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Natsumi Nagata

Publications and source records attributed to Natsumi Nagata.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Leptogenesis in the minimal gauged U(1)$_{L_μ-L_τ}$ model and the sign of the cosmological baryon asymmetry

The minimal gauged U(1)$_{L_μ-L_τ}$ model is a simple extension of the Standard Model and has a strong predictive power for the neutrino sector. In particular, the mass spectrum and couplings of heavy right-handed neutrinos are determined as functions of three neutrino Dirac Yukawa couplings, with which we can evaluate the baryon asymmetry of the Universe generated through their decay, i.e., leptogenesis. In this letter, we study leptogenesis in the minimal gauged U(1)$_{L_μ-L_τ}$ model. It turns out that the sign of the resultant baryon asymmetry for the case with the Dirac CP phase, $δ$, larger than $π$ is predicted to be opposite to that for $δ< π$. In addition, if lepton asymmetry is dominantly produced by the decay of the lightest right-handed neutrino, then the correct sign of baryon asymmetry is obtained for $δ> π$, which is favored by the current neutrino-oscillation experiments, whilst the wrong sign is obtained for $δ< π$. We further investigate a non-thermal leptogenesis scenario where the U(1)$_{L_μ-L_τ}$ breaking field plays the role of inflaton and decays into right-handed neutrinos, as a concrete example. It is found that this simple framework offers a successful inflation that is consistent with the CMB observation. We then show that the observed amount of baryon asymmetry can be reproduced in this scenario, with its sign predicted to be positive in most of the parameter space.

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Proton Decay: Flipped vs Unflipped SU(5)

We analyze nucleon decay modes in a no-scale supersymmetric flipped SU(5) GUT model, and contrast them with the predictions for proton decays via dimension-6 operators in a standard unflipped supersymmetric SU(5) GUT model. We find that these GUT models make very different predictions for the ratios $Γ(p \to π^0 μ^+)/Γ(p \to π^0 e^+)$, $Γ(p \to π^+ \barν)/Γ(p \to π^0 e^+)$, $Γ(p \to K^0 e^+)/Γ(p \to π^0 e^+)$ and $Γ(p \to K^0 μ^+)/Γ(p \to π^0 μ^+)$, and that predictions for the ratios $Γ(p \to π^0 μ^+)/Γ(p \to π^0 e^+)$ and $Γ(p \to π^+ \barν)/Γ(p \to π^0 e^+)$ also differ in variants of the flipped SU(5) model with normal- or inverse-ordered light neutrino masses. Upcoming large neutrino experiments may have interesting opportunities to explore both GUT and flavour physics in proton and neutron decays.

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Cornering Higgsino: Use of Soft Displaced Track

Higgsino has been intensively searched for in the LHC experiments in recent years. Currently, there is an uncharted region beyond the LEP Higgsino mass limit where the mass splitting between the neutral and charged Higgsinos is around $0.3$-$1$ GEV, which is unexplored by either the soft di-lepton or disappearing track searches. This region is, however, of great importance from a phenomenological point of view, as many supersymmetric models predict such a mass spectrum. In this letter, we propose a possibility of filling this gap by using a soft micro-displaced track on top of the mono-jet event selection, which allows us to discriminate a signature of the charged Higgsino decay from the Standard Model background. It is found that this new strategy is potentially sensitive to a Higgsino mass of $\lesssim 180$ $(250)$ GeV at the LHC Run 2 (HL-LHC) for a charged-neutral mass splitting of $\simeq 0.5$ GeV.

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Cooling Theory Faced with Old Warm Neutron Stars: Role of Non-Equilibrium Processes with Proton and Neutron Gaps

