arXiv subjects

Marcin Badziak

Publications and source records attributed to Marcin Badziak.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Improved cosmological constraints on axion-lepton interactions

We present updated cosmological constraints on axion-lepton interactions based on state-of-the-art computations of the thermal axion abundance. By combining Planck Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) data with baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) measurements from DESI DR2, we derive improved limits on both lepton-flavor-conserving (LFC) and lepton-flavor-violating (LFV) axion couplings. Incorporating finite axion mass effects substantially strengthens the bounds for axion masses above 0.1 eV compared to those inferred from the $ΔN_{\rm eff}$ constraint alone. The bounds on the LFC axion-tau coupling and LFV axion couplings to tau and muon or electron are improved by several orders of magnitude and the lower bound on the axion decay constant may exceed $10^6$ and $10^8$ GeV, respectively, for axion masses above 1 eV. Our cosmological constraints on LFC axion couplings to muons and taus and LFV axion couplings to tau and muon or electron are stronger than all other constraints for masses above 0.3 eV. In particular, they are stronger than recent collider constraints from Belle-II on $τ\rightarrow la$ decays, where $l=e$ or $μ$. The collider constraints on $μ\rightarrow ea$ decays are weaker than the cosmological constraints for axion masses above 100 eV. Our results are relevant for both the QCD axion and axion-like particles (ALPs).

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arXiv2025

Electroweak symmetry non-restoration and suppressed dark radiation in Supersymmetric Twin Higgs model

We investigate a possibility of electroweak symmetry non-restoration (SNR) below the Twin electroweak scale ($\sim$TeV) within the Twin Higgs model. We focus on supersymmetric extensions with light sfermions where SNR is driven by mirror symmetry breaking in the Yukawa couplings. The inclusion of light scalars not only stabilizes the electroweak scale, but also extends SNR into new regions of the parameter space and enables a first-order phase transition. When this model is augmented with right-handed neutrinos with unbroken $B'-L'$ in the twin sector, the number of dark relativistic degrees of freedom can be reduced to the level consistent with the constraints from CMB data. The SNR in the supersymmetric Twin Higgs framework can naturally be integrated with minimal axiogenesis, offering a simultaneous explanation for the origin of baryon asymmetry and dark matter and the resolution of the strong CP problem that is consistent with astrophysical constraints.

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arXiv2025

Precise predictions for the QCD axion contribution to dark radiation with full phase-space evolution

We compute the QCD axion contribution to the energy density of dark radiation, parameterized by $ΔN_{\rm eff}$, by solving Boltzmann equations for the momentum distribution functions including the effects of quantum statistics for all particles involved in the axion production processes. This approach gives precise prediction for $ΔN_{\rm eff}$ independently on whether axions are produced via freeze-out or freeze-in. We focus on axions produced via flavor-conserving and flavor-violating interactions with leptons. Our precise predictions for $ΔN_{\rm eff}$ can differ from those assuming thermal shape for the momentum distribution functions, as commonly done in the literature, by more than the experimental precision of future Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) observations. Current lower limits on the axion couplings from Planck constraints on $ΔN_{\rm eff}$ are also affected by our precise computation which, in particular, results in a strongly relaxed bound on flavor-violating axion couplings to tau lepton and muon or electron.

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arXiv2024

Thermal production of astrophobic axions

Hot axions are produced in the early Universe via their interactions with Standard Model particles, contributing to dark radiation commonly parameterized as $ΔN_{\text{eff}}$. In standard QCD axion benchmark models, this contribution to $ΔN_{\text{eff}}$ is negligible after taking into account astrophysical limits such as the SN1987A bound. We therefore compute the axion contribution to $ΔN_{\text{eff}}$ in so-called astrophobic axion models characterized by strongly suppressed axion couplings to nucleons and electrons, in which astrophysical constraints are relaxed and $ΔN_{\text{eff}}$ may be sizable. We also construct new astrophobic models in which axion couplings to photons and/or muons are suppressed as well, allowing for axion masses as large as few eV. Most astrophobic models are within the reach of CMB-S4, while some allow for $ΔN_{\text{eff}}$ as large as the current upper bound from Planck and thus will be probed by the Simons Observatory. The majority of astrophobic axion models predicting large $ΔN_{\text{eff}}$ is also within the reach of IAXO or even BabyIAXO.

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arXiv2023

First-order phase transitions in Twin Higgs models

We revisit phase transitions in Twin Higgs (TH) models. We show that strong first-order phase transitions (FOPTs) can occur provided that appropriate source of $\mathbb{Z}_2$ symmetry breaking between the twin and Standard Model (SM) sectors is present. We found FOPTs in two classes of models. First: with hard $\mathbb{Z}_2$ breaking in the scalar potential allowing for FOPT. Second: with $\mathbb{Z}_2$ broken by enhanced Yukawa couplings of twin leptons. We also considered supersymmetric UV completion of the second scenario with light sleptons. The signal of gravitational waves produced during these phase transitions is typically small but can be close to the reach of AEDGE and Einstein Telescope in the case of the FOPT induced by light twin sleptons. Our results open a way to generate SM baryon asymmetry in TH models.

