Massless Scalar Particles Research Articles

Lie-algebraic classification of effective theories with enhanced soft limits

A great deal of effort has recently been invested in developing methods of calculating scattering amplitudes that bypass the traditional construction based on Lagrangians and Feynman rules. Motivated by this progress, we investigate the long-wavelength behavior of scattering amplitudes of massless scalar particles: Nambu-Goldstone (NG) bosons. The low-energy dynamics of NG bosons is governed by the underlying spontaneously broken symmetry, which likewise allows one to bypass the Lagrangian and connect the scaling of the scattering amplitudes directly to the Lie algebra of the symmetry generators. We focus on theories with enhanced soft limits, where the scattering amplitudes scale with a higher power of momentum than expected based on the mere existence of Adler’s zero. Our approach is complementary to that developed recently in ref. [1], and in the first step we reproduce their result. That is, as far as Lorentz-invariant theories with a single physical NG boson are concerned, we find no other nontrivial theories featuring enhanced soft limits beyond the already well-known ones: the Galileon and the Dirac-Born-Infeld (DBI) scalar. Next, we show that in a certain sense, these theories do not admit a nontrivial generalization to non-Abelian internal symmetries. Namely, for compact internal symmetry groups, all NG bosons featuring enhanced soft limits necessarily belong to the center of the group. For noncompact symmetry groups such as the ISO(n) group featured by some multi-Galileon theories, these NG bosons then necessarily belong to an Abelian normal subgroup. The Lie-algebraic consistency constraints admit two infinite classes of solutions, generalizing the known multi-Galileon and multi-flavor DBI theories.

Decaying massive particles in the matter and radiation dominated eras

According to the standard model of cosmology, the early universe has been dominated by radiation or non-relativistic matter in several eras of its history. However, many cosmological calculations involving particle processes are commonly done using Minkowskian results for them, although, for more precise treatment, quantum field theory in curved spacetime is needed. This paper aims to fill this gap by presenting decay rates for matter and radiation dominated universes in this more precise treatment. We provide a study of the average decay rates for a process where a conformally coupled massive scalar field decays into massless scalar particles. It is found that the presence of a curved spacetime modifies the Minkowskian result considerably for early times but asymptotically only by an additive term proportional to the inverse of mass and interaction time. Thus, the correction is small for large time scales, but on the time scales of the order of $m\sim t$, the relative correction term may be of importance.

4D higher spin black holes with nonlinear scalar fluctuations

We construct an infinite-dimensional space of solutions to Vasiliev’s equations in four dimensions that are asymptotic to AdS spacetime and superpose massless scalar particle modes over static higher spin black holes. Each solution is obtained by a large gauge transformation of an all-order perturbatively defined particular solution given in a simple gauge, in which the spacetime connection vanishes, the twistor space connection is holomorphic, and all local degrees of freedom are encoded into the residual twistor space dependence of the spacetime zero-forms. The latter are expanded over two dual spaces of Fock space operators, corresponding to scalar particle and static black hole modes, equipped with positive definite sesquilinear and bilinear forms, respectively. Switching on an AdS vacuum gauge function, the twistor space connection becomes analytic at generic spacetime points, which makes it possible to reach Vasiliev’s gauge, in which Fronsdal fields arise asymptotically, by another large transformation given here at first order. The particle and black hole modes are related by a twistor space Fourier transform, resulting in a black hole backreaction already at the second order of classical perturbation theory. We speculate on the existence of a fine-tuned branch of moduli space that is free from black hole modes and directly related to the quasi-local deformed Fronsdal theory. Finally, we comment on a possible interpretation of the higher spin black hole solutions as black-hole microstates.

Finite-size corrections to the excitation energy transfer in a massless scalar interaction model

We study the excitation energy transfer (EET) for a simple model in which a massless scalar particle is exchanged between two molecules. We show that a finite-size effect appears in EET by the interaction energy due to overlapping of the quantum waves in a short time interval. The effect generates finite-size corrections to Fermi's golden rule and modifies EET probability from the standard formula in the Forster mechanism. The correction terms come from transition modes outside the resonance energy region and enhance EET probability substantially.