Recent observations have found several candidates for old warm neutron stars whose surface temperatures are above the prediction of the standard neutron star cooling scenario, and thus require some heating mechanism. Motivated by these observations, we study the non-equilibrium beta process in the minimal cooling scenario of neutron stars, which inevitably occurs in pulsars. This out-of-equilibrium process yields the late time heating in the core of a neutron star, called the rotochemical heating, and significantly changes the time evolution of the neutron star surface temperature. To perform a realistic analysis of this heating effect, we include the singlet proton and triplet neutron pairing gaps simultaneously in the calculation of the rate and emissivity of this process, where the dependence of these pairing gaps on the nucleon density is also taken into account. We then compare the predicted surface temperature of neutron stars with the latest observational data. We show the simultaneous inclusion of both proton and neutron gaps is advantageous for the explanation of the old warm neutron stars since it enhances the heating effect. It is then found that the observed surface temperatures of the old warm millisecond pulsars, J2124-3358 and J0437-4715, are explained for various choices of nucleon gap models. The same setup is compatible with the observed temperatures of ordinary pulsars including old warm ones, J0108-1431 and B0950+08, by choosing the initial rotational period of each neutron star accordingly. In particular, the upper limit on the surface temperature of J2144-3933 can be satisfied if its initial period is $\gtrsim 10\,\mathrm{ms}$.

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Supersymmetric Proton Decay Revisited

Encouraged by the advent of a new generation of underground detectors---JUNO, DUNE and Hyper-Kamiokande---that are projected to improve significantly on the present sensitivities to various baryon decay modes, we revisit baryon decay in the minimal supersymmetric SU(5) GUT. We discuss the phenomenological uncertainties associated with hadronic matrix elements and the value of the strong coupling $α_s$---which are the most important---the weak mixing angle $θ_W$, quark masses including one-loop renormalization effects, quark mixing and novel GUT phases that are not visible in electroweak interaction processes. We apply our analysis to a variety of CMSSM, super- and sub-GUT scenarios in which soft supersymmetry-breaking parameters are assumed to be universal at, above and below the GUT scale, respectively. In many cases, we find that the next generation of underground detectors should be able to probe models with sparticle masses that are ${\cal O}(10)$~TeV, beyond the reach of the LHC.

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Sampling the $μν$SSM for displaced decays of the tau left sneutrino LSP at the LHC

Within the framework of the $μν$SSM, a displaced dilepton signal is expected at the LHC from the decay of a tau left sneutrino as the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP) with a mass in the range $45 - 100$ GeV. We compare the predictions of this scenario with the ATLAS search for long-lived particles using displaced lepton pairs in $pp$ collisions, considering an optimization of the trigger requirements by means of a high level trigger that exploits tracker information. The analysis is carried out in the general case of three families of right-handed neutrino superfields, where all the neutrinos get contributions to their masses at tree level. To analyze the parameter space, we sample the $μν$SSM for a tau left sneutrino LSP with proper decay length $cτ> 0.1$ mm using a likelihood data-driven method, and paying special attention to reproduce the current experimental data on neutrino and Higgs physics, as well as flavor observables. The sneutrino is special in the $μν$SSM since its couplings have to be chosen so that the neutrino oscillation data are reproduced. We find that important regions of the parameter space can be probed at the LHC run 3.

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Superstring-Inspired Particle Cosmology: Inflation, Neutrino Masses, Leptogenesis, Dark Matter & the SUSY Scale

We develop a string-inspired model for particle cosmology, based on a flipped SU(5)$\times$U(1) gauge group formulated in a no-scale supergravity framework. The model realizes Starobinsky-like inflation, which we assume to be followed by strong reheating, with the GUT symmetry being broken subsequently by a light `flaton' field whose decay generates a second stage of reheating. We discuss the production of gravitinos and the non-thermal contribution made by their decays to the density of cold dark matter, which is assumed to be provided by the lightest neutralino. We also discuss the masses of light and heavy neutrinos and leptogenesis. As discussed previously [1], a key rôle is played by a superpotential coupling between the inflaton, matter and GUT Higgs fields, called $λ_6$. We scan over possible values of $λ_6$, exploring the correlations between the possible values of observables. We emphasize that the release of entropy during the GUT transition allows large regions of supersymmetry-breaking parameter space that would otherwise lead to severe overdensity of dark matter. Furthermore, we find that the Big Bang nucleosynthesis lower limit on the reheating temperature of $\sim 1$ MeV restricts the supersymmetry-breaking scale to a range ${\cal O}(10)$ TeV that is consistent with the absence of supersymmetric particles at the LHC.

