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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Inferring three-nucleon couplings from multi-messenger neutron-star observations

Understanding the interactions between nucleons in dense matter is an important challenge in theoretical physics. Effective field theories have emerged as the dominant approach to address this problem at low energies, with many successful applications to the structure of nuclei and the properties of dense nucleonic matter. However, how far into the interior of neutron stars these interactions can describe dense matter is an open question. Here, we develop a framework that enables the inference of three-nucleon couplings in dense matter directly from astrophysical neutron star observations. We apply this formalism to the LIGO/Virgo gravitational-wave event GW170817 and the X-ray measurements from NASA’s Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer and establish direct constraints for the couplings that govern three-nucleon interactions in chiral effective field theory. Furthermore, we demonstrate how next-generation observations of a population of neutron star mergers can offer stringent constraints on three-nucleon couplings, potentially at a level comparable to those from laboratory data. Our work directly connects the microscopic couplings in quantum field theories to macroscopic observations of neutron stars, providing a way to test the consistency between low-energy couplings inferred from terrestrial and astrophysical data.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Diffuse boosted cosmic neutrino background

Energetic cosmic rays scatter off the cosmic neutrino background throughout the history of the Universe, yielding a diffuse flux of cosmic relic neutrinos boosted to high energies. We calculate this flux under different assumptions of the cosmic-ray flux spectral slope and redshift evolution. The nonobservation of the diffuse flux of boosted relic neutrinos with current high-energy neutrino experiments already excludes an average cosmic neutrino background overdensity larger than ∼10 4 over cosmological distances. We discuss the future detectability of the diffuse flux of boosted relic neutrinos in light of neutrino overdensity estimates and cosmogenic neutrino backgrounds.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Alternative to perturbative renormalization in ( 3 + 1 )-dimensional field theories

Perturbative renormalization provides the bedrock of understanding quantum field theories. In this work, I point out an alternative way of renormalizing quantum field theories, which is naturally encountered and well-known for the case of large N scalar field theories. In terms of bare parameters, this nonperturbative alternative renormalization differs qualitatively from its perturbative cousin: in the continuum limit, the bare coupling constant goes to zero instead of infinity, and there is no wave-function counterterm. Despite these differences, the resulting n -point functions of the theory are finite. I provide explicit results for alternative renormalization for the O(N) model and QCD with N f = 12 flavors in 3 + 1 dimensions. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Constraining dark matter-proton scattering from molecular cloud ionization

Optically dense clouds in the interstellar medium composed predominantly of molecular hydrogen, known as molecular clouds, are sensitive to energy injection in the form of photon absorption, cosmic-ray scattering, and dark matter (DM) scattering. The ionization rates in dense molecular clouds are heavily constrained by observations of abundances of various molecular tracers. Recent studies have set constraints on the DM-electron scattering cross section using measurements of ionization rates in dense molecular clouds. Here we calculate the analogous bounds on the DM-proton cross section using the molecular Migdal effect, recently adapted from the neutron scattering literature to the DM context. These bounds may be the strongest limits on a strongly coupled DM subfraction, and represent the first application of the Migdal effect to astrophysical systems. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Training toward significance with the decorrelated event classifier transformer neural network

Experimental particle physics uses machine learning for many tasks, where one application is to classify signal and background events. This classification can be used to bin an analysis region to enhance the expected significance for a mass resonance search. In natural language processing, one of the leading neural network architectures is the transformer. In this work, an event classifier transformer is proposed to bin an analysis region, in which the network is trained with special techniques. The techniques developed here can enhance the significance and reduce the correlation between the network’s output and the reconstructed mass. It is found that this trained network can perform better than boosted decision trees and feed-forward networks. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Toward a Ginsparg-Wilson lattice Hamiltonian

To address quantum computation of quantities in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) for which chiral symmetry is important, it would be useful to have the Hamiltonian for a fermion satisfying the Ginsparg-Wilson (GW) equation. I work with a solution to the GW equation which is fractional linear in time derivatives. The resulting Hamiltonian is nonlocal and has ghosts, but is free of doublers and has the correct continuum limit. This construction works in general odd spatial dimensions, and I provide an explicit expression for the Hamiltonian in one spatial dimension. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Upper limits on the cosmic neutrino background from cosmic rays

