arXiv subjects

Keith A. Olive

Publications and source records attributed to Keith A. Olive.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources

arXiv2004

A Realistic Determination of the Error on the Primordial Helium Abundance: Steps Toward Non-Parametric Nebular Helium Abundances

Currently there are two significantly different observational determinations of the primordial helium abundance, and, if only statistical errors in He4 abundance determinations are considered, the discrepancies between the observational determinations and the value favored by the WMAP results are significant. Here we examine in detail some likely sources of systematic uncertainties which may resolve the differences between the two determinations. We conclude that the observational determination of the primordial helium abundance is completely limited by systematic errors and that these systematic errors have not been fully accounted for in any published observational determination of the primordial helium abundance. In principle, the observed metal-poor HII region spectra should be analyzed in a non-parametric way, such that the HII region physical conditions and the helium abundance are derived solely from the relative flux ratios of the helium and hydrogen emission lines. In practice, there are very few HII region spectra with the quality that allow this, so that most analyses depend on assumed ranges or relationships between physical parameters, resulting in parametric solutions with underestimated error bars. A representative result of our analysis yields Y_p = 0.249 \pm 0.009. However, given that most of the spectra analyzed to date do not significantly constrain the primordial helium abundance, we argue in favor a range of allowed values of 0.232 le Y_p le 0.258. [abstract abridged]

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arXiv2004

Very Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Models

We consider very constrained versions of the minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (VCMSSMs) which, in addition to constraining the scalar masses m_0 and gaugino masses m_{1/2} to be universal at some input scale, impose relations between the trilinear and bilinear soft supersymmetry breaking parameters A_0 and B_0. These relations may be linear, as in simple minimal supergravity models, or nonlinear, as in the Giudice-Masiero mechanism for generating the Higgs-mixing mu term. We discuss the application of the electroweak vacuum conditions in VCMSSMs, which may be used to make a prediction for tan beta as a function of m_0 and m_{1/2} that is usually unique. We baseline the discussion of the parameter spaces allowed in VCMSSMs by updating the parameter space allowed in the CMSSM for fixed values of tan beta with no relation between A_0 and B_0 assumed {\it a priori}, displaying contours of B_0 for a fixed input value of A_0, incorporating the latest CDF/D0 measurement of m_t and the latest BNL measurement of g_mu - 2. We emphasize that phenomenological studies of the CMSSM are frequently not applicable to specific VCMSSMs, notably those based on minimal supergravity, which require m_0 = m_{3/2} as well as A_0 = B_0 + m_0. We then display (m_{1/2}, m_0) planes for selected VCMSSMs, treating in a unified way the parameter regions where either a neutralino or the gravitino is the LSP. In particular, we examine in detail the allowed parameter space for the Giudice-Masiero model.

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arXiv2004

Probing CP Violation with the Deuteron Electric Dipole Moment

We present an analysis of the electric dipole moment (EDM) of the deuteron as induced by CP-violating operators of dimension 4, 5 and 6 including theta QCD, the EDMs and color EDMs of quarks, four-quark interactions and the Weinberg operator. We demonstrate that the precision goal of the EDM Collaboration's proposal to search for the deuteron EDM, (1-3)\times 10^{-27} e cm, will provide an improvement in sensitivity to these sources of one-two orders of magnitude relative to the existing bounds. We consider in detail the level to which CP-odd phases can be probed within the MSSM.