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Dark Matter Heating vs. Rotochemical Heating in Old Neutron Stars

Dark matter (DM) particles in the Universe accumulate in neutron stars (NSs) through their interactions with ordinary matter. It has been known that their annihilation inside the NS core causes late-time heating, with which the surface temperature becomes a constant value of $T_s \simeq (2-3) \times 10^3$ K for the NS age $t \gtrsim 10^{6-7}$ years. This conclusion is, however, drawn based on the assumption that the beta equilibrium is maintained in NSs throughout their life, which turns out to be invalid for rotating pulsars. The slowdown in the pulsar rotation drives the NS matter out of beta equilibrium, and the resultant imbalance in chemical potentials induces late-time heating, dubbed as rotochemical heating. This effect can heat a NS up to $T_s \simeq 10^6$ K for $t \simeq 10^{6-7}$ years. In fact, recent observations found several old NSs whose surface temperature is much higher than the prediction of the standard cooling scenario and is consistent with the rotochemical heating. Motivated by these observations, in this letter, we reevaluate the significance of the DM heating in NSs, including the effect of the rotochemical heating. We then show that the signature of DM heating can still be detected in old ordinary pulsars, while it is concealed by the rotochemical heating for old millisecond pulsars. To confirm the evidence for the DM heating, however, it is necessary to improve our knowledge on nucleon pairing gaps as well as to evaluate the initial period of the pulsars accurately. In any cases, a discovery of a very cold NS can give a robust constraint on the DM heating, and thus on DM models. To demonstrate this, as an example, we also discuss the case that the DM is the neutral component of an electroweak multiplet, and show that an observation of a NS with $T_s \lesssim 10^3$ K imposes a stringent constraint on such a DM candidate.

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Cosmology with a Master Coupling in Flipped SU(5) $\times$ U(1): The $λ_6$ Universe

We propose a complete cosmological scenario based on a flipped SU(5) $\times$ U(1) GUT model that incorporates Starobinsky-like inflation, taking the subsequent cosmological evolution carefully into account. A single master coupling, $λ_6$, connects the singlet, GUT Higgs and matter fields, controlling 1) inflaton decays and reheating, 2) the gravitino production rate and therefore the non-thermal abundance of the supersymmetric cold dark matter particle, 3) neutrino masses and 4) the baryon asymmetry of the Universe.

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Minimal Gauged U(1)$_{L_α- L_β}$ Models Driven into a Corner

It is well known that the differences between the lepton numbers can be gauged with the Standard Model matter content. Such extended gauge theories, dubbed as the gauged U(1)$_{L_α- L_β}$ models, have been widely discussed so far as potential candidates for physics beyond the Standard Model. In this work, we study the minimal versions of these gauge theories, where three right-handed neutrinos as well as a single U(1)$_{L_α- L_β}$ symmetry breaking Higgs field---an SU(2)$_L$ singlet or doublet---are introduced. In these minimal models, the neutrino mass terms are constrained by the gauge symmetry, which result in the two-zero texture or two-zero minor structure of neutrino mass matrices. Such restrictive forms of neutrino mass matrices lead to non-trivial predictions for the neutrino oscillation parameters as well as the size of the mass eigenvalues. We find that due to this restriction the minimal gauged U(1)$_{L_α- L_β}$ models are either incompatible with the observed values of the neutrino parameters or in strong tension with the Planck 2018 limit on the sum of the neutrino masses. Only the U(1)$_{L_μ-L_τ}$ model with an SU(2)$_L$ singlet U(1)$_{L_μ-L_τ}$-breaking field barely evades the limit, which can be tested in the future neutrino experiments.

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Long-Lived Particles at the Energy Frontier: The MATHUSLA Physics Case

