Anomaly-mediated SUSY Breaking Research Articles

Explanation of electron and muon g − 2 anomalies in AMSB

We propose to jointly explain the electron/muon g−2 anomalies in the framework of anomaly mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB) scenario. Two Yukawa deflected AMSB models are proposed and discussed in depth: one with lepton-specific interactions and the other one with messenger-matter interactions. Both models are found to be able to jointly explain the anomalies at 2σ level by naturally realizing the preferred parameter space with μM1,μM2<0 and very heavy left-handed smuon.

On the derivation of chiral symmetry breaking in QCD-like theories and S-confining theories

Recent works argue that the pattern of chiral symmetry breaking in QCD-like theories can be derived from supersymmetric (SUSY) QCD with perturbation of anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB). Nevertheless, despite the fact that AMSB needs to be a small (but still exact) perturbation, two other major problems remain unsolved: first, in order to derive the chiral symmetry breaking pattern, one needs to minimize the potential along a certain specific direction, identifying this direction fully as an outcome is nontrivial given the moduli space of degenerate vacua in the SUSY limit; second, when SUSY is broken, non-holomorphic states might emerge and be relevant for determining the vacuum structure. In this work, we try to resolve these problems and discuss their physical implica- tions. For this purpose, we focus on SUSY QCD with Nf ≤ Nc + 1 and perturb the theories using AMSB. Without minimizing the potential along a certain specific direction in the moduli space, we successfully derive the expected chiral symmetry breaking pattern when Nf< Nc. However, when Nf = Nc and Nf = Nc + 1, we show that tree-level AMSB would induce runaway directions, along which baryon number is spontaneously broken, and the vacua with broken baryon number can be deeper while the field values are not far from the origin. This implies that phase transitions and/or non-holomorphic physics are necessary. In order to derive the expected chiral symmetry breaking pattern of non-SUSY QCD starting from the SUSY limit and AMSB, baryon number conservation is needed as an input rather than obtained as an output. Moreover, we perform explicit consistency checks on “ultraviolet insensitivity” for different Nf by adding the holomorphic mass term for the last flavor, we find that the “jump” of AMSB potential indeed matches the contribution from the holomorphic mass term. We also show in general that, when tree-level AMSB is not vanishing, the origin of the moduli space in s-confining theories does not persist as a minimum.

Phases of nonsupersymmetric gauge theories: The SO(Nc) case study

We investigate the IR phases of non-supersymmetric (non-SUSY) $SO(N_c)$ gauge theories with $N_F$ fermions in the vector representation obtained by perturbing the SUSY theory with anomaly mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB). We find that of the wide variety of phases appearing in the SUSY theory only two survive: for $N_F<\frac{3}{2} (N_c-2)$ the theory confines, breaking the $SU(N_F)$ global symmetry to $SO(N_F)$, while for $\frac{3}{2} (N_c-2)<N_F<3(N_c-2)$ the theory flows to a (super)-conformal fixed point. The abelian Coulomb and free magnetic phases do not survive and collapse to the confining phase. We also investigate the behavior of loop operators in order to provide a clear distinction between the confining and screened phases. With the choice of $Spin(N_c)$ for the global structure of the gauge group, we find that the electric Wilson loop indeed obeys an area law, providing one of the first demonstrations of true confinement with chiral symmetry breaking in a non-SUSY theory. We identify monopole condensation as the dynamics underlying confinement. These monopoles arise naturally for $N_F=N_c-2$. The case with smaller number of flavors can be obtained by integrating out flavors, and we confirm numerically that the monopole condensate persists in the presence of AMSB and mass perturbations.

Anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking model retrofitted for naturalness

Anomaly-mediated supersymmetry breaking (AMSB) models seem to have become increasingly implausible due to 1. difficulty in generating a Higgs mass m(h)~125 GeV, 2. typically unnatural superparticle spectra characterized by a large superpotential mu term and 3. the possibility of a wino-like lightest SUSY particle (LSP) as dark matter now seems to be excluded. In the present paper we propose some minor modifications to the paradigm model which solve these three issues. Instead of adding a universal bulk scalar mass to avoid tachyonic sleptons, we add distinct Higgs and matter scalar soft masses which then allow for light higgsinos. To gain accord with the measured Higgs mass, we also include a bulk trilinear soft term. The ensuing natural generalized AMSB (nAMSB) model then has a set of light higgsinos with mass nearby the weak scale m(W,Z,h)~100 GeV as required by naturalness while the winos populate the several hundred GeV range and gluinos and squarks occupy the multi-TeV range. For LHC searches, the wino pair production followed by decay to same-sign diboson signature channel offers excellent prospects for discovery at high luminosity LHC along with higgsino pair production leading to soft dileptons plus jet(s)+MET. A linear e^+e^- collider operating above higgsino pair production threshold should be able to distinguish the AMSB gaugino spectra from unified or mirage unified scenarios. Dark matter is expected to occur as a higgsino-like WIMP plus axion admixture.

Implication of a Higgs boson at 125 GeV within the stochastic superspace framework

We revisit the issue of considering stochasticity of Grassmannian coordinates in $N=1$ superspace, which was analyzed previously by Kobakhidze et al. In this stochastic supersymmetry (SUSY) framework, the soft SUSY breaking terms of the minimal supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) such as the bilinear Higgs mixing, trilinear coupling, as well as the gaugino mass parameters are all proportional to a single mass parameter $\ensuremath{\xi}$, a measure of supersymmetry breaking arising out of stochasticity. While a nonvanishing trilinear coupling at the high scale is a natural outcome of the framework, a favorable signature for obtaining the lighter Higgs boson mass ${m}_{h}$ at 125 GeV, the model produces tachyonic sleptons or staus turning to be too light. The previous analyses took $\ensuremath{\Lambda}$, the scale at which input parameters are given, to be larger than the gauge coupling unification scale ${M}_{G}$ in order to generate acceptable scalar masses radiatively at the electroweak scale. Still, this was inadequate for obtaining ${m}_{h}$ at 125 GeV. We find that Higgs at 125 GeV is highly achievable, provided we are ready to accommodate a nonvanishing scalar mass soft SUSY breaking term similar to what is done in minimal anomaly mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB) in contrast to a pure AMSB setup. Thus, the model can easily accommodate Higgs data, LHC limits of squark masses, WMAP data for dark matter relic density, flavor physics constraints, and XENON100 data. In contrast to the previous analyses, we consider $\ensuremath{\Lambda}={M}_{G}$, thus avoiding any ambiguities of a post-grand unified theory physics. The idea of stochastic superspace can easily be generalized to various scenarios beyond the MSSM.

The inflating curvaton

The primordial curvature perturbation ζ may be generated by some curvaton field σ, which is negligible during inflation and has more or less negligible interactions until it decays. In the current scenario, the curvaton starts to oscillate while its energy density ρσ is negligible. We explore the opposite scenario, in which ρσ drives a few e-folds of inflation before the oscillation begins. In this scenario for generating ζ it is exceptionally easy to solve the η problem; one just has to make the curvaton a string axion, with anomaly-mediated susy breaking which may soon be tested at the LHC. The observed spectral index n can be obtained with a potential V∝ϕp for the first inflation; p = 1 or 2 is allowed by the current uncertainty in n but the improvement in accuracy promised by Planck may rule out p = 1. The predictions include (i) running n′ ≃ 0.0026 (0.0013) for p = 1 (2) that will probably be observed, (ii) non-gaussianity parameter fNL; ∼ −1 that may be observed, (iii) tensor fraction r is probably too small to ever observed.