Extragalactic and galactic cosmic rays scatter with the cosmic neutrino background during propagation to Earth, yielding a flux of relic neutrinos boosted to larger energies. If an overdensity of relic neutrinos is present in galaxies, and neutrinos are massive enough, this flux might be detectable by high-energy neutrino experiments. For a lightest neutrino of mass 𝑚 𝜈 ∼0.1 eV, we find an upper limit on the local relic neutrino overdensity of ∼10 13 and an upper limit on the relic neutrino overdensity at TXS 0506 + 056 of ∼10 10 . Future experiments like GRAND or IceCube-Gen2 could improve these bounds by orders of magnitude.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Wake forces in a background of quadratically coupled mediators

Two particles can exert forces on each other when embedded in a sea of weakly coupled particles. These “wake forces” occur whenever the source and target particles have quadratic interactions with the mediating particles; they are proportional to the ambient energy density and typically have a range of order the characteristic de Broglie wavelength of the background. The effect can be understood as source particles causing a disturbance in the background waves—a wake—which subsequently interacts with the target particles. Wake forces can be mediated by bosons or fermions, can have spin dependence, may be attractive or repulsive, and have a generally anisotropic spatial profile and range that depends on the phase-space distribution of the ambient particles. In this work, I investigate the application of wake forces to dark matter searches, recast existing limits on short-range forces into leading constraints on dark matter with quadratic couplings, and sketch out potential experimental modifications to optimize sensitivity. Wake forces occur in the Standard Model: the presence of the cosmic neutrino background induces a millimeter-range force about 22 orders of magnitude weaker than gravity. Wake forces may also be relevant in condensed-matter and atomic physics. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Lepton and baryon numbers as local gauge symmetries

A simple theory where the total lepton number is a local gauge symmetry is proposed. In this context, the gauge anomalies are canceled with the minimal number of extra fermionic fields and one predicts that the neutrinos are Majorana fermions. The properties of the neutrino sector are discussed, showing that this theory predicts a 3 + 2 light neutrino sector. We show that using the same fermionic fields one can gauge the baryon number and define a simple theory where the lepton and baryon numbers can be spontaneously broken at the low scale in agreement with experiments. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

p -adic reconstruction of rational functions in multiloop amplitudes

Numerical reconstruction techniques are widely employed in the calculation of multiloop scattering amplitudes. In recent years, it has been observed that the rational functions in multiloop calculations greatly simplify under partial fractioning. In this article, we present a technique to reconstruct rational functions directly in partial-fractioned form, by evaluating the functions at special integer points chosen for their properties under a p -adic metric. As an application, we apply this technique to reconstruct the largest rational function in the integration-by-parts reduction of one of the rank-5 integrals appearing in two-loop five-point full-color massless amplitude calculations in quantum chromodynamics. The number of required numerical probes (per prime field) is found to be around 25 times smaller than in conventional techniques, and the obtained result is 130 times smaller. The reconstructed result displays signs of additional structure that could be used to further reduce its size and the number of required probes. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Random matrix model of the Virasoro minimal string

The model of two dimensional quantum gravity defining the Virasoro minimal string, presented recently by Collier, Eberhardt, Mühlmann, and Rodriguez, was also shown to be perturbatively (in topology) equivalent to a random matrix model. An alternative definition is presented here, in terms of double-scaled orthogonal polynomials, thereby allowing direct access to nonperturbative physics. Already at leading order, the defining string equation’s properties yield valuable information about the nonperturbative fate of the model, confirming that the case ( c = 25 , c ^ = 1 ) (central charges of spacelike and timelike Liouville sectors) is special, by virtue of sharing certain key features of the N = 1 supersymmetric JT gravity string equation. Solutions of the full string equation are constructed using a special limit, and the (Cardy) spectral density is completed to all genus and beyond. The distributions of the underlying discrete spectra are readily accessible too, as is the spectral form factor. Some examples of these are exhibited. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Supersymmetric Virasoro minimal strings

A random matrix model definition of a family of N = 1 supersymmetric extensions of the Virasoro minimal string of Collier, Eberhardt, Mühlmann, and Rodriguez is presented. An analysis of the defining string equations shows that the models all naturally have unambiguous nonperturbative completions, which are explicitly supplied by the double-scaled orthogonal polynomial techniques employed. Perturbatively, the multiloop correlation functions of the model define a special supersymmetric class of “quantum volumes,” generalizing the prototype case, some of which are computed. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Astrophysical constraints from synchrotron emission on very massive decaying dark matter

