Axion-like Particles Masses Research Articles

Searching for axion-like particle decay in the near-infrared background: an updated analysis

The extragalactic background light is comprised of the cumulative radiation from all galaxies across the history of the universe. The angular power spectrum of the anisotropies of such a background at near-infrared (IR) frequencies lacks of a complete understanding and shows a robust excess which cannot be easily explained with known sources. Dark matter in the form of axion-like particles (ALPs) with a mass around the electronvolt will decay into two photons with wavelengths in the near-IR band, possibly contributing to the background intensity. We compute the near-IR background angular power spectrum including emissions from galaxies, as well as the contributions from the intra-halo light and ALP decay, and compare it to measurements from the Hubble Space Telescope and Spitzer. We find that the preferred values for the ALP mass and ALP-photon coupling to explain the excess are in tension with star cooling data and observations of dwarf spheroidal galaxies.

Limits on axionlike particles from Mrk 421 with 4.5-year period observations by ARGO-YBJ and Fermi-LAT

In this work, we investigate the axion-like particle (ALP)-photon oscillation effect in the spectra of the blazar Markarian 421 (Mrk 421) using 4.5 years of the Astrophysical Radiation with Ground-based Observatory at YangBaJing (ARGO-YBJ) and Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT) data. These data are collected during the common operation time, which cover ten activity phases of Mrk 421. No significant ALP-photon oscillation effect is confirmed. On the other hand, not all the observations of the ten phases can be individually used to set the 95% confidence level ($\rm C.L.$) constraint on the ALP parameter space. However, the constraint can be significantly improved if the analyses for the ten phases are combined. We find that the upper limit at 95% $\rm C.L.$ on the ALP-photon coupling $g_{a\gamma}$ set by the ARGO-YBJ and Fermi-LAT observations of Mrk 421 is within $\sim [2\times 10^{-11}, \ 6\times 10^{-11}] \rm \, GeV^{-1}$ for the ALP mass of $\sim 5\times 10^{-10}$ eV $\lesssim m_a \lesssim 5\times 10^{-7}\, \rm eV$.

A detailed exploration of the EDGES 21cm absorption anomaly and axion-induced cooling

The EDGES collaboration’s observation of an anomalously strong 21 cm absorption feature around the cosmic dawn era has energised the cosmological community by suggesting a novel signature of dark matter in the cooling of cosmic hydrogen. In a recent paper, we have argued that by virtue of the ability to mediate cooling processes whilst in the condensed phase, a small amount of axion dark matter can explain these observations within the context of Standard Models of axions and axion-like particles. These axions and axion-like particles (ALPs) can thermalise through gravitational self-interactions and so eventually form a Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC), whereupon large-scale long-range correlation can produce experimentally observable signals such as these. In this context, the EDGES best-fit result favours an ALP mass in the (6, 400) meV range. Future experiments and galaxy surveys, particularly the International Axion Observatory (IAXO) and EUCLID, should have the capability to directly test this scenario. In this paper, we will explore this mechanism in detail and give more thorough computational details of certain key points.

Probing axionlike particles via cosmic microwave background polarization

Axion-like particles (ALPs) rotate the linear polarization of photons through the ALP-photon coupling and convert the cosmic microwave background (CMB) $E$-mode to the $B$-mode. We derive the relation between the ALP dynamics and the rotation angle by assuming that the ALP $\phi$ has a quadratic potential, $V=m^2\phi^2/2$. We compute the current and future sensitivities of CMB observations to the ALP-photon coupling $g$, which can reach $g=4\times 10^{-21}\,\mathrm{GeV}^{-1}$ for $10^{-32}\,\mathrm{eV}\lesssim m\lesssim 10^{-28}\,\mathrm{eV}$ and extensively exceed the other searches for any mass $m\lesssim 10^{-25}\,\mathrm{eV}$. We find that the fluctuation of the ALP field at the observer, which has been neglected in previous studies, can induce significant isotropic rotation of the CMB polarization. The measurements of isotropic and anisotropic rotation allow us to put bounds on relevant quantities such as the ALP mass $m$ and the ALP density parameter $\Omega_\phi$. In particular, if LiteBIRD detects anisotropic rotation, we obtain the lower bound on the tensor-to-scalar ratio as $r > 5 \times 10^{-9}$.