Quantum dynamics of bound states under spacetime fluctuations

With recent developments in high-precision quantum measurements, the question of whether observations of decoherence from spacetime fluctuations are accessible experimentally arises. Here we investigate the dynamics of bound states interacting with an environment of gravitons under the Markov approximation. The corresponding Lindblad master equation is presented that enables gravitational decoherence and dissipation due to zero-point spacetime fluctuations to be analyzed. Specifically, we consider a one-dimensional cavity of massless scalar particles that models a light beam with negligible spin polarizations being reflected between two free masses. Numerical simulations have been performed to illustrate the wave-modal dependent decoherence and dissipation of such a configuration. We further demonstrate the existence of nontrivial collective effects akin to superradiance, providing amplifications of gravitational decoherence for a large number of identical bosonic particles.

Corrected black hole thermodynamics in Damour–Ruffini’s method with generalized uncertainty principle

Recently, some approaches to quantum gravity indicate that a minimal measurable length [Formula: see text] should be considered, a direct implication of the minimal measurable length is the generalized uncertainty principle (GUP). Taking the effect of GUP into account, Hawking radiation of massless scalar particles from a Schwarzschild black hole is investigated by the use of Damour–Ruffini’s method. The original Klein–Gordon equation is modified. It is obtained that the corrected Hawking temperature is related to the energy of emitting particles. Some discussions appear in the last section.

Scalar quasinormal modes of anti–de Sitter static spacetime in Horava-Lifshitz gravity withU(1)symmetry

In this paper, we investigate the scalar quasinormal modes of Ho\v{r}ava-Lifshitz theory with $U(1)$ symmetry in static Anti-de Sitter spacetime. The static planar and spherical black hole solutions in lower energy limit are derived in non-projectable Ho\v{r}ava-Lifshitz gravity. The equation of motion of a scalar field is obtained, and is utilized to study the quasinormal modes of massless scalar particles. We find that the effect of Ho\v{r}ava-Lifshitz correction is to increase the quasinormal period as well as to slow down the decay of the oscillation magnitude. Besides, the scalar field could be unstable when the correction becomes too large.

Moving mirrors and the fluctuation-dissipation theorem

We investigate the random motion of a mirror in (1 + 1)-dimensions that is immersed in a thermal bath of massless scalar particles which are interacting with the mirror through a boundary condition. Imposing the Dirichlet or the Neumann boundary conditions on the moving mirror, we evaluate the mean radiation reaction force on the mirror and the correlation function describing the fluctuations in the force about the mean value. From the correlation function thus obtained, we explicitly establish the fluctuation-dissipation theorem governing the moving mirror. Using the fluctuation-dissipation theorem, we compute the mean-squared displacement of the mirror at finite and zero temperature. We clarify a few points concerning the various limiting behavior of the mean-squared displacement of the mirror. While we recover the standard result at finite temperature, we find that the mirror diffuses logarithmically at zero temperature, confirming similar conclusions that have been arrived at earlier in this context. We also comment on a subtlety concerning the comparison between zero temperature limit of the finite temperature result and the exact zero temperature result.

The conformal four-point integrals, magic identities and representations of U(2,2)

In [3,5] we found mathematical interpretations of the one-loop conformal four-point Feynman integral as well as the vacuum polarization Feynman integral in the context of representations of a Lie group U(2,2) and quaternionic analysis. Then we raised a natural question of finding mathematical interpretation of other Feynman diagrams in the same setting. In this article we describe this interpretation for all conformal four-point integrals. Using this interpretation, we give a representation-theoretic proof of an operator version of the “magic identities” for the conformal four-point integrals described by the box diagrams.The original “magic identities” are due to J.M. Drummond, J. Henn, V.A. Smirnov and E. Sokatchev; they assert that all n-loop box integrals for four scalar massless particles are equal to each other [2]. The authors give a proof of the magic identities for the Euclidean metric case only and claim that the result is also true for the Minkowski metric case. However, the Minkowski case is much more subtle. In this article we prove an operator version of the magic identities in the Minkowski metric case and, in particular, specify the relative positions of cycles of integration that make these identities correct.No prior knowledge of physics or Feynman diagrams is assumed from the reader. We provide a summary of all relevant results from quaternionic analysis to make the article self-contained.

Acoustic black holes: massless scalar field analytic solutions and analogue Hawking radiation

We obtain the analytic solutions of the radial part of the massless Klein–Gordon equation in the spacetime of both three dimensional rotating and four dimensional canonical acoustic black holes, which are given in terms of the confluent Heun functions. From these solutions, we obtain the scalar waves near the acoustic horizon. We discuss the analogue Hawking radiation of massless scalar particles and the features of the spectrum associated with the radiation emitted by these acoustic black holes.