We examine the theoretical motivations for long-lived particle (LLP) signals at the LHC in a comprehensive survey of Standard Model (SM) extensions. LLPs are a common prediction of a wide range of theories that address unsolved fundamental mysteries such as naturalness, dark matter, baryogenesis and neutrino masses, and represent a natural and generic possibility for physics beyond the SM (BSM). In most cases the LLP lifetime can be treated as a free parameter from the $μ$m scale up to the Big Bang Nucleosynthesis limit of $\sim 10^7$m. Neutral LLPs with lifetimes above $\sim$ 100m are particularly difficult to probe, as the sensitivity of the LHC main detectors is limited by challenging backgrounds, triggers, and small acceptances. MATHUSLA is a proposal for a minimally instrumented, large-volume surface detector near ATLAS or CMS. It would search for neutral LLPs produced in HL-LHC collisions by reconstructing displaced vertices (DVs) in a low-background environment, extending the sensitivity of the main detectors by orders of magnitude in the long-lifetime regime. In this white paper we study the LLP physics opportunities afforded by a MATHUSLA-like detector at the HL-LHC. We develop a model-independent approach to describe the sensitivity of MATHUSLA to BSM LLP signals, and compare it to DV and missing energy searches at ATLAS or CMS. We then explore the BSM motivations for LLPs in considerable detail, presenting a large number of new sensitivity studies. While our discussion is especially oriented towards the long-lifetime regime at MATHUSLA, this survey underlines the importance of a varied LLP search program at the LHC in general. By synthesizing these results into a general discussion of the top-down and bottom-up motivations for LLP searches, it is our aim to demonstrate the exceptional strength and breadth of the physics case for the construction of the MATHUSLA detector.

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A Minimal SU(5) SuperGUT in Pure Gravity Mediation

The lack of evidence for low-scale supersymmetry suggests that the scale of supersymmetry breaking may be higher than originally anticipated. However, there remain many motivations for supersymmetry including gauge coupling unification and a stable dark matter candidate. Models like pure gravity mediation (PGM) evade LHC searches while still providing a good dark matter candidate and gauge coupling unification. Here, we study the effects of PGM if the input boundary conditions for soft supersymmetry breaking masses are pushed beyond the unification scale and higher dimensional operators are included. The added running beyond the unification scale opens up the parameter space by relaxing the constraints on $\tanβ$. If higher dimensional operators involving the SU(5) adjoint Higgs are included, the mass of the heavy gauge bosons of SU(5) can be suppressed leading to proton decay, $p\to π^0 e^+$, that is within reach of future experiments. Higher dimensional operators involving the supersymmetry breaking field can generate additional contributions to the A- and B-terms of order $m_{3/2}$. The threshold effects involving these A- and B-terms significantly impact the masses of the gauginos and can lead to a bino LSP. In some regions of parameter space the bino can be degenerate with the wino or gluino and give an acceptable dark matter relic density.

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Symmetry Breaking and Reheating after Inflation in No-Scale Flipped SU(5)

No-scale supergravity and the flipped SU(5)$\times$U(1) gauge group provide an ambitious prototype string-inspired scenario for physics below the string scale, which can accommodate the Starobinsky-like inflation favoured by observation when the inflaton is associated with one of the singlet fields associated with neutrino mass generation. During inflation, the vacuum remains in the unbroken GUT phase, and GUT symmetry breaking occurs later when a field with a flat direction (the flaton) acquires a vacuum expectation value. Inflaton decay and the reheating process depend crucially on GUT symmetry breaking, as decay channels open and close, depending on the value of the flaton vacuum expectation value. Here, we consider the simultaneous cosmological evolution of both the inflaton and flaton fields after inflation. We distinguish weak, moderate and strong reheating regimes, and calculate in each case the entropy produced as all fields settle to their global minima. These three reheating scenarios differ in the value of a Yukawa coupling that introduces mass mixing between the singlets and the ${\bf 10}$s of SU(5). The dynamics of the GUT transition has an important impact on the production of gravitinos, and we also discuss the pattern of neutrino masses we expect in each of the three cases. Finally, we use recent CMB limits on neutrino masses to constrain the reheating models, finding that neutrino masses and the cosmological baryon asymmetry can both be explained if the reheating is strong.

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Singlet Dirac Fermion Dark Matter with Mediators at Loop

We study the phenomenology of singlet Dirac fermion dark matter in the simplified models where the dark matter interacts with the Standard Model particles at loop-level with the help of either colored or non-colored mediators. We especially focus on the implications of non-zero CP phases in the dark sector, which induce the electric dipole moments of the Dirac fermion dark matter as well as those of electron and nucleon. It is then found that the dark matter direct detection searches and the measurements of the electric dipole moments are able to test the singlet Dirac fermion dark matter scenario in the forthcoming experiments.

