arXiv subjects

Jim Talbert

Publications and source records attributed to Jim Talbert.

27 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

$e^+ e^-$ angularity distributions at NNLL$^\prime$ accuracy

We present predictions for the $e^{+}e^{-}$ event shape angularities at NNLL$^{\prime}$ resummed and $\mathcal{O}(α_s^{2})$ matched accuracy and compare them to LEP data at center-of-mass energies $Q=91.2$ GeV and $Q=197$ GeV. We perform the resummation within the framework of Soft-Collinear Effective Theory, and make use of recent results for the two-loop angularity soft function. We determine the remaining NNLL$^{\prime}$ and $\mathcal{O}(α_s^2)$ ingredients from a fit to the EVENT2 generator, and implement a shape function with a renormalon-free gap parameter to model non-perturbative effects. Using values of the strong coupling $α_s(m_Z)$ and the universal non-perturbative shift parameter $Ω_1$ that are consistent with those obtained in previous fits to the thrust and $C$-parameter distributions, we find excellent agreement between our predictions and the LEP data for all angularities with $a\in[-1,0.5]$. This provides a robust test of the predictions of QCD, factorization, and the universal scaling of the non-perturbative shift across different angularities. Promisingly, our results indicate that current degeneracies in the $\{α_s(m_Z),Ω_1\}$ parameter space could be be alleviated upon fitting these parameters to experimental data for the angularity distributions.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2018

Pocket Formulae for Non-Abelian Discrete Anomaly Freedom

We show that the discrete anomaly constraints governing popular non-Abelian symmetries of use in (e.g.) flavoured, supersymmetric, and dark matter model building typically subdivide into two classes differentiated by the simple restrictions they impose on the number of fields transforming under certain irreducible representations of the relevant groups. These constraints lead us both to generic conclusions for common Beyond-the-Standard-Model constructions (including rather powerful statements for Grand Unified theories) as well as to simplified formulae that can be rapidly applied to determine whether a given field and symmetry content suffers from gauge and gravitational anomalies.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2018

A Unified Model of Quarks and Leptons with a Universal Texture Zero

We show that a universal texture zero in the (1,1) position of all fermionic mass matrices, including heavy right-handed Majorana neutrinos driving a type-I see-saw mechanism, can lead to a viable spectrum of mass, mixing and CP violation for both quarks and leptons, including (but not limited to) three important postdictions: the Cabibbo angle, the charged lepton masses, and the leptonic `reactor' angle. We model this texture zero with a non-Abelian discrete family symmetry that can easily be embedded in a grand unified framework, and discuss the details of the phenomenology after electroweak and family symmetry breaking. We provide an explicit numerical fit to the available data and obtain excellent agreement with the 18 observables in the charged fermion and neutrino sectors with just 9 free parameters. We further show that the vacua of our new scalar familon fields are readily aligned along desired directions in family space, and also demonstrate discrete gauge anomaly freedom at the relevant scale of our effective theory.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2018

Automated Calculation of Dijet Soft Functions in the Presence of Jet Clustering Effects

We extend our framework for the automated calculation of dijet soft functions to observables that do not obey the non-Abelian exponentiation theorem, like jet-veto or grooming soft functions that are sensitive to clustering effects of the jet algorithm. Although the matrix element for uncorrelated double emissions has a simpler structure than the one for correlated emissions, we argue that its singularity structure poses more stringent constraints on the required phase-space parametrisation. Our algorithm applies to both SCET-1 and SCET-2 soft functions and it is implemented in the novel program SoftSERVE. We present results for various jet-veto observables and obtain new predictions for the soft-drop jet-grooming algorithm.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2017