Axionlike particles searches in reactor experiments

Reactor neutrino experiments provide a rich environment for the study of axionlike particles (ALPs). Using the intense photon flux produced in the nuclear reactor core, these experiments have the potential to probe ALPs with masses below 10 MeV. We explore the feasibility of these searches by considering ALPs produced through Primakoff and Compton-like processes as well as nuclear transitions. These particles can subsequently interact with the material of a nearby detector via inverse Primakoff and inverse Compton-like scatterings, via axio-electric absorption, or they can decay into photon or electron-positron pairs. We demonstrate that reactor-based neutrino experiments have a high potential to test ALP-photon couplings and masses, currently probed only by cosmological and astrophysical observations, thus providing complementary laboratory-based searches. We furthermore show how reactor facilities will be able to test previously unexplored regions in the ∼MeV ALP mass range and ALP-electron couplings of the order of gaee ∼ 10−8 as well as ALP-nucleon couplings of the order of {g}_{ann}^{(1)} ∼ 10−9, testing regions beyond TEXONO and Borexino limits.

Testing the ALP-photon coupling with polarization measurements of Sagittarius A⋆

Ultra-light bosons such as axions or axion-like particles (ALPs), are promising candidates to solve the dark matter problem. A unique way to detect such ALPs is to search for the periodic oscillation feature of the position angles of linearly polarized photons emitted from the galaxy center. In this work, we use the high-resolution polarimetric measurements of the radiation near the super-massive black hole (SMBH) in the center of the Milky Way, i.e., Sagittarius A⋆ (Sgr A⋆), by a sub-array of the Event Horizon Telescope to search for the ultra-light ALPs. We derive upper limits on the ALP-photon coupling of ∼ 10-12 GeV-1 for ALP masses of ma∼ (10-19-10-18) eV, with a solitonic core + NFW dark matter density profile. Our results are stronger than that derived from the observations of SN1987A and a population of supernovae in the mass window of (10-19-10-17) eV. Improved polarimetric measurements with the full Event Horizon Telescope can further strengthen the constraints.

Polarized light-by-light scattering at the CLIC induced by axion-like particles

In this study, light-by-light (LBL) scattering with initial polarized Compton backscattered photons at the CLIC, induced by axion-like particles (ALPs), is investigated. The total cross sections are calculated assuming CP-even coupling of the pseudoscalar ALP to photons. The 95% C.L. exclusion region for the ALP mass and its coupling constant f is presented. The results are compared with CLIC bounds previously obtained for the unpolarized case. It is shown that the bounds on f for the polarized beams in the region with collision energy of 3000 GeV and integrated luminosity of 4000 fb are on average 1.5 times stronger than the bounds for the unpolarized beams. Moreover, our CLIC bounds are stronger than those for all current exclusion regions for GeV. In particular, they are more restrictive than the limits that follow from the ALP-mediated LBL scattering at the LHC.

Constraints on the Coupling between Axionlike Dark Matter and Photons Using an Antiproton Superconducting Tuned Detection Circuit in a Cryogenic Penning Trap.

We constrain the coupling between axionlike particles (ALPs) and photons, measured with the superconducting resonant detection circuit of a cryogenic Penning trap. By searching the noise spectrum of our fixed-frequency resonant circuit for peaks caused by dark matter ALPs converting into photons in the strong magnetic field of the Penning-trap magnet, we are able to constrain the coupling of ALPs with masses around 2.7906-2.7914 neV/c^{2} to g_{aγ}<1×10^{-11} GeV^{-1}. This is more than one order of magnitude lower than the best laboratory haloscope and approximately 5 times lower than the CERN axion solar telescope (CAST), setting limits in a mass and coupling range which is not constrained by astrophysical observations. Our approach can be extended to many other Penning-trap experiments and has the potential to provide broad limits in the low ALP mass range.

Constraints on Axionlike Particles from a Hard X-Ray Observation of Betelgeuse.

We use the first observation of Betelgeuse in hard x rays to perform a novel search for axionlike particles (ALPs). Betelgeuse is not expected to be a standard source of x rays, but light ALPs produced in the stellar core could be converted back into photons in the Galactic magnetic field, producing a detectable flux that peaks in the hard x-ray band (E_{γ}>10 keV). Using a 50ks observation of Betelgeuse by the NuSTAR satellite telescope, we find no significant excess of events above the expected background. Using models of the regular Galactic magnetic field in the direction of Betelgeuse, we set a 95%C.L. upper limit on the ALP-photon coupling of g_{aγ}<(0.5-1.8)×10^{-11} GeV^{-1} (depending on magnetic field model) for ALP masses m_{a}<(5.5-3.5)×10^{-11} eV.