Neutralino, axion and axino cold dark matter in minimal, hypercharged and gaugino AMSB

Supersymmetric models based on anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB) generally give rise to a neutral wino as a WIMP cold dark matter (CDM) candidate, whose thermal abundance is well below measured values. Here, we investigate four scenarios to reconcile AMSB dark matter with the measured abundance: 1. non-thermal wino production due to decays of scalar fields (e.g. moduli), 2. non-thermal wino production due to decays of gravitinos, 3. non-thermal wino production due to heavy axino decays, and 4. the case of an axino LSP, where the bulk of CDM is made up of axions and thermally produced axinos. In cases 1 and 2, we expect wino CDM to constitute the entire measured DM abundance, and we investigate wino-like WIMP direct and indirect detection rates. Wino direct detection rates can be large, and more importantly, are bounded from below, so that ton-scale noble liquid detectors should access all of parameter space for mZ̄1≲500 GeV. Indirect wino detection rates via neutrino telescopes and space-based cosmic ray detectors can also be large. In case 3, the DM would consist of an axion plus wino admixture, whose exact proportions are very model dependent. In this case, it is possible that both an axion and a wino-like WIMP could be detected experimentally. In case 4., we calculate the re-heat temperature of the universe after inflation. In this case, no direct or indirect WIMP signals should be seen, although direct detection of relic axions may be possible. For each DM scenario, we show results for the minimal AMSB model, as well as for the hypercharged and gaugino AMSB models.

Gaugino anomaly mediated SUSY breaking: phenomenology and prospects for the LHC

We examine the supersymmetry phenomenology of a novel scenario of supersymmetry (SUSY) breaking which we call Gaugino Anomaly Mediation, or inoAMSB. This is suggested by recent work on the phenomenology of flux compactified type IIB string theory. The essential features of this scenario are that the gaugino masses are of the anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB) form, while scalar and trilinear soft SUSY breaking terms are highly suppressed. Renormalization group effects yield an allowable sparticle mass spectrum, while at the same time avoiding charged LSPs; the latter are common in models with negligible soft scalar masses, such as no-scale or gaugino mediation models. Since scalar and trilinear soft terms are highly suppressed, the SUSY induced flavor and CP-violating processes are also suppressed. The lightest SUSY particle is the neutral wino, while the heaviest is the gluino. In this model, there should be a strong multi-jet +etmiss signal from squark pair production at the LHC. We find a 100 fb^{-1} reach of LHC out to m_{3/2}\sim 118 TeV, corresponding to a gluino mass of \sim 2.6 TeV. A double mass edge from the opposite-sign/same flavor dilepton invariant mass distribution should be visible at LHC; this, along with the presence of short-- but visible-- highly ionizing tracks from quasi-stable charginos, should provide a smoking gun signature for inoAMSB.

Prospects for hypercharged anomaly mediated SUSY breaking at the LHC

We investigate the phenomenological consequences of string models wherein the MSSM resides on a D-brane, and the hypercharge gaugino mass is generated in a geometrically separated hidden sector. This hypercharged anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking (HCAMSB) model naturally solves the tachyonic slepton mass problem endemic to pure AMSB scenarios. In HCAMSB, one obtains a mass ordering M1>μ>M2 with split left- and right- scalars, whereas in mAMSB models, one obtains μ>M1>M2 with nearly degenerate left- and right- scalars. We compute the allowed parameter space and expected superparticle mass spectrum in the HCAMSB model. For low values of the HC and AMSB mixing parameter α, the spectra is characterized by light left-sleptons, while the spectra for large α is characterized by light top- and bottom- squarks. We map out the approximate reach of LHC for HCAMSB, and find that with 100 fb−1 of integrated luminosity, a gravitino mass of ∼ 115 (105) TeV can be probed for low (high) values of α, corresponding to a gluino mass reach of ∼ 2.4 (2.2) TeV. Both cases contain — as is typical in AMSB models — long lived charginos that should yield visible highly ionizing tracks in the LHC detector. Also, in the lower tan β range, HCAMSB models give rise to reconstructable Z → ℓ candidates in SUSY cascade decay events, while mAMSB models should do so only rarely.

Mass measurement of the decaying Bino at the LHC

In some class of supersymmetric (SUSY) models, the neutral Wino becomes the lightest superparticle and the Bino decays into the Wino and standard-model particles. In such models, we show that the measurement of the Bino mass is possible if the short charged tracks (with the length of O(10cm)) can be identified as a signal of the charged-Wino production. We pay particular attention to the anomaly-mediated SUSY-breaking (AMSB) model with a generic form of Kähler potential, in which only the gauginos are kinematically accessible superparticles to the LHC, and discuss the implication of the Bino mass measurement for the test of the AMSB model.