Bottom-Up Discrete Symmetries for Cabibbo Mixing

We perform a bottom-up search for discrete non-Abelian symmetries capable of quantizing the Cabibbo angle that parameterizes CKM mixing. Given a particular Abelian symmetry structure in the up and down sectors, we construct representations of the associated residual generators which explicitly depend on the degrees of freedom present in our effective mixing matrix. We then discretize those degrees of freedom and utilize the Groups, Algorithms, Programming (GAP) package to close the associated finite groups. This short study is performed in the context of recent results indicating that, without resorting to special model-dependent corrections, no small-order finite group can simultaneously predict all four parameters of the three-generation CKM matrix and that only groups of $\mathcal{O}(10^{2})$ can predict the analogous parameters of the leptonic PMNS matrix, regardless of whether neutrinos are Dirac or Majorana particles. Therefore a natural model of flavour might instead incorporate small(er) finite groups whose predictions for fermionic mixing are corrected via other mechanisms.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2016

The prompt atmospheric neutrino flux in the light of LHCb

The recent observation of very high energy cosmic neutrinos by IceCube heralds the beginning of neutrino astronomy. At these energies, the dominant background to the astrophysical signal is the flux of `prompt' neutrinos, arising from the decay of charmed mesons produced by cosmic ray collisions in the atmosphere. In this work we provide predictions for the prompt atmospheric neutrino flux in the framework of perturbative QCD, using state-of-the-art Monte Carlo event generators. Our calculation includes the constraints set by charm production measurements from the LHCb experiment at 7 TeV, and has been recently validated with the corresponding 13 TeV data. Our results for the prompt flux are a factor of about 2 below the previous benchmark calculation, in general agreement with two other recent estimates, and with an improved estimate of the uncertainty. This alleviates the existing tension between the theoretical prediction and IceCube limits, and suggests that a direct direction of the prompt flux is imminent.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Automated Calculation of Dijet Soft Functions in Soft-Collinear Effective Theory

We present a systematic framework for the calculation of dijet soft functions, which are defined as a matrix element of two light-like Wilson lines that is weighted by a generic measurement function. Based on a universal parametrisation of the phase-space integrals, we isolate the singular terms in Laplace space and evaluate the observable-dependent integrations numerically. We discuss the implementation of our algorithm into the public program SecDec, and present results for various SCET-1 soft functions to two-loop order. In particular, we obtain new predictions for the C-parameter and the angularity variables. Finally, we discuss ongoing extensions and the future outlook of the project.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Charm production in the forward region: constraints on the small-x gluon and backgrounds for neutrino astronomy

The recent observation by the IceCube experiment of cosmic neutrinos at energies up to a few PeV heralds the beginning of neutrino astronomy. At such high energies, the conventional neutrino flux is suppressed and the prompt component from charm meson decays is expected to become the dominant background to astrophysical neutrinos. Charm production at high energies is however theoretically uncertain, both since the charm mass is at the boundary of applicability of perturbative QCD, and also because the calculations are sensitive to the poorly-known gluon PDF at small-x. In this work we provide detailed perturbative QCD predictions for charm and bottom production in the forward region, and validate them by comparing with recent data from the LHCb experiment at 7 TeV. Finding good agreement between data and theory, we use the LHCb measurements to constrain the small-x gluon PDF, achieving a substantial reduction in its uncertainties. Using these improved PDFs, we provide predictions for charm and bottom production at LHCb at 13 TeV, as well as for the ratio of cross-sections between 13 and 7 TeV. The same calculations are used to compute the energy distribution of neutrinos from charm decays in pA collisions, a key ingredient towards achieving a theoretically robust estimate of charm-induced backgrounds at neutrino telescopes.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

[Re]constructing Finite Flavour Groups: Horizontal Symmetry Scans from the Bottom-Up

We present a novel procedure for identifying discrete, leptonic flavour symmetries, given a class of unitary mixing matrices. By creating explicit 3D representations for generators of residual symmetries in both the charged lepton and neutrino sector, we reconstruct large(r) non-abelian flavour groups using the GAP language for computational finite algebra. We use experimental data to construct only those generators that yield acceptable (or preferable) mixing patterns. Such an approach is advantageous because it 1) can reproduce known groups from other 'top-down' scans while elucidating their origins from residuals, 2) find new previously unconsidered groups, and 3) serve as a powerful model building tool for theorists wishing to explore exotic flavour scenarios. We test our procedure on a generalization of the canonical tri-bimaximal (TBM) form.

hep-ph↗