculated by the Bethe-Salpeter method within Mandelstam formalism. The strong decay widths are {$\Gamma[X(3842)\rightarrow D^{0}\bar{D}^{0}]=1.28$ MeV}, $\Gamma[X(3823)\rightarrow D^{+}D^{-}]=1.08$ MeV, and the ratio ${\cal B}[X(3842)\rightarrow D^{+}D^{-}]/{\cal B}[X(3823)\rightarrow D^{0}\bar{D}^{0}]=0.84$. The EM decay width is $\Gamma[X(3842)\rightarrow\chi_{_{c2}}\gamma]=0.29$ MeV. We also estimate the total width to be 2.87 MeV, which is in good agreement with the experimental data $2.79^{+0.86}_{-0.86}$ MeV. Since the used relativistic wave functions include different partial waves, we also study the contributions of different partial waves in electromagnetic decay.

Abstract: We attempt to apply the Regge trajectory approach to the heavy-light diquarks composed of one heavy quark and one light quark. However, we find that the direct application of the usual Regge trajectory formula for the heavy-light mesons and baryons fails. In order to correctly estimate the masses of the heavy-light diquarks, it is needed to consider the light quark mass correction and the parameter $C$ in the Cornell potential $-\alpha/r+{\sigma}r+C$ within the Regge trajectory formula. By using the modified Regge trajectory formulas, we are able to estimate the masses of the heavy-light diquarks $(cu)$, $(cs)$, $(bu)$ and $(bs)$, which agree with other theoretical results. It is illustrated that the heavy-light diquarks satisfy the universal descriptions irrespective of heavy quark flavors, similar to other heavy-light systems such as the heavy-light mesons, the heavy-light baryons composed of one heavy quark (diquark) and one light diquark (quark), and the heavy-light tetraquarks composed of one heavy diquark (antidiquark) and one light antidiquark (diquark). The diquark Regge trajectory provides a new and very simple approach for estimating the spectra of the heavy-light diquarks.

Abstract: LHC searches for nonstandard scalars in vector boson fusion (VBF) production processes can be particularly efficient in probing scalars belonging to triplet or higher multiplet representations of the Standard Model $SU(2)_L$ gauge group. They can be especially relevant for models where the additional scalars do not have any tree-level couplings to the Standard Model fermions, rendering VBF as their primary production mode at the LHC. In this work, we employ the latest LHC data from VBF resonance searches to constrain the properties of nonstandard scalars, taking the Georgi-Machacek model as a prototypical example. We take into account the theoretical constraints on the potential from unitarity and boundedness-from-below as well as indirect constraints coming from the signal strength measurements of the 125 GeV Higgs boson at the LHC. To facilitate the phenomenological analysis we advocate a convenient reparametrization of the trilinear couplings in the scalar potential. We derive simple correlations among the model parameters corresponding to the decoupling limit of the model. We explicitly demonstrate how a combination of theoretical and phenomenological constraints can push the GM model towards the decoupling limit. Our analysis suggests that the VBF searches can provide key insights into the composition of the electroweak vacuum expectation value.

Abstract: In recent years, the discovery of the odderon, a colorless $C$-odd gluonic compound, has been confirmed in the TOTEM and D0 collaborations. However, the spin quantum number of the odderon remains unidentified. In this work, we aim to attribute a spin of $J=3$ to the odderon in $pp$ elastic scattering by calculating the helicity amplitudes and the corresponding complex parameter $r_5$, the ratio of helicity's single-flip to non-flip amplitudes, for the spin-3 tensor odderon with the standard spin-2 tensor pomeron exchanges. Then, we apply these results to the constraints obtained from the STAR experiment at RHIC. By comparing to the contributions of the spin-1 vector odderon and spin-2 tensor pomeron, we demonstrate that the spin-3 tensor odderon, i.e. $J=3$, provides a better explanation for the observable in $pp$ elastic scattering.

Abstract: We perform the analytical next-to-leading order calculation of the process $p+A\to \gamma^{*}+\mathrm{jet}+X$, at forward rapidities and low $x$. These kinematics justify a hybrid approach, where a quark from the \textquoteleft projectile' proton scatters off the gluon distribution of the \textquoteleft target', which can be a nucleus or a highly boosted proton. By using the Color Glass Condensate effective theory approach, this gluon distribution is allowed to be so dense that the quark undergoes multiple scattering. Moreover, large high-energy logarithms in the ratio of the hard scale and the center-of-mass energy are resummed by the Balitsky, Kovchegov, Jalilian-Marian, Iancu, McLerran, Weigert, Leonidov, Kovner or BK-JIMWLK evolution equations. We demonstrate that all ultraviolet divergences encountered in the calculation cancel, while the high-energy divergences are absorbed into BK-JIMWLK. The remaining singularities are collinear in nature and can be either absorbed into the Dokshitzer-Gribov-Lipatov-Altarelli-Parisi evolution of the incoming quark, when they stem from initial-state radiation, or else can be treated by introduction of a jet function in case they are caused by final-state emissions. The resulting cross section is completely finite and expressed in function of only a small set of color operators.