Collider and dark matter phenomenology of models with mirage unification

We examine supersymmetric models with mixed modulus-anomaly mediated SUSY breaking (MM-AMSB) soft terms which get comparable contributions to SUSY breaking from moduli-mediation and anomaly-mediation. The apparent (mirage) unification of soft SUSY breaking terms at Q=mu_mir not associated with any physical threshold is the hallmark of this scenario. The MM-AMSB structure of soft terms arises in models of string compactification with fluxes, where the addition of an anti-brane leads to an uplifting potential and a de Sitter universe, as first constructed by Kachru {\it et al.}. The phenomenology mainly depends on the relative strength of moduli- and anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking contributions, and on the Higgs and matter field modular weights, which are determined by the location of these fields in the extra dimensions. We delineate the allowed parameter space for a low and high value of tan(beta), for a wide range of modular weight choices. We calculate the neutralino relic density and display the WMAP-allowed regions. We show the reach of the CERN LHC and of the International Linear Collider. We discuss aspects of MM-AMSB models for Tevatron, LHC and ILC searches, muon g-2 and b->s \gamma branching fraction. We also calculate direct and indirect dark matter detection rates, and show that almost all WMAP-allowed models should be accessible to a ton-scale noble gas detector. Finally, we comment on the potential of colliders to measure the mirage unification scale and modular weights in the difficult case where mu_mir>>M_GUT.

Neutralinos, big bang nucleosynthesis, andL6iin low-metallicity stars

The synthesis of $^{6}\mathrm{L}\mathrm{i}$ during the epoch of big bang nucleosynthesis due to residual annihilation of dark matter particles is considered. By comparing the predicted $^{6}\mathrm{L}\mathrm{i}$ to observations of this isotope in low-metallicity stars, generic constraints on s-wave dark matter annihilation rates into quarks, gauge bosons, and Higgs bosons are derived. It may be shown that, for example, wino dark matter in anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking scenarios with masses ${m}_{\ensuremath{\chi}}\ensuremath{\lesssim}250\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{G}\mathrm{e}\mathrm{V}$ or light neutralinos with ${m}_{\ensuremath{\chi}}\ensuremath{\lesssim}20\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{G}\mathrm{e}\mathrm{V}$ annihilating into light quarks are, taking face value, ruled out. These constraints may only be circumvented if significant $^{6}\mathrm{L}\mathrm{i}$ depletion has occurred in all three low-metallicity stars in which this isotope has been observed to date. In general, scenarios invoking nonthermally generated neutralinos with enhanced annihilation rates for a putative explanation of cosmic ray positron or galactic center as well as diffuse background gamma-ray signals by present-day neutralino annihilation will have to face a stringent $^{6}\mathrm{L}\mathrm{i}$ overproduction problem. On the other hand, it is possible that $^{6}\mathrm{L}\mathrm{i}$ as observed in low-metallicity stars is entirely due to residual dark matter annihilation during big bang nucleosynthesis, even for neutralinos undergoing a standard thermal freeze-out.

Search for SUSY in the AMSB scenario with the DELPHI detector

The DELPHI experiment at the LEP e (+) e(-) collider collected almost 700 pb(-1) at centre-of-mass energies above the Z(0) mass pole and up to 208 GeV. Those data were used to search for SUSY in the Anomaly Mediated SUSY Breaking (AMSB) scenario with a flavour independent common sfermion mass parameter. The searches covered several possible signatures experimentally accessible at LEP, with either the neutralino, the sneutrino or the stau being the Lightest Supersymmetric Particle (LSP). They included: the search for nearly mass-degenerate chargino and neutralino, which is a typical feature of AMSB; the search for Standard-Model-like or invisibly decaying Higgs boson; the search for stable staus; the search for cascade decays of SUSY particles resulting in the LSP and a low multiplicity final state containing neutrinos. No evidence of a signal was found, and thus constraints were set in the space of the parameters of the model.