Quantum gravitational decoherence of light and matter

Real world quantum systems are open to perpetual influence from the wider environment. Quantum gravitational fluctuations provide a most fundamental source of the environmental influence through their universal interactions with all forms of energy and matter causing decoherence. This may have subtle implications on precision laboratory experiments and astronomical observations and could limit the ultimate capacities for quantum technologies prone to decoherence. To establish the essential physical mechanism of decoherence under weak spacetime fluctuations, we carry out a sequence of analytical steps utilizing the Dirac constraint quantization and gauge invariant influence functional techniques, resulting in a general master equation of a compact form, that describes an open quantum gravitational system with arbitrary bosonic fields. An initial application of the theory is illustrated by the implied quantum gravitational dissipation of light as well as (non)relativistic massive or massless scalar particles. Related effects could eventually lead to important physical consequences including those on a cosmological scale and for a large number of correlated particles.

Permutation symmetry of the scattering equations

Closed formulas for tree amplitudes of $n$-particle scatterings of gluon, graviton, and massless scalar particles have been proposed by Cachazo, He, and Yuan. They depend on $(n\ensuremath{-}3)$ quantities ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$ which satisfy a set of coupled scattering equations, with momentum dot products as input coefficients. These equations are known to have $(n\ensuremath{-}3)!$ solutions; hence, each ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$ is believed to satisfy a single polynomial equation of degree $(n\ensuremath{-}3)!$. In this article, we derive the transformation properties of ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$ under momentum permutation and verify them with known solutions at low $n$, and with exact solutions at any $n$ for special momentum configurations. For momentum configurations not invariant under a certain momentum permutation, new solutions can be obtained for the permuted configuration from these symmetry relations. These symmetry relations for ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$ lead to symmetry relations for the $(n\ensuremath{-}3)!+1$ coefficients of the single-variable polynomials, whose correctness are checked with the known cases at low $n$. The extent to which the coefficient symmetry relations can determine the coefficients is discussed.

Explaining the proton radius puzzle with disformal scalars

We analyze the consequences of a disformal interaction between a massless scalar and matter particles in the context of atomic physics. We focus on the displacement of the atomic energy levels that it induces, and in particular the change in the Lamb shift between the 2s and 2p states. We find that the correction to the Lamb shift depends on the mass of the fermion orbiting around the nucleus, implying a larger effect for muonic atoms. Taking the cutoff scale describing the effective scalar field theory close to the QCD scale, we find that the disformal interaction can account for the observed difference in the proton radius of muonic versus electronic hydrogen. Explaining the proton radius puzzle is only possible when the scalar field is embedded in nonlinear theories which alleviate constraints from collider and stellar physics. Short distance properties of the Galileon where nonperturbative effects in vacuum are present ensure that unitarity is preserved in high-energy particle collisions. In matter, the chameleon mechanism alleviates the constraints on disformal interactions coming from the burning rates for stellar objects. We show how to combine these two properties in a single model which renders the proposed explanation of the proton radius puzzle viable.

Time evolution of a thin black ring via Hawking radiation

Black objects lose their mass and angular momenta through evaporation by Hawking radiation, and the investigation of their time evolution has a long history. In this paper, we study this problem for a five-dimensional doubly spinning black ring. The black ring is assumed to emit only massless scalar particles. We consider a thin black ring with a small thickness parameter, $\ensuremath{\lambda}\ensuremath{\ll}1$, which can be approximated by a boosted Kerr string locally. We show that a thin black ring evaporates with fixing its thickness parameter $\ensuremath{\lambda}$. Further, in the case of an Emparan-Reall black ring, we derive analytic formulas for the time evolution, which has one parameter to be evaluated numerically. We find that the lifetime of a thin black ring is shorter by a factor of $O({\ensuremath{\lambda}}^{2})$ compared to a five-dimensional Schwarzschild black hole with the same initial mass. We also study detailed properties of the Hawking radiation from the thin black ring, including the energy and angular spectra of emitted particles.