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arXiv2003

Solar Neutrino Constraints on the BBN Production of Li

Using the recent WMAP determination of the baryon-to-photon ratio, 10^{10} η= 6.14 to within a few percent, big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) calculations can make relatively accurate predictions of the abundances of the light element isotopes which can be tested against observational abundance determinations. At this value of η, the Li7 abundance is predicted to be significantly higher than that observed in low metallicity halo dwarf stars. Among the possible resolutions to this discrepancy are 1) Li7 depletion in the atmosphere of stars; 2) systematic errors originating from the choice of stellar parameters - most notably the surface temperature; and 3) systematic errors in the nuclear cross sections used in the nucleosynthesis calculations. Here, we explore the last possibility, and focus on possible systematic errors in the He3(α,γ)Be7 reaction, which is the only important Li7 production channel in BBN. The absolute value of the cross section for this key reaction is known relatively poorly both experimentally and theoretically. The agreement between the standard solar model and solar neutrino data thus provides additional constraints on variations in the cross section (S_{34}). Using the standard solar model of Bahcall, and recent solar neutrino data, we can exclude systematic S_{34} variations of the magnitude needed to resolve the BBN Li7 problem at > 95% CL. Additional laboratory data on He3(α,γ)Be7 will sharpen our understanding of both BBN and solar neutrinos, particularly if care is taken in determining the absolute cross section and its uncertainties. Nevertheless, it already seems that this ``nuclear fix'' to the Li7 BBN problem is unlikely; other possible solutions are briefly discussed.

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arXiv2003

Electric Dipole Moments in the MSSM at Large tan(beta)

Within the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM), the large tan(beta) regime can lead to important modifications in the pattern of CP-violating sources contributing to low energy electric dipole moments (EDMs). In particular, four-fermion CP-violating interactions induced by Higgs exchange should be accounted for alongside the constituent EDMs of quarks and electrons. To this end, we present a comprehensive analysis of three low energy EDM observables - namely the EDMs of thallium, mercury and the neutron - at large tan(beta), in terms of one- and two-loop contributions to the constituent EDMs and four-fermion interactions. We concentrate on the constrained MSSM as well as the MSSM with non-universal Higgs masses, and include the CP-violating phases of mu and A. Our results indicate that the atomic EDMs receive significant corrections from four-fermion operators, especially when Im(A) is the only CP-violating source, whereas the neutron EDM remains relatively insensitive to these effects. As a consequence, in a large portion of the parameter space, one cannot infer a separate bound on the electron EDM via the experimental constraint on the thallium EDM. Furthermore, we find that the electron EDM can be greatly reduced due to the destructive interference of one- and two-loop contributions with the latter being dominated by virtual staus.

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arXiv2003

Likelihood Analysis of the CMSSM Parameter Space

We present a likelihood analysis of the parameter space of the constrained minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (CMSSM), in which the input scalar masses m_0 and fermion masses m_{1/2} are each assumed to be universal. We include the full experimental likelihood function from the LEP Higgs search as well as the likelihood from a global precision electroweak fit. We also include the likelihoods for b to s gamma decay and (optionally) g_mu - 2. For each of these inputs, both the experimental and theoretical errors are treated. We include the systematic errors stemming from the uncertainties in m_t and m_b, which are important for delineating the allowed CMSSM parameter space as well as calculating the relic density of supersymmetric particles. We assume that these dominate the cold dark matter density, with a density in the range favoured by WMAP. We display the global likelihood function along cuts in the (m_{1/2}, m_0) planes for tan beta = 10 and both signs of mu, tan beta = 35, mu < 0 and tan beta = 50, mu > 0, which illustrate the relevance of g_mu - 2 and the uncertainty in m_t. We also display likelihood contours in the (m_{1/2}, m_0) planes for these values of tan beta. The likelihood function is generally larger for mu > 0 than for mu < 0, and smaller in the focus-point region than in the bulk and coannihilation regions, but none of these possibilities can yet be excluded.

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arXiv2003

A Re-examination of the $^{187}$Re Bound on the Variation of Fundamental Couplings

We reconsider the Re187 bound on the variation of the fine-structure constant. We combine the meteoritic measurement with several present-day lab measurements to firmly establish the quantitative upper limit to the time variation over the age of the solar system. We find that the relative change of the fine-structure constant between its present value and $α$ of \sim 4.6 Gyr ago is consistent with zero, Delta alpha/alpha = [-8\pm 8 (1σ)] x 10^{-7}. We also rederive this bound in models where all gauge and Yukawa couplings vary in an interdependent manner, as would be expected in unified theories.