Affleck-Dine baryogenesis and leptogenesis with a gaugedU(1)B−L

We briefly review the present status of Affleck-Dine baryo/leptogenesis scenarios in the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) in the context of the gravity-mediated SUSY breaking, and show that there is a serious cosmological problem in the Affleck-Dine mechanism. That is, the late decay of the associated large Q-balls leads to the over production of the lightest supersymmetric particles. Then, we point out that the minimal extension of the MSSM by introducing a gauged $U(1)_{B-L}$ symmetry naturally solves this problem. Here, the breaking scale of the $U(1)_{B-L}$ can be determined quite independently of the reheating temperature from the required baryon asymmetry. It is extremely interesting that the obtained scale of the $U(1)_{B-L}$ breaking is well consistent with the one suggested from the seesaw mechanism to explain the recent neutrino-oscillation experiments. We consider that the present scenario provides a new determination of the $U(1)_{B-L}$ breaking scale fully independent of the neutrino masses. We also comment on viability of the present scenario in anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking models.

Impact of the muon anomalous magnetic moment on supersymmetric models

The recent measurement of a_\mu =\frac{g_\mu -2}{2} by the E821 Collaboration at Brookhaven deviates from the quoted Standard Model (SM) central value prediction by 2.6\sigma. The difference between SM theory and experiment may be easily accounted for in a variety of particle physics models employing weak scale supersymmetry (SUSY). Other supersymmetric models are distinctly disfavored. We evaluate a_\mu for various supersymmetric models, including minimal supergravity (mSUGRA), Yukawa unified SO(10) SUSY GUTs, models with inverted mass hierarchies (IMH), models with non-universal gaugino masses, gauge mediated SUSY breaking models (GMSB), anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking models (AMSB) and models with gaugino mediated SUSY breaking (inoMSB). Models with Yukawa coupling unification or multi-TeV first and second generation scalars are disfavored by the a_\mu measurement.

Reach of the CERN LHC for the minimal anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking model

We examine the reach of the CERN LHC pp collider for supersymmetric models where the dominant contribution to soft SUSY breaking parameters arises from the superconformal anomaly. In the simplest viable anomaly mediated SUSY breaking (AMSB) model, tachyonic slepton squared masses are made positive by adding a universal contribution m 0 2 to all scalars. We use the event generator ISAJET to generate AMSB signal events as a function of model parameter space. Assuming an integrated luminosity of 10 fb −1, the LHC can reach to values of m g ̃ ∼2.5 TeV for low values of m 0, where the dilepton plus jets plus E / T channel offers the best reach. For large m 0, the best signature is typically 0 or 1 isolated lepton plus jets plus E / T ; in this case the reach is typically diminished to values of m g ̃ ∼1.3 TeV. The presence of terminating tracks in a subset of signal events could serve to verify the presence of a long lived chargino which is generic in the minimal AMSB model.

Impact of physical principles at very high energy scales on the superparticle mass spectrum

We survey a variety of proposals for new physics at high scales that serve to relate the multitude of soft supersymmetry breaking parameters of the MSSM. We focus on models where the new physics results in non-universal soft parameters, in sharp contrast with the usually assumed mSUGRA framework. These include {\it i}) SU(5) and SO(10) grand unified (GUT) models, {\it ii}) the MSSM plus a right-handed neutrino, {\it iii}) models with effective supersymmetry, {\it iv}) models with anomaly-mediated SUSY breaking and gaugino mediated SUSY breaking, {\it v}) models with non-universal soft terms due to string dynamics, and {\it vi}) models based on $M$-theory. We outline the physics behind these models, point out some distinctive features of the weak scale sparticle spectrum, and allude to implications for collider experiments. To facilitate future studies, for each of these scenarios, we describe how collider events can be generated using the program ISAJET. Our hope is that detailed studies of a variety of alternatives will help point to the physics underlying SUSY breaking and how this is mediated to the observable sector, once sparticles are discovered and their properties measured.