Searching for light in the darkness: Bounds on ALP dark matter with the optical MUSE-faint survey

We use MUSE spectroscopic observations of the dwarf spheroidal galaxy Leo T between 470 and 935 nm to search for radiative decays of axion like particles (ALPs). Under the assumption that ALPs constitute the dark matter component of the Leo T halo, we derive bounds on the effective ALP-two-photon coupling. We improve existing limits by more than one order of magnitude in the ALP mass range 2.7-5.3 eV.

Predictions for axion couplings from ALP cogenesis

Adding an axion-like particle (ALP) to the Standard Model, with a field velocity in the early universe, simultaneously explains the observed baryon and dark matter densities. This requires one or more couplings between the ALP and photons, nucleons, and/or electrons that are predicted as functions of the ALP mass. These predictions arise because the ratio of dark matter to baryon densities is independent of the ALP field velocity, allowing a correlation between the ALP mass, ma, and decay constant, fa. The predicted couplings are orders of magnitude larger than those for the QCD axion and for dark matter from the conventional ALP misalignment mechanism. As a result, this scheme, ALP cogenesis, is within reach of future experimental ALP searches from the lab and stellar objects, and for dark matter.

Exclusive axionlike particle production by gluon – induced interactions in hadronic collisions

The exclusive production of axionlike particles (ALPs) by gluon – induced interactions is investigated in this exploratory study considering pp and PbPb collisions for the energies of the next run of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Assuming the Duhram model, we estimate the associated cross sections for the rapidity ranges probed by central and forward detectors. A comparison with the predictions for the exclusive ALP production by photon – induced interactions is presented. Our results indicate that the contribution of gluon – induced interactions is nonnegligible and can become dominant in pp collisions for small values of the ALP mass.

Implications of axion-like particles from the Fermi-LAT and H.E.S.S. observations of PG 1553+113 and PKS 2155−304 * *Supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2016YFA0400200) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (U1738209, 11851303)

We investigate the axion-like particle (ALP)-photon oscillation effect in the high-energy -ray spectra of PG 1553+113 and PKS 2155−304 measured by Fermi-LAT and H.E.S.S. The choice of extragalactic background light (EBL) model, which induces the attenuation effect in observed -ray spectra, affects the ALP implications. For the ordinary EBL model that prefers a null hypothesis, we set constraints on the ALP-photon coupling constant at 95% C.L. as for the ALP mass neV. We also consider the CIBER observation of the cosmic infrared radiation, which shows an excess at wavelengths of m after the substraction of foregrounds. High-energy gamma-rays from extragalactic sources at high redshifts would suffer from a more significant attenuation effect caused by this excess. In this case, we find that the ALP-photon oscillation would improve the fit to the observed spectra of PKS 2155−304 and PG 1553+113 and find a favored parameter region at 95% C.L..

Post-inflationary axion isocurvature perturbations facing CMB and large-scale structure

Dark matter comprised of axion-like particles (ALPs) generated by the realignment mechanism in the post-inflationary scenario leads to primordial isocurvature fluctuations. The power spectrum of these fluctuations is flat for small wave numbers, extending to scales accessible with cosmological surveys. We use the latest measurements of Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) primary anisotropies (temperature, polarization) together with CMB lensing, Baryonic Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) and Sunyaev Zel'dovich (SZ) cluster counts to measure the amplitude and tilt of the isocurvature component. We find preference for a white-noise isocurvature component in the CMB primary anisotropies; this conclusion is, however, weakened by current large-scale structure (LSS) data. Interpreting the result as a conservative upper limit on the isocurvature component, the combined bound on the ALP mass from all probes is ma ≳ 10−19 eV, with some dependence on how ma evolves with temperature. The expected sensitivity of cosmic shear and galaxy clustering from future LSS experiments and CMB lensing suggests improved bounds of ma ≳ 10−18–10−13 eV, depending on scale cuts used to avoid non-linearities and the ALP mass-temperature dependence.

Search for the imprint of axion-like particles in the highest-energy photons of hard γ-ray blazars

Axion-like particles (ALPs), predicted in theories beyond the Standard Model, can have observational effects on the transparency of the Universe to γ rays in the presence of magnetic fields. In this work, we search for effects compatible with the existence of ALPs with 80 months of data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope, by comparing the distributions of observed highest energy photons from sources beyond redshifts of z ⩾ 0.1 with theoretical predictions in the presence of ALPs. We find no evidence for an increased γ-ray transparency due to ALPs and therefore we set limits on the ALPs parameters assuming a value of the intergalactic magnetic field strength of 1 nG. Photon-ALP couplings above 10−11 GeV−1 are excluded for ALP masses ma ≲ 3.0 neV . As the allowed magnetic field parameter space is large, we also test lower magnetic field strengths and no constraints can be set for B⩽0.1 nG below the CAST limit. These constraints exclude a region of the parameter space not covered by other γ-ray telescopes and are compatible with limits imposed by other experiments.

