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Watson, Scott

Publications and source records attributed to Watson, Scott.

At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Multi-component Dark Matter and small scale structure formation

We consider the evolution of non-thermal dark matter perturbations in models which contain both Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) and axions. Using constraints from existing observations we examine the percentage of WIMPs and axions that may comprise the cosmological dark matter budget in models with an Early Matter Dominated Epoch (EMDE) — where entropy production is important. After carefully tracking the thermal evolution of the various species by solving the Boltzmann equations, we consider the enhancement of perturbations that may have led to early structure formation for axions and WIMPs. We investigate the impact of enhanced perturbations on the parameter space of both species, after imposing existing constraints from indirect detection experiments. Given these constraints we establish the feasibility of axions to form miniclusters in the early universe in EMDEs for a given percentage of allowed WIMPs. We find that EMDEs with low reheat temperatures near the BBN limit are preferred for axion minicluster formation. When the EMDE is caused by string moduli, the WIMP contribution to the relic density is set by the moduli branching to dark matter at the level of ≲ $\mathcal{O}$ (10 −4 ).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Misinterpreting modified gravity as dark energy: a quantitative study

Standard cosmological data analyses typically constrain simple phenomenological dark-energy parameters, for example the present-day value of the equation of state parameter, w 0 , and its variation with scale factor, w a . However, results from such an analysis cannot easily indicate the presence of modified gravity. Even if general relativity does not hold, experimental data could still be fit sufficiently well by a phenomenological w 0 w a CDM, unmodified-gravity model. Hence, it would be very useful to know if there are generic signatures of modified gravity in standard analyses. Here we present, for the first time to our knowledge, a quantitative mapping showing how modified gravity models look when (mis)interpreted within the standard unmodified-gravity analysis. Scanning through a broad space of modified-gravity (Horndeski) models, and assuming a near-future survey consisting of CMB, BAO, and SNIa observations, we report values of the best-fit set of cosmological parameters including (w 0 , w a ) that would be inferred if modified gravity were at work. We find that modified gravity models that can masquerade as standard gravity lead to very specific biases in standard-parameter spaces. Here, we also comment on implications for measurements of the amplitude of mass fluctuations described by the parameter S 8 .

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Optimization Of In-field Alpha Spectrometry For Uranium Enrichment Determination In Uranium Hexafluoride

In response to needs identified by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) research is underway to develop In-Field Alpha Spectrometry (IFAS) as a method to allow IAEA safeguards inspectors to collect samples of uranium hexafluoride (UF6) at processing facilities to assess and verify uranium enrichment. For sample collection, the IFAS method uses Single-Use Destructive Assay (SUDA) samplers, which contain thin zeolite coatings that trap UF6 gas and convert it to the safer, more stable form uranyl fluoride (as a dihydrate, UO2F2·2H2O). For alpha spectrometry, the IFAS instrument employs a large area silicon semiconductor transducer to detect and record alpha particle energy-deposition events. Over the past year optimization work has significantly increased the diameter of useful SUDA samples (from 12.7 mm to 48 mm), improved the manufacturability and reproducibility of SUDA samples, increased the area of the IFAS alpha spectrometer sensor from 1.2 cm to 3.1 cm, and improved source positioning within the IFAS. This paper will report on this optimization work, its impacts on IFAS performance, and future plans for IFAS miniaturization, improvements, and testing.

Chichester, David↗
DOE OSTI2020

The First Three Seconds: a Review of Possible Expansion Histories of the Early Universe

It is commonly assumed that the energy density of the Universe was dominated by radiation between reheating after inflation and the onset of matter domination 54,000 years later. While the abundance of light elements indicates that the Universe was radiation dominated during Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN), there is scant evidence that the Universe was radiation dominated prior to BBN. It is therefore possible that the cosmological history was more complicated, with deviations from the standard radiation domination during the earliest epochs. Indeed, several interesting proposals regarding various topics such as the generation of dark matter, matter-antimatter asymmetry, gravitational waves, primordial black holes, or microhalos during a nonstandard expansion phase have been recently made. In this paper, we review various possible causes and consequences of deviations from radiation domination in the early Universe - taking place either before or after BBN - and the constraints on them, as they have been discussed in the literature during the recent years.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Primordial black holes and Co-Decaying dark matter

Models of Co-Decaying dark matter lead to an early matter dominated epoch – prior to BBN – which results in an enhancement of the growth of dark matter substructure. If these primordial structures collapse further they can form primordial black holes providing an additional dark matter candidate. We derive the mass fraction in these black holes (which is not monochromatic) and consider observational constraints on how much of the dark matter could be comprised in these relics. We find that in many cases they can be a significant fraction of the dark matter. Interestingly, the masses of these black holes can be near the solar-mass range providing a new mechanism for producing black holes like those recently detected by LIGO.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2019

The classical double copy in three spacetime dimensions

The double copy relates scattering amplitudes in gauge and gravity theories, and has also been extended to classical solutions. In this paper, we study solutions in three spacetime dimensions, where the double copy may be expected to be problematic due to the absence of propagating degrees of freedom for the graviton, and the lack of a Newtonian limit. In particular, we examine the double copy of a gauge theory point charge. This is a vacuum solution in gauge theory, but leads to a non-vacuum solution in gravity, which we show is consistent with previously derived constraints. Furthermore, we successfully interpret the non-trivial stress-energy tensor on the gravity side as arising from a dilaton profile, and the Newtonian description of a point charge emerges as expected in the appropriate limit. Thus, our results provide a non-trivial cross-check of the classical Kerr-Schild double copy.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