If the cosmological dark matter (DM) couples to Standard Model (SM) fields, it can decay promptly to SM states in a highly energetic hard process, which subsequently showers and hadronizes to give stable particles including e ± , γ , p ± , and ν ν ¯ at lower energy. If the DM particle is very heavy, the high-energy e ± , due to the Klein-Nishina cross section suppression, preferentially lose energy via synchrotron emission which, in turn, can be of unusually high energies. Here, we present previously unexplored bounds on heavy decaying DM up to the Planck scale, by studying the synchrotron emission from the e ± produced in the ambient Galactic magnetic field. In particular, we explore the sensitivity of the resulting constraints on the DM decay width to (i) different SM decay channels, to (ii) the Galactic magnetic field configurations, and to (iii) various different DM density profiles proposed in the literature. We find that constraints from the synchrotron component complement and improve on constraints from very high-energy cosmic-ray and gamma-ray observatories targeting the prompt emission when the DM is sufficiently massive, most significantly for masses in excess of 10 12 GeV . Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Color chiral Cherenkov radiation and energy loss in the quark-gluon plasma

We introduce and investigate the color chiral Cherenkov effect which consists in radiation of the circularly polarized gluons by a fast color charge moving with constant velocity in the presence of the chiral magnetic current. We derive the transition rates for all gluon polarizations. We compute the contribution of the color chiral Cherenkov effect to the parton energy loss in the quark-gluon plasma. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Fixed lines in four fermion models in two dimensions

Motivated by conjectures about near-horizon dynamics in quantum gravity, we search for lines of perturbatively accessible fixed points emanating from models of N free fermions. Through two loops we find a new class of models, apart from the well-known Abelian Thirring models. Further study is needed to see whether these can lead to true conformal manifolds, or perhaps a new class of large- N fixed points. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Nonrelativistic nuclear reduction for tensor couplings in dark matter direct detection and μ → e conversion

The nonrelativistic effective field theory (NRET) is widely used in dark matter direct detection and charged-lepton flavor violation studies through μ → e conversion. However, existing literature has not fully considered tensor couplings. This study fills this gap by utilizing an innovative tensor decomposition method, extending NRET to incorporate previously overlooked tensor interactions. This development is expected to have a significant impact on ongoing experiments seeking physics beyond the Standard Model and on our understanding of the new-physics interactions. Notably, we identify additional operators in μ → e conversion that are absent in scalar and vector couplings. To support further research and experimental analyses, comprehensive tables featuring tensor matrix elements and their corresponding operators are provided. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Cosmology and terrestrial signals of sexaquark dark matter

We investigate the hypothesis that sexaquarks, hypothetical stable six-quark states, could be a significant component of the dark matter. We expand on previous studies of sexaquark cosmology, accounting for the possibility that some relevant interaction cross sections might be strongly suppressed below expectations based on dimensional analysis. We update direct-detection constraints on stable sexaquarks comprising a subdominant fraction of the dark matter, as well as limits on the annihilation of an antisexaquark component from Super-Kamiokande. We argue that the scenario where sexaquarks comprise a O ( 1 ) fraction of the dark matter would require either a suppression of O ( 10 − 19 ) in sexaquark interactions with baryons, combined with a very high yield of net sexaquark number from the quark-hadron transition, or else a very strong suppression of the cross section for antisexaquark annihilation on nucleons ( 24 + orders of magnitude below the QCD scale). Independently, we find that a sexaquark component comprising more than O ( 10 − 3 ) of the dark matter can be excluded from direct-detection bounds, unless its scattering cross section is severely suppressed compared to the expected scale of strong and even electromagnetic interactions. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Chaos in inhomogeneous neutrino fast flavor instability

In dense neutrino gases, the neutrino-neutrino coherent forward scattering gives rise to a complex flavor oscillation phenomenon not fully incorporated in simulations of neutron star mergers (NSM) and core collapse supernovae (CCSNe). Moreover, it has been proposed to be chaotic, potentially limiting our ability to predict neutrino flavor transformations in simulations. To address this issue, we explore how small flavor perturbations evolve in the nonlinear regime of the neutrino quantum kinetic equation within a narrow centimeter-scale region inside a NSM and a toy neutrino distribution. Our findings reveal that paths in the flavor state space of solutions with similar initial conditions diverge exponentially, exhibiting chaos. This inherent chaos makes the microscopic scales of neutrino flavor transformations unpredictable. However, the domain-averaged neutrino density matrix remains relatively stable, with chaos minimally affecting it. This particular property suggests that domain-averaged quantities remain reliable despite the exponential amplification of errors. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