On creation of scalar particles with Gauss-Bonnet type coupling to curvature in Friedmann cosmological models

Calculations are presented for creation of massive and massless scalar particles coupled to Gauss-Bonnet type curvature in Friedmann cosmological models. It has been shown that, for fields of mass~$m$, the effect of the coupling parameter $\zeta$ with the Gauss-Bonnet invariant is insignificant if $\zeta m^2 \ll 1 $. In all cases under consideration, the created particle number is compatible by order of magnitude with the number of causally disconnected space-time regions by the Compton time, corresponding $1/m$ or $\sqrt{\zeta}$.

Scalar particle in general inertial and gravitational fields and conformal invariance revisited

The new manifestation of conformal invariance for a massless scalar particle in a Riemannian spacetime of general relativity is found. Conformal transformations conserve the Hamiltonian and wave function in the Foldy-Wouthuysen representation. Similarity of manifestations of conformal invariance for massless scalar and Dirac particles is proved. New exact Foldy-Wouthuysen Hamiltonians are derived for both massive and massless scalar particles in a general static spacetime and in a frame rotating in the Kerr field approximated by a spatially isotropic metric. The latter case covers an observer on the ground of the Earth or on a satellite and takes into account the Lense-Thirring effect. High-precision formulas are obtained for an arbitrary spacetime metric. General quantum-mechanical equations of motion are derived. Their classical limit coincides with corresponding classical equations.

New magnetized squashed black holes—thermodynamics and Hawking radiation

We construct a new exact solution in the 5D Einstein–Maxwell-dilaton gravity describing a magnetized squashed black hole. We calculate its physical characteristics, and derive the Smarr-like relations. The Hawking radiation of the solution is also investigated by calculating the graybody factor for the emission of massless scalar particles in the low-energy regime. In distinction to the case of asymptotically flat magnetized black holes, the thermodynamical characteristics and the Hawking radiation of the solution depend on the external magnetic field, and consequently can be tuned by its variation.

Electromagnetic Casimir effect and the spacetime index of refraction

In [M. Nouri-Zonoz and B. Nazari, Phys. Rev. D 82, 044047 (2010)], we investigated the response of vacuum energy to a gravitational field by considering a Casimir apparatus in a weak gravitational field. Our approach was based on a conjecture involving the interpretation of spacetime as a refractive medium and its effect on vacuum energy composed of virtual massless scalar particles. There it was shown how the case of virtual photons as the constituents of vacuum could be inferred from that of the massless scalar field. Here we explicitly show how the same conjecture applies to the electromagnetic vacuum composed of virtual photons. Specifically, we show that the boundary conditions imposed on the components of the vector field, decomposed into two scalar fields, result in the same frequency shift for photons. Using the same decomposition and employing our conjecture, we also calculate the electromagnetic energy density for the Casimir apparatus in a weak gravitational field.

On Born approximation in black hole scattering

A massless field propagating on spherically symmetric black hole metrics such as the Schwarzschild, Reissner-Nordstr\"{o}m and Reissner-Nordstr\"{o}m-de Sitter backgrounds is considered. In particular, explicit formulae in terms of transcendental functions for the scattering of massless scalar particles off black holes are derived within a Born approximation. It is shown that the conditions on the existence of the Born integral forbid a straightforward extraction of the quasi normal modes using the Born approximation for the scattering amplitude. Such a method has been used in literature. We suggest a novel, well defined method, to extract the large imaginary part of quasinormal modes via the Coulomb-like phase shift. Furthermore, we compare the numerically evaluated exact scattering amplitude with the Born one to find that the approximation is not very useful for the scattering of massless scalar, electromagnetic as well as gravitational waves from black holes.

Black Hole Thermodynamics of Hořava-Lifshitz and IR Modified Ho řava-Lifshitz Gravity Theory

Recently, a renormalizable model of gravity has been proposed by Hoř ava, which might be an ultraviolet completion of general relativity and it reduces to Einstein gravity with a non-vanishing cosmological constant in infrared approximation. Kehagias and Sfetsos have added a relevant operator proportional to the 3D geometry Ricci scalar to the original Hoř ava-Lifshitz theory action, which “softly” deviated from detailed-balance. This does not modify the ultraviolet properties of the theory. However, it modifies the infrared approximation and the Minkowski vacuum can be allowed in the infrared Hořava-Lifshitz gravity theory. The static spherical symmetric black hole solutions have been obtained in the Hořava-Lifshitz and infrared Hořava-Lifshitz gravity theory. Based on the metric of the black holes, Hawking radiation of massless scalar particles is investigated using Damour-Ruffini method. Then the black hole thermodynamics property will also be discussed.