Pion Research Articles

Charged pions asymmetry due to interference from the decay of light neutral axial mesons

Abstract Effective three meson couplings, based in flavor U(3) quark-antiquark
 interactions,
 are considered to describe two
light neutral axial meson
Strong decays, 
 $A \sim f_1(1285)$ and $f_{1S} (1420)$,
and the charged rho meson decay
in the following channels:
$A \to \rho^\mp (770)+ \pi^\pm$,
 $A\to a_0^\mp (980) +\pi^\pm$ and
$\rho^\pm \to \pi^\pm \pi^0$.
By considering neutral meson mixings, such as $f_1(1285) - a_1^0(1260)$, $f_{1S}(1420) - a_1^0(1260)$ and $\eta-\pi^0$ for the channels investigated, the leading three-meson interactions may lead to decay amplitudes that undergo interference and a resulting ratio of decay rate into charged pions, $\Gamma_{\pi^+}/\Gamma_{\pi^-}$, slightly smaller than one. For that it will be assumed that the produced charged vector mesons or charged scalar mesons undergo absorption, decay into channels without charged pions, or any other inelastic process that may suppress their decays into charged pions.

Measurement of the D* longitudinal polarization in B0→D*−τ+ντ decays

The longitudinal polarization fraction of the D* meson is measured in B0→D*−τ+ντ decays, where the τ lepton decays to three charged pions and a neutrino, using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8 and 13 TeV and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 fb−1. The D* polarization fraction FLD* is measured in two q2 regions, below and above 7 GeV2/c4, where q2 is defined as the squared invariant mass of the τντ system. The FLD* values are measured to be 0.52±0.07±0.04 and 0.34±0.08±0.02 for the lower and higher q2 regions, respectively. The first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic. The average value over the whole q2 range is FLD*=0.41±0.06±0.03. These results are compatible with the Standard Model predictions. © 2024 CERN, for the LHCb Collaboration 2024 CERN

Proton-air interactions at ultra-high energies in muon-depleted air showers with different depths

The hardness of the energy spectrum of neutral pions produced in proton-air interactions at ultra-high energies, above 1018 eV, is constrained by the steepness of the shower-to-shower distribution of the number of muons in muon-depleted extensive air showers.In this work, we find that this steepness, quantified by the parameter Λμ, evolves with the depth of the shower maximum, Xmax, assuming a universal value for shallow showers and an enhanced dependence on the high-energy hadronic interaction model for deep showers. We show that Xmax probes the so-called hadronic activity of the first proton-air interaction, thus allowing direct access to the energy spectrum of neutral pions in different regions of its kinematic phase space.We verify that the unbiased measurement of Λμ is possible for realistic mass composition expectations. Finally, we infer that the statistical precision in Λμ required to distinguish between hadronic interaction models can be achieved in current extensive air shower detectors, given their resolution and exposure.

π-π scattering lengths: Electric corrections in the linear sigma model

In the frame of the linear sigma model and working in the weak field approximation, we discuss the role played by an external electric field on the behavior of π-π scattering lengths. For this purpose, we have considered all relevant one-loop diagrams in the s, t, and u channels where we have Schwinger propagators for charged pions. An important novelty of our analysis, compared with previous existing discussions in the literature, is the explicit calculation of box diagrams which were previously not considered in discussions regarding magnetic corrections to π-π scattering lengths. Our analysis shows that electric field corrections have an opposite effect with respect to the previously calculated magnetic corrections.

Status of laser spectroscopy measurements of long-lived antiprotonic and pionic helium atoms at CERN and PSI

The results of laser spectroscopy experiments of antiprotonic helium atoms carried out at the Antiproton Decelerator of CERN, and pionic helium atoms measured at the 590[Formula: see text]MeV ring cyclotron facility of the Paul Scherrer Institute are reviewed. The former experiment determined the antiproton-to-electron mass ratio as [Formula: see text]. In the latter, a resonant transition [Formula: see text] of pionic helium at a frequency of [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]GHz was detected. Some future perspectives are briefly described.

Solitonic ground state in supersymmetric theory in background

A solitonic ground state called a chiral soliton lattice (CSL) is realized in a supersymmetric theory with background magnetic field and finite chemical potential. To this end, we construct, in the superfield formalism, a supersymmetric chiral sine-Gordon model as a neutral pion sector of a supersymmetric two-flavor chiral Lagrangian with a Wess-Zumino-Witten term. The CSL ground state appears in the presence of either a strong magnetic field and/or large chemical potential, or a background fermionic condensate in the form of a fermion bilinear consisting of the gaugino and a superpartner of a baryon gauge field.