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arXiv2003

Primordial Nucleosynthesis in Light of WMAP

Big bang nucleosynthesis has long provided the primary determination of the cosmic baryon density $\omb h^2$, or equivalently the baryon-to-photon ratio, η. Recently, data on CMB anisotropies have become increasingly sensitive to η. The comparison of these two independent measures provides a key test for big bang cosmology. The first release of results from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) marks a milestone in this test. With the precision of WMAP, the CMB now offers a significantly stronger constraint on η. We discuss the current state of BBN theory and light element observations (including their possible lingering systematic errors). The resulting BBN baryon density prediction is in overall agreement with the WMAP prediction, an important and non-trivial confirmation of hot big bang cosmology. Going beyond this, the powerful CMB baryometer can be used as an input to BBN and one can accurately predict the primordial light element abundances. By comparing these with observations one can obtain new insight into post-BBN nucleosynthesis processes and associated astrophysics. Finally, one can test the possibility of nonstandard physics at the time of BBN, now with all light elements available as probes. Indeed, with the WMAP precision η, deuterium is already beginning to rival \he4's sensitivity to nonstandard physics, and additional D/H measurements can improve this further.

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arXiv2003

The Chemical Evolution of Mg Isotopes vs. the Time Variation of the Fine Structure Constant

The many-multiplet method applied to high redshift quasar absorption spectra has indicated a possible time variation of the fine structure constant. Alternatively, a constant value of alpha is consistent with the observational analysis if a non-solar isotopic ratio of Mg24,25,26 occurs at high redshift. In particular, a higher abundance of the heavier isotopes Mg25,26 are required to explain the observed multiplet splitting. We show that the synthesis of Mg25,26 at the base of the convective envelope in low-metallicity asymptotic giant branch stars, combined with a simple model of galactic chemical evolution, can produce the required isotopic ratios and is supported by recent observations of high abundances of the neutron-rich Mg isotopes in metal-poor globular-cluster stars. We conclude that the present data based on high redshift quasar absorption spectra may be providing interesting information on the nucleosynthetic history of such systems, rather than a time variation of fundamental constants.

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arXiv2003

High-Energy Constraints on the Direct Detection of MSSM Neutralinos

The requirement that the MSSM remain an acceptable effective field theory up to energies beyond the weak scale constrains the sparticle spectrum, and hence the permissible ranges of cold dark matter neutralino-proton cross sections. Specifically, squarks are generally much heavier than sleptons if no tachyons are to appear before the GUT scale ~10^16 GeV, or even before 10 TeV. We display explicitly the allowed ranges of effective squark and slepton masses at the weak scale, and the cross-section ranges allowed if the MSSM is to remain valid without tachyons up to 10 TeV or the GUT scale. The allowed areas in the cross section-mass plane for both spin-independent and spin-dependent scattering are significantly smaller than would be allowed if the MSSM were required to be valid only around the weak scale. In addition to a reduction in the maximum cross section, the upper limit on the neutralino mass is greatly reduced when tachyons are avoided, particularly for smaller values of the squark masses.

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arXiv2003

Sugra Dark Matter

I review the phenomenological and cosmological constraints on the parameter space associated with the Constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (CMSSM). The effect of the recent WMAP determination of the cold dark matter density will be discussed. A very constrained model (based on minimal supergravity relations between the bi- and tri-linear supersymmetry breaking mass terms) will be outlined.

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arXiv2003

TASI Lectures on Dark Matter

Observational evidence and theoretical motivation for dark matter are presented and connections to the CMB and BBN are made. Problems for baryonic and neutrino dark matter are summarized. Emphasis is placed on the prospects for supersymmetric dark matter.

