Search NASA⌕ Search

Engineering topics

Xue, Wei

Publications and source records attributed to Xue, Wei.

At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Effective action approach for preheating

Abstract We present a semiclassical non-perturbative approach for calculating the preheating process at the end of inflation. Our method involves integrating out the decayed particles within the path integral framework and subsequently determining world-line instanton solutions in the effective action. This enables us to obtain the effective action of the inflaton, with its imaginary part linked to the phenomenon of particle creation driven by coherent inflaton field oscillations. Additionally, we utilize the Bogoliubov transformation to investigate the evolution of particle density within the medium after multiple inflaton oscillations. We apply our approach to various final state particles, including scalar fields, tachyonic fields, and gauge fields. The non-perturbative approach provides analytical results for preheating that are in accord with previous methods.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Gauged global strings

We investigate the string solutions and cosmological implications of the gauge U(1) Z × global U(1) PQ model. With two hierarchical symmetry-breaking scales, the model exhibits three distinct string solutions: a conventional global string, a global string with a heavy core, and a gauge string as a bound state of the two global strings. This model reveals rich phenomenological implications in cosmology. During the evolution of the universe, these three types of strings can form a Y-junction configuration. Intriguingly, when incorporating this model with the QCD axion framework, the heavy-core global strings emit more axion particles compared to conventional axion cosmic strings due to their higher tension. This radiation significantly enhances the QCD axion dark matter abundance, thereby opening up the QCD axion mass window. Consequently, axions with masses exceeding ~ 10 −5 eV have the potential to constitute the whole dark matter abundance. Furthermore, in contrast to conventional gauge strings, the gauge strings in this model exhibit a distinctive behavior by radiating axions.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Condensation and evaporation of boson stars

Abstract Axion-like particles, including the QCD axion, are well-motivated dark matter candidates. Numerical simulations have revealed coherent soliton configurations, also known as boson stars, in the centers of axion halos. We study evolution of axion solitons immersed into a gas of axion waves with Maxwellian velocity distribution. Combining analytical approach with controlled numerical simulations we find that heavy solitons grow by condensation of axions from the gas, while light solitons evaporate. We deduce the parametric dependence of the soliton growth/evaporation rate and show that it is proportional to the rate of the kinetic relaxation in the gas. The proportionality coefficient is controlled by the product of the soliton radius and the typical gas momentum or, equivalently, the ratio of the gas and soliton virial temperatures. We discuss the asymptotics of the rate when this parameter is large or small.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2023

Boson star normal modes

Boson stars are gravitationally bound objects that arise in ultralight dark matter models and form in the centers of galactic halos or axion miniclusters. We systematically study the excitations of a boson star, taking into account the mixing between positive and negative frequencies introduced by gravity. We show that the spectrum contains zero-energy modes in the monopole and dipole sectors resulting from spontaneous symmetry breaking by the boson star background. We analyze the general properties of the eigenmodes and derive their orthogonality and completeness conditions which have non-standard form due to the positive-negative frequency mixing. The eigenvalue problem is solved numerically for the first few energy levels in different multipole sectors and the results are compared to the solutions of the Schrödinger equation in fixed boson star gravitational potential. The two solutions differ significantly for the lowest modes, but get close for higher levels. We further confirm the normal mode spectrum in 3D wave simulations where we inject perturbations with different multipoles. As an application of the normal mode solutions, we compute the matrix element entering the evaporation rate of a boson star immersed in a hot axion gas. The computation combines the use of exact wavefunctions for the low-lying bound states and of the Schrödinger approximation for the high-energy excitations.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Signatures and detection prospects for sub-GeV dark matter with superfluid helium

We explore the possibility of using superfluid helium for direct detection of sub-GeV dark matter (DM). We discuss the relevant phenomenology resulting from the scattering of an incident dark matter particle on a Helium nucleus. Rather than directly exciting quasi-particles, DM in this mass range will interact with a single He atom, triggering an atomic cascade which eventually also includes emission and thermalization of quasi-particles. We present in detail the analytical framework needed for modeling these processes and determining the resulting flux of quasi-particles. We propose a novel method for detecting this flux with modern force-sensitive devices, such as nanoelectro-mechanical system (NEMS) oscillators, and derive the sensitivity projections for a generic sub-GeV DM detection experiment using such sensors.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Parity-odd and even trispectrum from axion inflation