In-Situ Gamma Radiation Mapping Device - 19353

The SRNL developed GrayQb{sup TM} is a passive, low cost gamma radiation mapping device which uses a tungsten pinhole and a phosphor storage plate (PSP) to generate images. Presently, the device requires retrieval to extract images off the PSP using an external scanner. In partnership with Los Alamos National Lab (LANL), SRNL has developed an in-situ GrayQb{sup TM} radiation mapping device eliminating the need to remove the radiation sensitive phosphor storage plate (PSP) from the device for scanning between exposures. By incorporating a customized version of the LANL patented MiniMax camera-based PSP reader system into the GrayQb{sup TM} housing, the exposed PSP can now be read in-situ and digitally transmitted to a remote computer for viewing. In-situ imaging is a valuable addition to GrayQb{sup TM} because of the reduced need of personnel interaction which mitigates risk as well as the option for multiple images being acquired during one deployment. Upgrades implemented which allow for in-situ imaging to be performed include using the tungsten pinhole, a PSP, red LEDs, a blue light filter, and a commercial off the shelf (COTS) color camera. The images are transmitted wirelessly to an external computer. This presentation will discuss the selection, characteristics, and testing of the camera-based PSP reading system, improved PSP materials, and the results/performance of the upgraded GrayQb{sup TM} device. Testing has been performed with simulated radiation exposures as well as A-241 and Cs-137 button sources. These upgrades and tests have been performed over a 12-month period and this presentation will be a summary and conclusion to this year long project. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2017

Toward an effective field theory approach to reheating

We investigate whether effective field theory (EFT) approaches, which have been useful in examining inflation and dark energy, can also be used to establish a systematic approach to inflationary reheating. We consider two methods. First, we extend Weinberg’s background EFT to the end of inflation and reheating. We establish when parametric resonance and decay of the inflaton occurs, but also find intrinsic theoretical limitations, which make it difficult to capture some reheating models. This motivates us to next consider Cheung et al.’s EFT approach, which instead focuses on perturbations and the symmetry breaking induced by the cosmological background. Adapting the latter approach to reheating implies some new and important differences compared to the EFT of inflation. In particular, there are new hierarchical scales, and we must account for inflaton oscillations during reheating, which lead to discrete symmetry breaking. Guided by the fundamental symmetries, we construct the EFT of reheating, and as an example of its usefulness we establish a new class of reheating models and the corresponding predictions for gravity wave observations. In this paper we primarily focus on the first stages of preheating. We conclude by discussing challenges for the approach and future directions. This paper builds on ideas first proposed in the paper [O. Ozsoy, G. Sengor, K. Sinha, and S. Watson, arXiv:1507.06651.].

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

A preferred mass range for primordial black hole formation and black holes as dark matter revisited

Bird et al. [1] and Sasaki et al. [2] have recently proposed the intriguing possibility that the black holes detected by LIGO could be all or part of the cosmological dark matter. This offers an alternative to WIMPs and axions, where dark matter could be comprised solely of Standard Model particles. The mass range lies within an observationally viable window and the predicted merger rate can be tested by future LIGO observations. In this paper, we argue that non-thermal histories favor production of black holes near this mass range — with heavier ones unlikely to form in the early universe and lighter black holes being diluted through late-time entropy production. We discuss how this prediction depends on the primordial power spectrum, the likelihood of black hole formation, and the underlying model parameters. We find the prediction for the preferred mass range to be rather robust assuming a blue spectral index less than two. Here, we consider the resulting relic density in black holes, and using recent observational constraints, establish whether they could account for all of the dark matter today.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Go Pink! The Effect of Secondary Quanta on Detective Quantum Efficiency

Photons are never directly observable. Consequently, we often use photoelectric detectors (eg CCDs) to record associated photoelectrons statistically. Nonetheless, it is an implicit goal of radiographic detector designers to achieve the maximum possible detector efficiency1. In part the desire for ever higher efficiency has been due to the fact that detectors are far less expensive than associated accelerator facilities (e.g. DARHT and PHERMEX2). In addition, higher efficiency detectors often have better spatial resolution. Consequently, the optimization of the detector, not the accelerator, is the system component with the highest leverage per dollar. In recent years, imaging scientists have adopted the so-called Detective Quantum Efficiency, or DQE as a summary measure of detector performance. Unfortunately, owing to the complex nature of the trade-space associated with detector components, and the natural desire for simplicity and low(er) cost, there has been a recent trend in Los Alamos to focus only on the zerofrequency efficiency, or DQE(0), when designing such systems. This narrow focus leads to system designs that neglect or even ignore the importance of high-spatial-frequency image components. In this paper we demonstrate the significant negative impact of these design choices on the Noise Power Spectrum1 (NPS) and recommend a more holistic approach to detector design. Here we present a statistical argument which indicates that a very large number (>20) of secondary quanta (typically visible light and/or recorded photo-electrons) are needed to take maximum advantage of the primary quanta (typically x-rays or protons) which are available to form an image. Since secondary particles come in bursts, they are not independent. In short, we want to maximize the pink nature of detector noise at DARHT.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2017

Was the Universe actually radiation dominated prior to nucleosynthesis?

Maybe not. String theory approaches to both beyond the Standard Model and Inflationary model building generically predict the existence of scalars (moduli) that are light compared to the scale of quantum gravity. Furthermore, these moduli become displaced from their low energy minima in the early universe and lead to a prolonged matter-dominated epoch prior to BBN. In this paper, we examine whether non-perturbative effects such as parametric resonance or tachyonic instabilities can shorten, or even eliminate, the moduli condensate and matter-dominated epoch. Such effects depend crucially on the strength of the couplings, and we find that unless the moduli become strongly coupled the matterdominated epoch is unavoidable. In particular, we find that in string and M-theory compactifications where the lightest moduli are near the TeV-scale that a matter-dominated epoch will persist until the time of Big Bang Nucleosynthesis.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