Search for the lepton-flavor violating decay Bs0→ϕμ±τ∓

A search for the lepton-flavor violating decays Bs0→ϕμ±τ∓ is presented, using a sample of proton-proton collisions at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8, and 13 TeV, collected with the LHCb detector and corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 9 fb−1. The τ leptons are selected using decays with three charged pions. No significant excess is observed, and an upper limit on the branching fraction is determined to be B(Bs0→ϕμ±τ∓)<1.0×10−5 at 90% confidence level. © 2024 CERN, for the LHCb Collaboration 2024 CERN

Novel search for light dark photon in the forward experiments at the LHC

We propose a novel approach for discovering a light dark photon in the forward experiments at the LHC, including the SND@LHC and the FASER experiments. Assuming the dark photon is lighter than twice the electron mass and feebly interacts with ordinary matter, it is long-lived enough to pass through 100 m of rock in front of the forward experiments and also through the detector targets. However, some portion of them could be converted into an electron-positron pair inside the detector through their interaction with the detector target, leaving an isolated electromagnetic shower as a clear new physics signature of the dark photon. With copiously produced dark photons from neutral pion decays in the forward region of the LHC, we expect to observe sizable events inside the detector. Our estimation shows that more than 10 signal events of the dark photon could be observed in the range of kinetic mixing parameter, 6.2×10-5≲ϵ≲2×10-1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$6.2\ imes 10^{-5} \\lesssim \\epsilon \\lesssim 2\ imes 10^{-1}$$\\end{document} and 3×10-5≲ϵ≲2×10-1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$3\ imes 10^{-5} \\lesssim \\epsilon \\lesssim 2\ imes 10^{-1}$$\\end{document} for dark photon mass mA′≲\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$m_{A^\\prime } \\lesssim $$\\end{document} 1 MeV with integrated luminosities of 150 fb-1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$^{-1}$$\\end{document} and 3 ab-1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$^{-1}$$\\end{document}, respectively.

In-medium changes of nucleon cross sections tested in neutrino-induced reactions

Historically, studied in the context of heavy-ion collisions, the extent to which free nucleon-nucleon cross sections are modified in-medium remains undetermined by these data sets. Therefore, we investigate the impact of NN in-medium modifications on neutrino-nucleus cross section predictions using the GiBUU transport model. We find that including an in-medium lowering of the NN cross section and density dependence on Δ excitation improves agreement with MicroBooNE neutrino-argon scattering data. This is observed for both proton and neutral pion spectra in charged-current muon neutrino and neutral-current single pion production data sets. The impact of collision broadening of the Δ resonance is also investigated. The absence of Δ broadening is slightly favored, but the larger uncertainties on the pion production data prevent definitive conclusions. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Neutral pion polarizabilities from four-point functions in lattice QCD

We report a proof-of-principle lattice QCD simulation of the electric and magnetic polarizabilities for a neutral pion in the four-point function method. The results are based on the same quenched Wilson ensembles on a 243×48 lattice at β=6.0 with pion mass from 1100 to 370 MeV previously used for a charged pion. For electric polarizability, the results are largely consistent with those from the background field method and ChPT. In contrast, there are significant differences for magnetic polarizability among the four-point function method, the background field method, and ChPT. The situation points to the important role of disconnected diagrams for a neutral pion. We elucidate a transparent quark decomposition in the four-point function method that can be used to shed light on the issue.

New μ forces from νμ sources

Accelerator-based experiments reliant on charged pion and kaon decays to produce muon-neutrino beams also deliver an associated powerful flux of muons. Therefore, these experiments can additionally be sensitive to light new particles that preferentially couple to muons and decay to visible final states on macroscopic length scales. Such particles are produced through rare 3-body meson decays in the decay pipe or via muon scattering in the beam dump, and decay in a downstream detector. To demonstrate the potential of this search strategy, we recast existing MiniBooNE and MicroBooNE studies of neutral pion production in neutrino-induced neutral-current scattering (νμN→νμNπ0,π0→γγ) to place limits on light (<2mμ) muon-philic scalar particles that decay to diphotons through loops of virtual muons. While much of this parameter space has already been excluded by E137, we also project that SBND can be sensitive to unexplored parameter space for these models, and provide a road map for future neutrino experiments to perform dedicated searches for muon-philic forces. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Measurements of Chemical Potentials in Pb-Pb Collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.02 TeV.

This Letter presents the most precise measurement to date of the matter-antimatter imbalance at midrapidity in Pb-Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.02 TeV. Using the Statistical Hadronization framework, it is possible to obtain the value of the electric charge and baryon chemical potentials, μ_{Q}=-0.18±0.90 MeV and μ_{B}=0.71±0.45 MeV, with unprecedented precision. A centrality-differential study of the antiparticle-to-particle yield ratios of charged pions, protons, Ω baryons, and light (hyper)nuclei is performed. These results indicate that the system created in Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC is on average baryon-free and electrically neutral at midrapidity.