The four-point correlation function of primordial scalar perturbations has parity-even and parity-odd contributions and the parity-odd signal in cosmological observations is opening a novel window to look for new physics in the inflationary epoch. We study the distinct parity-odd and even prediction from the axion inflation model, in which the inflaton couples to a vector field via a Chern-Simons interaction, and the vector field is considered to be either approximately massless (m A << Hubble scale H) or very massive (m A ~ H). The parity-odd signal arises due to one transverse mode of the vector field being predominantly produced during inflation. We adopt the in-in formalism to evaluate the correlation functions. Considering the vector field mode function to be dominated by its real part up to a constant phase, we simplify the formulas for numerical computations. The numerical studies show that the massive and massless vector fields give significant parity-even signals, while the parity-odd contribution is about one to two orders of magnitude smaller.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Gravitational wave probes of massive gauge bosons at the cosmological collider

We extend the reach of the "cosmological collider" for massive gauge boson production during inflation from the CMB scales to the interferometer scales. Considering a Chern-Simons coupling between the gauge bosons and the pseudoscalar inflaton, one of the transverse gauge modes is efficiently produced and its inverse decay leaves an imprint in the primordial scalar and tensor perturbations. We study the correlation functions of these perturbations and derive the updated constraints on the parameter space from CMB observables. We then extrapolate the tensor power spectrum to smaller scales consistently taking into account the impact of the gauge field on inflationary dynamics. Our results show that the presence of massive gauge fields during inflation can be detected from characteristic gravitational wave signals encompassing the whole range of current and planned interferometers.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

(3 + 1)-dimensional Schwinger pair production with quantum computers

Real-time quantum simulation of quantum field theory in (3+1)D requires large quantum computing resources. With a few-qubit quantum computer, we develop a novel algorithm and experimentally study the Schwinger effect, the electron-positron pair production in a strong electric field, in (3+1)D. The resource reduction is achieved by treating the electric field as a background field, working in Fourier space transverse to the electric field direction, and considering parity symmetry, such that we successfully map the three spatial dimension problems into one spatial dimension problems. In this work, we observe that the rate of pair production of electrons and positrons is consistent with the theoretical predication of the Schwinger effect. Our work paves the way towards exploring quantum simulation of quantum field theory beyond one spatial dimension.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Superfluid effective field theory for dark matter direct detection

We develop an effective field theory (EFT) framework for superfluid 4 He to model the interactions among quasiparticles, helium atoms and probe particles. Our effective field theory approach brings together symmetry arguments and power-counting and matches to classical fluid dynamics. We then present the decay and scattering rates for the relevant processes involving quasiparticles and helium atoms. The presented EFT framework and results can be used to understand the dynamics of thermalization in the superfluid, and can be further applied to sub-GeV dark matter direct detection with superfluid 4 He.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

Prediction of Tropical Cyclone Genesis from Mesoscale Convective Systems using Machine Learning

Tropical cyclone (TC) genesis is a problem of great significance in climate and weather research. Although various environmental conditions necessary for TC genesis have been recognized for a long time, prediction of TC genesis remains a challenge due to complex and stochastic processes involved during TC genesis. Different from traditional statistical and dynamical modeling of TC genesis, in this research, a machine learning framework is developed to determine whether a mesoscale convective system (MCS) would evolve into a tropical cyclone. The machine learning models 1) are built upon a number of essential environmental predictors associated with MCS/TC, 2) predict whether MCSs can become TCs at different lead times, 3) provide information about the relative importance of each predictor, which can be conducive to discovering new aspects of TC genesis. The results indicate that the machine learning classifier, AdaBoost, is able to achieve a 97.2% F1-score accuracy in predicting TC genesis over the entire tropics at a 6-hour lead time using a comprehensive set of environmental predictors. A robust performance can still be attained when the lead time is extended to 12 hours, 24 hours, and 48 hours, and when this machine learning classifier is separately applied to the North Atlantic Ocean and the Western North Pacific Ocean. In contrast, the conventional approach based on genesis potential index can only have no more than 80% F1-score accuracy. Moreover, the machine learning classifier suggests that the low-level vorticity and genesis potential index are the most important predictors to TC genesis, which is consistent with previous discoveries.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