arXiv subjects

Indrani Chakraborty

Publications and source records attributed to Indrani Chakraborty.

32 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2020

Fingerprinting the contribution of colored scalars to the $H^+ W^- Z(γ)$ vertex

Color-octet scalars arise in various Grand Unification scenarios and also in other models of new physics. They are also postulated for minimal flavour violation. Purely phenomenological imprints of such scalars are therefore worth looking at. Motivated by this, we perform a complete one-loop calculation of the $H^+ \to W^+ Z (\g)$ decay in a two Higgs doublet model augmented by a color-octet $SU(2)_L$ scalar doublet. The computation is conveniently segregated into colorless and colored components. The color-octet part of the amplitude, being scaled by the color-factor, provides an overall enhancement to the form factors. Crucial constraints from perturbative unitarity, positivity of the scalar potential, oblique parameters, Higgs signal strengths and direct search of a charged Higgs and color-octet scalars are folded-in into the analysis. Sensitivity of the loop-induced $H^+ \to W^+ Z (\g)$ vertex to other model parameters is elucidated. Finally, the prospect of observing a loop-induced $H^+ \to W^+ Z (\g)$ interaction at the future hadronic collisions is also discussed.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2020

Type-I thermal leptogenesis in $Z_3$-symmetric three Higgs doublet model

Our present work explores the possibility of neutrino mass generation through {\em Type-I see-saw} mechanism and provides an explanation of the baryon asymmetry of the Universe via thermal leptogenesis in the framework of $Z_3$-symmetric three Higgs doublet model (3HDM) augmented with three right-handed neutrinos. Here the thermal leptogenesis is initiated by the out-of-equilibrium decay of the lightest heavy neutrino $N_1$. The constraints arising out of the scalar sector put strong bound on the model parameter $\tan β$, which in turn takes part in the computation of the lepton asymmetry $ε$. Lepton asymmetry being converted partially into the baryon asymmetry by electroweak sphelaron processes, will account for the required baryon asymmetry satisfying the current data. We therefore analyse the parameter space consistent with the constraints arising from neutrino oscillation, lepton asymmetry and baryon asymmetry together, last one being the most stringent one.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2020

Two Coupled Mechanisms Produce Fickian, yet non-Gaussian Diffusion in Heterogeneous Media

Fickian yet non-Gaussian diffusion is observed in several biological and soft matter systems, yet the underlying mechanisms behind the emergence of non-Gaussianity while retaining a linear mean square displacement remain speculative. Here, we characterize quantitatively the effect of spatial heterogeneities on the appearance of non-Gaussianity in Fickian diffusion. We study the diffusion of fluorescent colloidal particles in a matrix of micropillars having a range of structural configurations: from completely ordered to completely random. We show that non-Gaussianity emerges as a direct consequence of two coupled factors; individual particle diffusivities become spatially dependent in a heterogeneous randomly structured environment, and the spatial distribution of the particles varies significantly in such environments, further influencing the diffusivity of a single particle. The coupled mechanisms lead to a considerable non-Gaussian nature even due to weak disorder in the arrangement of the micropillars. A simple mathematical model validates our hypothesis that non-Gaussian yet Fickian diffusion in our system arises from the superstatistical behavior of the ensemble in a structurally heterogeneous environment. The two mechanisms identified here are relevant for many systems of crowded heterogeneous environments where non-Gaussian diffusion is frequently observed, for example in biological systems, polymers, gels and porous materials.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2019

Nanoparticle mobility over a surface as a probe for weak transient disordered peptide-peptide interactions

Weak interactions form the core basis of a vast number of biological processes, in particular, those involving intrinsically disordered proteins. Here, we establish a new technique capable of probing these weak interactions between synthetic unfolded polypeptides using a convenient yet efficient, quantitative method based on single particle tracking of peptide-coated gold nanoparticles over peptide-coated surfaces. We demonstrate that our technique is sensitive enough to observe the influence of a single amino acid mutation on the transient peptide-peptide interactions. Furthermore, the effects of buffer salinity, expected to alter weak electrostatic interactions, are also readily detected and examined in detail. The method presented here has the potential to evaluate in a high throughput manner, weak interactions for a wide range of disordered proteins, polypeptides, and other biomolecules.