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arXiv2023

Naturally astrophobic QCD axion

We present a QCD axion model where the couplings of the axion to nucleons, electrons, and muons are naturally suppressed because of the appropriate choice of the Peccei-Quinn charges of the Standard Model fermions. We reexamine next-to-leading order corrections to the couplings of the axion with nucleons and photons and show that the axion decay constant may be as small as $10^7$ GeV. It is also possible to suppress the coupling with the photon so that the decay constant is even smaller and minimal axiogenesis works. In this scenario, the axion has a mass above 1 eV and may be directly detected via absorption of axion dark matter. Flavor-violating axion couplings are generically predicted in our model, but we show that they may be naturally and sufficiently suppressed. We discuss the implications of the hints for anomalous cooling in several stellar environments to our model.

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arXiv2022

Charged Dark Matter in Supersymmetric Twin Higgs models

Supersymmetric Twin Higgs models ameliorate the fine-tuning of the electroweak scale originating from the heavy scalar top partners required by the non-discovery of them at the Large Hadron Collider. If the Lightest Supersymmetric Particle resides in the twin sector, it may play the role of dark matter even if it is charged under twin gauge interactions. We show that the twin stau is a viable candidate for charged dark matter, even if the twin electromagnetic gauge symmetry is unbroken, with thermal relic abundance that naturally matches the observed dark matter abundance. A wide parameter space satisfies all the experimental constraints including those on dark matter self-interactions. Twin stau dark matter can be observed in future direct detection experiments such as LUX-ZEPLIN. The stau has a mass in the range of 300-500 GeV, and in the minimal scenario, has a decay length long enough to be observed as a disappearing track or a long-lived particle at the Large Hadron Collider.

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arXiv2021

Flavor-Violating Higgs Decays and Stellar Cooling Anomalies in Axion Models

We study a class of DFSZ-like models for the QCD axion that can address observed anomalies in stellar cooling. Stringent constraints from SN1987A and neutron stars are avoided by suppressed couplings to nucleons, while axion couplings to electrons and photons are sizable. All axion couplings depend on few parameters that also control the extended Higgs sector, in particular lepton flavor-violating couplings of the Standard Model-like Higgs boson $h$. This allows us to correlate axion and Higgs phenomenology, and we find that that ${\rm BR}(h \to τe)$ can be as large as the current experimental bound of 0.22%, while ${\rm BR} (h \to μμ)$ can be larger than in the Standard Model by up to 70%. Large parts of the parameter space will be tested by the next generation of axion helioscopes such as the IAXO experiment.

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arXiv2020

Natural Twin Neutralino Dark Matter

Supersymmetric Twin Higgs models have a discrete symmetry for which each Standard Model particle and its supersymmetric partner have a corresponding state that transforms under a mirror Standard Model gauge group. This framework is able to accommodate the non-discovery of new particles at the LHC with the naturalness of the electroweak scale. We point out that supersymmetric Twin Higgs models also provide a natural dark matter candidate. We investigate the possibility that a twin bino-like state is the Lightest Supersymmetric Particle and find that its freeze-out abundance can explain the observed dark matter abundance without fine-tuning the mass spectrum of the theory. Most of the viable parameter space can be probed by future dark matter direct detection experiments and the LHC searches for staus and higgsinos which may involve displaced vertices.

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arXiv2019

Explanation of electron and muon g-2 anomalies in the MSSM

The current experimental values of anomalous magnetic moments of muon and electron deviate from the Standard Model predictions by few standard deviations, which might be a hint of new physics. The sizes and signs of these deviations are different and opposite between the electron and muon, which makes it difficult to explain both of these anomalies in a consistent model without introducing large flavour-violating effects. It is shown that they can be simultaneously explained in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) by arranging the sizes of bino-slepton and chargino-sneutrino contributions differently between the electron and muon sectors. The MSSM spectrum features very light selectrons and wino-like chargino, while they can evade LHC constraints due to degenerate spectra.

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arXiv2019

Natural supersymmetric Twin Higgs

A new class of supersymmetric Twin Higgs (TH) models where new gauge symmetry is responsible for the TH mechanism is reviewed. In this class of models the Higgs mass is naturally in agreement with the LHC measurement while the electroweak symmetry breaking is realised without excessive tuning despite of strong lower bounds on masses of supersymmetric particles set by the LHC. Assuming particular non-abelian structure of the new gauge symmetry the model remains perturbative up to the energy scale of gravity, in contrast to all previously proposed UV completions of the TH model.

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arXiv2018

Extended Gauge Mediation in the NMSSM with Displaced LHC Signals

We analyze models of extended Gauge Mediation in the context of the NMSSM, concentrating on supersymmetric spectra with light gluinos, low fine-tuning and decays of the lightest neutralino leading to displaced vertices. While the minimal scenario has rather heavy gluinos as a result of restrictions from the Higgs sector, we propose two new models in which the gluino can be as light as allowed by direct searches at the LHC, with a mass of about 1.7 TeV and 2.0 TeV, respectively. Both models have a tuning of a few permille, and lead to an interesting phenomenology due to a light singlet sector. A singlet state at around 98 GeV can account for the LEP excess, while the singlino has a mass of the order of 100 GeV and decays to b-jets and the gravitino, with decay lengths of a few cm.