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arXiv2002

Precision Analysis of the Lightest MSSM Higgs Boson at Future Colliders

We investigate the sensitivity of observables measurable in e^+ e^-, gamma gamma and mu^+ mu^- collisions for distinguishing the properties of the light neutral CP-even Higgs boson in the minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (MSSM) from those of a Standard Model (SM) Higgs boson with the same mass. We explore first the available parameter space in the constrained MSSM (CMSSM), with universal soft supersymmetry-breaking parameters, incorporating the most recent direct limits on sparticle and Higgs masses, the indirect constraints from b to s gamma and g_mu - 2, and the cosmological relic density. We calculate the products of the expected CMSSM Higgs production cross sections and decay branching ratios sigma X B normalized by the corresponding values expected for those of a SM Higgs boson of the same mass. The results are compared with the precisions expected at each collider, and allow for a direct comparison of the different channels. The measurements in the Higgs sector are found to provide important consistency tests of the CMSSM. We then generalize our analysis to the case of a non-universal Higgs model (NUHM), where the values of M_A and mu are independent parameters. We explore in particular the sensitivity to M_A, finding that measurements at e^+ e^-, gamma gamma and mu^+ mu^- colliders could yield indirect constraints on its value, up to M_A ~ 1200 GeV. We discuss the potential of these measurements for distinguishing between the CMSSM and the NUHM, probing in this way the assumption of universality.

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arXiv2002

Updated Nucleosynthesis Constraints on Unstable Relic Particles

We revisit the upper limits on the abundance of unstable massive relic particles provided by the success of Big-Bang Nucleosynthesis calculations. We use the cosmic microwave background data to constrain the baryon-to-photon ratio, and incorporate an extensively updated compilation of cross sections into a new calculation of the network of reactions induced by electromagnetic showers that create and destroy the light elements deuterium, he3, he4, li6 and li7. We derive analytic approximations that complement and check the full numerical calculations. Considerations of the abundances of he4 and li6 exclude exceptional regions of parameter space that would otherwise have been permitted by deuterium alone. We illustrate our results by applying them to massive gravitinos. If they weigh ~100 GeV, their primordial abundance should have been below about 10^{-13} of the total entropy. This would imply an upper limit on the reheating temperature of a few times 10^7 GeV, which could be a potential difficulty for some models of inflation. We discuss possible ways of evading this problem.

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arXiv2002

CDM in Supersymmetric Models

The supersymmetric extension to the Standard Model offers a promising cold dark matter candidate, the lightest neutralino. I will review the phenomenological and cosmological constraints on the supersymmetric parameter space and discuss the prospects for the detection of this candidate in both accelerator and direct detection searches.

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arXiv2002

Preserving the Lepton Asymmetry in the Brane World

In models where the Standard Model spectrum is localized on a brane embedded in a higher dimensional spacetime, we discuss the lepton number violation induced by the emission of right-handed neutrinos from the brane. We show that quite generically the presence of the right-handed neutrinos in the bulk leads to rapid lepton number violating processes which above the electroweak scale would wash away any prior lepton or baryon asymmetry. In order to preserve the lepton asymmetry, the brane-bulk couplings for at least one lepton flavor must be extremely suppressed. We show that this has a natural interpretation in the brane world.

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arXiv2002

Stable, Time-Dependent, Exact Solutions for Brane Models with a Bulk Scalar Field

We derive two classes of brane-world solutions arising in the presence of a bulk scalar field. For static field configurations, we adopt a time-dependent, factorizable metric ansatz that allows for radion stabilization. The solutions are characterized by a non-trivial warping along the extra dimension, even in the case of a vanishing bulk cosmological constant, and lead to a variety of inflationary, time-dependent solutions of the 3D scale factor on the brane. We also derive the constraints necessary for the stability of these solutions under time-dependent perturbations of the radion field, and we demonstrate the existence of phenomenologically interesting, stable solutions with a positive cosmological constant on the brane.

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arXiv2002

Searching for Supersymmetric Dark Matter

The supersymmetric extension to the Standard Model offers a promising cold dark matter candidate, the lightest neutralino. I will review the prospects for the detection of this candidate in both accelerator and direct detection searches.

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