physics.bio-ph↗

arXiv2018

Colloidal supported lipid bilayers for self-assembly

The use of colloidal supported lipid bilayers (CSLBs) has recently been extended to create colloidal joints, that - in analogy to their macroscopic counterparts - can flexibly connect colloidal particles. These novel elements enable the assembly of structures with internal degrees of flexibility, but rely on previously unappreciated properties: the simultaneous fluidity of the bilayer, lateral mobility of inserted (linker) molecules and colloidal stability. Here we characterize every step in the manufacturing of CSLBs in view of these requirements using confocal microscopy and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). Specifically, we have studied the influence of different particle properties (roughness, surface charge, chemical composition, polymer coating) on the quality and mobility of the supported bilayer. We find that the insertion of lipopolymers in the bilayer can affect its homogeneity and fluidity. We improve the colloidal stability by inserting lipopolymers or double-stranded inert DNA into the bilayer. Finally, we include surface-mobile DNA linkers and use FRAP to characterize their lateral mobility both in their freely diffusive and bonded state. Our work offers a collection of experimental tools for working with CSLBs in applications ranging from controlled bottom-up self-assembly to model membrane studies.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2018

Ameliorating the Higgs mass fine-tuning problem with multi-Higgs doublet models

With no conclusive signal till date of the minimal supersymmetric and extra dimensional models at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the issue of fine-tuning of the Higgs mass still calls for some attention. It could be very possible that the observed Higgs boson of mass 125 GeV has its origin in a non-supersymmetric extended scalar sector, and, it still has properties strikingly similar to the Standard Model Higgs. In such cases, however, one relies upon possible cancellations in the quadratic divergence of the Higgs mass to uphold naturalness. In this work, we have investigated this possibility in context of some two Higgs doublet and three Higgs doublet scenarios.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2017

Lepton flavor violating Higgs decay at $e^+ e^-$ colliders

We estimate the smallest branching ratio for the Higgs decay channel $h \rightarrow μτ$, which can be probed at an $e^+e^-$ collider and compare it with the projected reach at the high-luminosity run of the LHC. Using a model-independent approach, Higgs production is considered in two separate cases. In the first case, $hWW$ and $hZZ$ couplings are allowed to be scaled by a factor allowed by the latest experimental limits on $hWW$ and $hZZ$ couplings. In the second case, we have introduced higher-dimensional effective operators for these interaction vertices. Keeping BR($h\toμτ$) as a purely phenomenological quantity, we find that this branching ratio can be probed down to $\approx 2.69\times 10^{-3}$ and $\approx 5.83\times 10^{-4}$ respectively, at the 250 GeV and 1000 GeV run of an $e^+e^-$ collider.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2016

Colloidal Joints with Designed Motion Range and Tunable Joint Flexibility

The miniaturization of machines towards the micron and nanoscales requires the development of joint-like elements that enable and constrain motion. We present a facile method to create colloidal joints, that is, anisotropic colloidal particles containing surface mobile DNA linkers that control the motion range of bonded particles. We demonstrate quantitatively that we can control the flexibility of these colloidal joints by tuning the DNA linker concentration in the bond area. We show that the colloidal shape controls the range of motion that these colloidal joints enable, due to the finite-sized patch of bonded linkers that cannot cross regions of high curvature. Finally we demonstrate the potential of the colloidal joints for programmable bottom-up self-assembly by creating flexible colloidal molecules and colloidal polymers. The reconfigurability and motion constraint offered by our colloidal joints make them promising building blocks for the development of switchable materials and nanorobots.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2016

Lepton flavor violating Higgs boson decay $h\toμτ$ at the ILC

We study the possible reach of the proposed International Linear Collider (ILC) in exploring the lepton flavor violating (LFV) Higgs boson decay $h\toμτ$. Two generic types of models are investigated, both involving an extended scalar sector. For the first type, the rest of the scalars are heavy and beyond the reach of ILC but the LFV decay occurs through a tiny admixture of the Standard Model (SM) doublet with the heavy degrees of freedom. In the second class, which is more constrained from the existing data, the SM Higgs boson does not have any LFV decay but there are other scalars degenerate with it that gives rise to the LFV signal. We show that ILC can pin down the branching fraction of $h\toμτ$, and hence the effective LFV Yukawa coupling, to a very small value, due to the fact that there are signal channels with unlike flavor leptons but no missing energy. It turns out that the low-energy options of the ILC, namely, $\sqrt{s}=250$ or 500 GeV are better to investigate such channels, and the option of beam polarization helps too. At least an order of magnitude improvement is envisaged over the existing limits.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2016