Magnetic catalysis and diamagnetism from pion fluctuations

In the framework of the Nambu–Jona-Lasinio model beyond mean field approximation, the effects of pion fluctuations on (inverse) magnetic catalysis and magnetic susceptibility are studied. The negative magnetic susceptibility at low temperature is observed when contributions from both neutral and charged pions are taken into account. In the weak field approximation, it is observed that at finite temperature, the magnetic inhibition effect in the chiral limit, resulting from the difference between the transverse and longitudinal velocities of neutral pions, converts to weak magnetic catalysis when considering a nonzero current quark mass. Moreover, the magnetic catalysis is amplified by the charged pions. Therefore, no inverse magnetic catalysis is observed when considering pion fluctuations. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Mass of charged pions in neutron-star matter

Mass of charged pions in neutron-star matter

Femtoscopic Correlations of Charged Pions and Kaons in Au + Au Collisions at BES-I STAR Energy Region with the UrQMD Model

Femtoscopic Correlations of Charged Pions and Kaons in Au + Au Collisions at BES-I STAR Energy Region with the UrQMD Model

Baryonic vortex phase and magnetic field generation in QCD with isospin and baryon chemical potentials

We propose a novel baryonic vortex phase in low energy dense QCD with finite baryon and isospin chemical potentials. It is known that the homogeneous charged pion condensate emerges as a ground state at finite isospin chemical potential, and therein arises the Abrikosov vortex lattice with an applied magnetic field. We first demonstrate that a vortex with the same quantized magnetic flux as the conventional Abrikosov vortex, carries a baryon number captured by the third homotopy group of Skyrmions, once we take into account a modulation of the neutral pion inside the vortex core. Such a vortex-Skyrmion state is therefore dubbed the baryonic vortex. We further reveal that when the baryon chemical potential is above a critical value, the baryonic vortex has negative tension measured from the charged pion condensation. It implies that the phase, in which such vortices emerge spontaneously without an external magnetic field, would take over the ground state at high baryon density. Such a new phase contributes to the comprehension of QCD phase diagram and relates to the generation of magnetic fields inside neutron stars.

The optimal use of segmentation for sampling calorimeters

One of the key design choices of any sampling calorimeter is how fine to make the longitudinal and transverse segmentation. To inform this choice, we study the impact of calorimeter segmentation on energy reconstruction. To ensure that the trends are due entirely to hardware and not to a sub-optimal use of segmentation, we deploy deep neural networks to perform the reconstruction. These networks make use of all available information by representing the calorimeter as a point cloud. To demonstrate our approach, we simulate a detector similar to the forward calorimeter system intended for use in the ePIC detector, which will operate at the upcoming Electron Ion Collider. We find that for the energy estimation of isolated charged pion showers, relatively fine longitudinal segmentation is key to achieving an energy resolution that is better than 10% across the full phase space. These results provide a valuable benchmark for ongoing EIC detector optimizations and may also inform future studies involving high-granularity calorimeters in other experiments at various facilities.

Combined analysis of midrapidity transverse momentum distributions of the charged pions and kaons, protons and antiprotons in p + Pb collisions at $$\sqrt {s_{nn} }$$ = 5.02 TeV at the LHC

Combined analysis of midrapidity transverse momentum distributions of the charged pions and kaons, protons and antiprotons in p + Pb collisions at $$\sqrt {s_{nn} }$$ = 5.02 TeV at the LHC

Searching for gamma-ray emission from stellar flares

Abstract Flares from magnetically active dwarf stars should produce relativistic particles capable of creating γ-rays. So far, the only isolated main sequence star besides the Sun to have been detected in γ-rays is TVLM 513-46546. Detecting γ-ray flares from more dwarf stars can improve our understanding of their magnetospheric properties, and could also indicate a diminished likelihood of their planets’ habitability. In this work, we stack data from the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope during a large number of events identified from optical and X-ray flare surveys. We report an upper limit of γ-ray emission from the population of flare stars. Stacking results towards control positions are consistent with a non-detection. We compare these results to observed Solar γ-ray flares and against a model of emission from neutral pion decay. The upper limit is consistent with Solar flares when scaled to the flare energies and distances of the target stars. As with Solar flares, the neutral pion decay mechanism for γ-ray production is also consistent with these results.

CaloFlow for CaloChallenge dataset 1

CALOFLOW is a new and promising approach to fast calorimeter simulation based on normalizing flows. Applying CALOFLOW to the photon and charged pion ≥ant showers of Dataset 1 of the Fast Calorimeter Simulation Challenge 2022, we show how it can produce high-fidelity samples with a sampling time that is several orders of magnitude faster than ≥ant. We demonstrate the fidelity of the samples using calorimeter shower images, histograms of high level features, and aggregate metrics such as a classifier trained to distinguish CALOFLOW from ≥ant samples.