Search for Axionlike-Particle-Induced Prompt γ-Ray Emission from Extragalactic Core-Collapse Supernovae with the Fermi Large Area Telescope.

During a core-collapse supernova (SN), axionlike particles (ALPs) could be produced through the Primakoff process and subsequently convert into γ rays in the magnetic field of the MilkyWay. We do not find evidence for such a γ-ray burst in observations of extragalactic SNe with the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT). The SN explosion times are estimated from optical light curves and we find a probability of about ∼90% that the LAT observed at least one SN at the time of the core collapse. Under the assumption that at least one SN was contained within the LAT field of view, we exclude photon-ALP couplings ≳2.6×10^{-12} GeV^{-1} for ALP masses m_{a}≲3×10^{-10} eV, improving previous limits from SN1987A by a factor of 2.

A search for axion-like particles in light-by-light scattering at the CLIC

The virtual production of axion-like particles (ALPs) in the light-by-light scattering at the CLIC collider is studied. Both differential and total cross sections are calculated, assuming interaction of the ALP with photons via CP-odd term in the La­grangian. The 95% C.L. exclusion regions for the ALP mass and its coupling constant are given. By comparing our results with existing collider bounds, we see that the ALP search at the CLIC has a great physics potential of searching for the ALPs, especially, in the mass region 1TeV-2.4 TeV, with the collision energy sqrt{s} = 3000 GeV and integrated luminosity L = 5000 fb-1 for the Compton backscattered initial photons. In particular, our limits are stronger than recently obtained bounds for the ALP production in the light-by-light scattering at the LHC.

Axionlike Particles, Lepton-Flavor Violation, and a New Explanation of a_{μ} and a_{e}.

Axionlike particles (ALPs) with lepton-flavor-violating couplings can be probed in exotic muon and tau decays. The sensitivity of different experiments depends strongly on the ALP mass and its couplings to leptons and photons. For ALPs that can be resonantly produced, the sensitivity of three-body decays such as μ→3e and τ→3μ exceeds by many orders of magnitude that of radiative decays like μ→eγ and τ→μγ. Searches for these two types of processes are therefore highly complementary. We discuss experimental constraints on ALPs with a single dominant lepton-flavor-violating coupling. Allowing for one or more such couplings offers qualitatively new ways to explain the anomalies related to the magnetic moments of the muon or the electron. The explanation of both anomalies requires lepton-flavor-nonuniversal or lepton-flavor-violating ALP couplings.

New Directions for Axion Searches via Scattering at Reactor Neutrino Experiments.

Searches for pseudoscalar axionlike-particles (ALPs) typically rely on their decay in beam dumps or their conversion into photons in haloscopes and helioscopes. We point out a new experimental direction for ALP probes via their production by the intense gamma ray flux available from megawatt-scale nuclear reactors at neutrino experiments through Primakoff-like or Compton-like channels. Low-threshold detectors in close proximity to the core will have visibility to ALP decays and inverse Primakoff and Compton scattering, providing sensitivity to the ALP-photon and ALP-electron couplings. We find that the sensitivity to these couplings at the ongoing MINER and various other reactor based neutrino experiments, e.g., CONNIE, CONUS, ν-cleus, etc., exceeds existing limits set by laboratory experiments and, for the ALP-electron coupling, we forecast the world's best laboratory-based constraints over a large portion of the sub-MeV ALP mass range.

Production of axionlike particles in PbPb collisions at the LHC, HE–LHC and FCC: A phenomenological analysis

The production of axionlike particles (ALP) in ultraperipheral PbPb collisions (UPHIC) is investigated considering the energies of the next run of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and of the future High Energy–LHC (HE–LHC) and Future Circular Collider (FCC). Assuming four different combinations for the ALP mass and coupling and the typical exclusivity cuts for central and forward detectors, we estimate the cross section and invariant mass, rapidity, transverse momentum and acoplanarity distributions associated to the diphoton final state produced in the γγ→a→γγ subprocesses. A detailed analysis of the backgrounds is performed. We demonstrate that the backgrounds can be strongly reduced by the exclusivity cuts and that a forward detector, as the LHCb, is ideal to probe an ALP with small mass. Finally, our results indicate that a future experimental analysis of the diphoton final state in UPHIC can probe the existence and properties of axionlike particles.