Diphoton excess at 750 GeV: Singlet scalars confront triviality

We suggest that the recently observed diphoton excess at 750 GeV comes from a quasi-degenerate bunch of gauge singlet scalars produced and decaying through one or more vector-like fermions. This explains the broad nature of the resonance, even though the decay is loop-mediated. At the same time, the model keeps the new Yukawa couplings in the perturbative region, which is necessary for the stability of the potential.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

On the scalar potential of two-Higgs doublet models

We perform a detailed analysis of the Two-Higgs Doublet Model (2HDM) potential. At the tree-level, the potential may accommodate more than one minima, one of them being the electroweak (EW) minimum where the universe lives. The parameter space allowed after the data from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) came in almost excludes those cases where the EW vacuum is shallower than the second minimum. We extend the analysis by including terms in the 2HDM potential that break the $Z_2$ symmetry of the potential by dimension-4 operators and show that the conclusions remain unchanged. Furthermore, a one-loop analysis of the potential is performed for both cases, namely, where the $Z_2$ symmetry of the potential is broken by dimension-2 or dimension-4 operators. For quantitative analysis, we show our results for the Type-II 2HDM, qualitative results remaining the same for other 2HDMs. We find that the nature of the vacua from the tree-level analysis does not change; the EW vacuum still remains deeper.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

Two-Higgs doublet models confront the naturalness problem

The conjecture that some unknown symmetry is responsible for keeping the Higgs boson light at 125 GeV does not hold for the Standard Model, where the coefficient of the quadratic divergence of Higgs boson self-energy is far from zero. We show that such a cancellation can be achieved in two-Higgs doublet models, by virtue of which all the scalars remain at the electroweak scale and the naturalness problem is avoided. We explore the consequences of such cancellations in different two-Higgs doublet models with no flavour-changing neutral current, and show that the parameter space becomes tightly constrained; in particular, the ratio of two vacuum expectation values, $\tanβ$, no longer remains a free parameter but turns out to be a function of the quartic couplings.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

Triplet-extended scalar sector and the naturalness problem

We consider the extension of the Standard Model by a complex scalar triplet field, which occurs naturally in several models of leptogenesis and see-saw mechanism for neutrino mass generation, in the context of ameliorating the fine-tuning problem of the fundamental scalars through the Veltman Condition, i.e. by demanding the sum of the quadratically divergent corrections to vanish (or be at a reasonable level) by virtue of some possible symmetry of the underlying theory. We show that it is possible to cancel all the scalar one-loop quadratic divergences and hence obtain a viable solution for the fine-tuning problem, while satisfying the electroweak precision observables, including the $ρ$ parameter, and successfully generating the neutrino masses. The stability of the scalar potential puts important constraints on the model.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2013

Controlling the fine-tuning problem with singlet scalar dark matter

Assuming that no other conventional new physics is found immediately at the LHC, we investigate how just the consistent solution of the scalar mass hierarchy problem points towards the minimal necessary field content. We show that to ameliorate the fine-tuning problem, one needs to introduce more scalar degrees of freedom. The simplest solution is one or more real singlets (with the possibility of combining two of them in a complex singlet), which may act as viable cold dark matter candidates, because the constraints on the scalar potential disfavor any mixing between the new scalar(s) with the SM doublet. Furthermore, the fine-tuning problem of the new scalars necessitates the introduction of vector-like fermions. Thus, singlet scalar(s) and vector fermions are minimal enhancements over the Standard Model to alleviate the fine-tuning problem. We also show that the model predicts Landau poles for all the scalar couplings, whose positions depend only on the number of such singlets. Thus, introduction of some new physics at that scale becomes inevitable. We also discuss how the model confronts the LHC constraints and the latest XENON100 data.

hep-ph↗