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Uncertainties in WIMP Dark Matter Scattering Revisited

We revisit the uncertainties in the calculation of spin-independent scattering matrix elements for the scattering of WIMP dark matter particles on nuclear matter. In addition to discussing the uncertainties due to limitations in our knowledge of the nucleonic matrix elements of the light quark scalar densities < N |{\bar u} u, {\bar d} d, {\bar s} s| N>, we also discuss the importances of heavy quark scalar densities < N |{\bar c} c, {\bar b} b, {\bar t} t| N >, and comment on uncertainties in quark mass ratios. We analyze estimates of the light-quark densities made over the past decade using lattice calculations and/or phenomenological inputs. We find an uncertainty in the combination < N |{\bar u} u + {\bar d} d | N > that is larger than has been assumed in some phenomenological analyses, and a range of < N |{\bar s} s| N > that is smaller but compatible with earlier estimates. We also analyze the importance of the {\cal O}(α_s^3) calculations of the heavy-quark matrix elements that are now available, which provide an important refinement of the calculation of the spin-independent scattering cross section. We use for illustration a benchmark CMSSM point in the focus-point region that is compatible with the limits from LHC and other searches.

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Limit on the Axion Decay Constant from the Cooling Neutron Star in Cassiopeia A

The observed rapid cooling of the neutron star (NS) located at the center of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A) can be explained in the minimal NS cooling scenario. This consequence may be changed if there exists an extra cooling source, such as axion emission. In this work, we study the Cas A NS cooling in the presence of axion emission, taking account of the temperature evolution in the whole life of the Cas A NS. We obtain a lower limit on the axion decay constant, $f_a\gtrsim (5-7)\times 10^8$ GeV, if the star has an envelope with a thin carbon layer. This is as strong as existing limits imposed by other astrophysical observations such as SN1987A.

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Non-Universal Gaugino Masses in the NMSSM

The Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM) provides a natural framework to realize a low-scale supersymmetric (SUSY) model, where a singlet superfield is added to the minimal model to generate a SUSY-scale higgsino mass term with its vacuum expectation value. Due to the presence of the extra singlet field, the vacuum conditions to realize the correct electroweak symmetry-breaking become fairly restrictive especially if we impose universality conditions at the unification scale. In this paper, we show that a non-universal gaugino mass spectrum can significantly relax this restriction even though the scalar masses and trilinear couplings are subject to universality conditions. With the gaugino non-universality, we find that higgsino can be the lightest SUSY particle and its thermal relic abundance can reproduce the observed dark matter density in a wide range of parameter space in which the 125~GeV Higgs-boson mass is obtained. This higgsino-like dark matter may be probed in direct detection experiments. We also find that there is an upper bound on the masses of supersymmetric particles in this scenario, and many model points predict colored particles such as gluino to be within the reach of a future 100~TeV collider. Implications for no-scale/gaugino-mediation models are also discussed.

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Looking for the left sneutrino LSP with displaced-vertex searches

We analyze a displaced dilepton signal expected at the LHC for a tau left sneutrino as the lightest supersymmetric particle with a mass in the range $45$-$100$ GeV. The sneutrinos are pair produced via a virtual $W$, $Z$ or $γ$ in the $s$ channel and, given the large value of the tau Yukawa coupling, their decays into two dileptons or a dilepton plus missing transverse energy from neutrinos can be significant. The discussion is carried out in the $μν$SSM, where the presence of $R$-parity violating couplings involving right-handed neutrinos solves the $μ$ problem and can reproduce the neutrino data. To probe the tau left sneutrinos we compare the predictions of the $μν$SSM with the ATLAS search for long-lived particles using displaced lepton pairs in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt s= 8$ TeV, allowing us to constrain the parameter space of the model. We also consider an optimization of the trigger requirements used in existing displaced-vertex searches by means of a High Level Trigger that exploits tracker information. This optimization is generically useful for a light metastable particle decaying into soft charged leptons. The constraints on the sneutrino turn out to be more stringent. We finally discuss the prospects for the $13$ TeV LHC searches as well as further potential optimizations.

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