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arXiv2018

Impact of an extra gauge interaction on naturalness of supersymmetry

It is pointed out that in supersymmetric models with a new gauge symmetry under which the Higgs is charged, the fine-tuning of the electroweak symmetry breaking is relaxed due to suppression of the top Yukawa coupling at higher scales by a new large gauge coupling. We calculate the fine-tuning in an explicit model and find that the lower bounds on stops and gluino masses from the naturalness criterion are increased by several hundred GeV in comparison to the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). The fine-tuning is improved by one to two orders of magnitude as compared to the MSSM, as a consequence of both the suppression of the top Yukawa coupling and the additional tree-level contribution to the Higgs mass allowing for much lighter stops.

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arXiv2017

Minimal Non-Abelian Supersymmetric Twin Higgs

We propose a minimal supersymmetric Twin Higgs model that can accommodate tuning of the electroweak scale for heavy stops better than 10% with high mediation scales of supersymmetry breaking. A crucial ingredient of this model is a new SU(2)_X gauge symmetry which provides a D-term potential that generates a large SU(4) invariant coupling for the Higgs sector and only small set of particles charged under SU(2)_X, which allows the model to be perturbative around the Planck scale. The new gauge interaction drives the top yukawa coupling small at higher energy scales, which also reduces the tuning.

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arXiv2017

Asymptotically Free Natural SUSY Twin Higgs

Twin Higgs (TH) models explain the absence of new colored particles responsible for natural electroweak symmetry breaking (EWSB). All known ultraviolet completions of TH models require some non-perturbative dynamics below the Planck scale. We propose a supersymmetric model in which the TH mechanism is introduced by a new asymptotically free gauge interaction. The model features natural EWSB for squarks and gluino heavier than 2 TeV even if supersymmetry breaking is mediated around the Planck scale, and has interesting flavor phenomenology including the top quark decay into the Higgs and the up quark which may be discovered at the LHC.

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arXiv2017

Supersymmetric D-term Twin Higgs

We propose a new type of supersymmetric Twin Higgs model where the SU(4) invariant quartic term is provided by a D-term potential of a new U(1) gauge symmetry. In the model the 125 GeV Higgs mass can be obtained for stop masses below 1 TeV, and a tuning required to obtain the correct electroweak scale can be as low as 20 %. A stop mass of about 2 TeV is also possible with tuning of order O(10) %.

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arXiv2017

Is well-tempered neutralino in MSSM still alive after 2016 LUX results?

It is pointed out that a bino-dominated well-tempered bino-higgsino in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) with heavy non-SM- like scalars can satisfy the 2016 LUX constraints on the scattering cross-section of dark matter on nuclei only if $\tanβ$ is smaller than about 3. This, together with the Higgs mass constraint, sets a lower bound on the stops masses of about 25 TeV. The LUX constraints can be satisfied for larger $\tanβ$ if the non-SM-like Higgs bosons are light enough. However, this region of parameter space is strongly constrained by recent LHC results of the Higgs boson searches. Satisfying both the LUX and LHC constraints requires the non-SM-like Higgs bosons to be lighter than about 400 GeV and $\tanβ$ below about 8. This implies a lower bound on the stop masses of about 1.5 TeV. This small corner of the parameter space will be probed in the near future by the direct detection experiments, the LHC Higgs searches and precision Higgs coupling measurements. The recent LUX constraints improved also the lower mass limit on higgsino-dominated well-tempered neutralino to about 950 (900) GeV with heavy (light) MSSM-like Higgs doublet, assuming the stop masses below 10 TeV.

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arXiv2017

Spin-dependent constraints on blind spots for thermal singlino-higgsino dark matter with(out) light singlets

The LUX experiment has recently set very strong constraints on spin-independent interactions of WIMP with nuclei. These null results can be accommodated in NMSSM provided that the effective spin-independent coupling of the LSP to nucleons is suppressed. We investigate thermal relic abundance of singlino-higgsino LSP in these so-called spin-independent blind spots and derive current constraints and prospects for direct detection of spin-dependent interactions of the LSP with nuclei providing strong constraints on parameter space. We show that if the Higgs boson is the only light scalar the new LUX constraints set a lower bound on the LSP mass of about 300 GeV except for a small range around the half of $Z^0$ boson masses where resonant annihilation via $Z^0$ exchange dominates. XENON1T will probe entire range of LSP masses except for a tiny $Z^0$-resonant region that may be tested by the LZ experiment. These conclusions apply to general singlet-doublet dark matter annihilating dominantly to $t\bar{t}$. Presence of light singlet (pseudo)scalars generically relaxes the constraints because new LSP (resonant and non-resonant) annihilation channels become important. Even away from resonant regions, the lower limit on the LSP mass from LUX is relaxed to about 250 GeV while XENON1T may not be sensitive to the LSP masses above about 400 GeV.

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