arXiv subjects

Nicolò Burzillà

Publications and source records attributed to Nicolò Burzillà.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Geometrical and Optical Design of the GUEST Laser-Ranged Test Masses for the Detection of Gravitational Waves in the $μ$Hz range

The GUEST (Gravitational Universe Exploration with Satellite Tracking) mission aims at detecting gravitational waves in the yet almost unexplored $μ$Hz frequency range through high-precision orbital tracking. The unprecedented scientific objectives of this experiment demand equally advanced optical solutions: the highly eccentric orbit imposes dual measurement regimes; a low-velocity, long-range scenario at apogee and a high-velocity, short-range scenario at perigee. The substantial disparity between these conditions is addressed through a novel optical architecture incorporating two distinct types of Corner-Cube Retroreflectors (CCRs) with 1" and 2" apertures (CCR1 and CCR2, respectively). The proposed layout has been designed to ensure isotropy and homogeneity of the optical response while maintaining efficient packing over the spherical surface of the spacecraft. The resulting Optical Cross-Section (OCS) has been evaluated using a custom reduced-order model, which captures the behavior of individual CCRs under varying illumination conditions. This model has been calibrated by reconstructing the optical response of the LARES-2 satellite and has enabled a detailed assessment of the contributions of each CCR type along the GUEST orbit. Finally, sensitivity analyses have been conducted to investigate the impact of key design parameters, including the ratio between CCR types, laser wavelength, spacecraft diameter, Dihedral Angle Offsets (DAOs), and mechanical configurations.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2026

GUEST: Gravitational Universe Exploration with Satellite Tracking. A passive satellite laser-ranging mission for the dark gravitational Universe

GUEST is a space mission concept whose central objective is the detection of gravitational waves (GWs) in the microhertz band -- a physics-rich frequency window that no other present or planned detector can reach at a significant level. The concept is simple: two dense, passive spheres, covered with cube-corner retroreflectors, deployed in {highly eccentric} Earth orbits ($e \gtrsim 0.7$, period $P \gtrsim 33$ h), tracked continuously by the global network of satellite laser-ranging stations over a minimum observation time of 10 years, with an expected total duration of 30 years. The orbits themselves act as resonant detectors of the oscillating gravitational perturbations, with the microhertz sensitivity emerging from the selected orbital parameters. From the same data stream, GUEST delivers a programme of fundamental and applied science that cuts across particle physics, gravitational-wave astronomy, cosmology, astrophysics, and geodesy: the first coherent search for GWs from supermassive black-hole binaries in the $μ$Hz band, the exploration of primordial GW backgrounds in the unexplored energy-scale gap between pulsar-timing arrays and LISA, a dedicated probe of ultra-light dark matter in a parameter region untouched by any other experiment, a new way to search for ultra-light bosons, order-of-magnitude-improved tests of new gravitational interactions at astronomical ranges, and a step change in the absolute determination of $GM_\oplus$ that underpins the Global Geodetic Observing System and future navigation and Earth-observation missions. This white paper presents the motivation, scientific reach, and mission concept of GUEST.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2026

NovaMoon: A Strategic Lunar Reference Station for Positioning, Timing, and Largely Enhanced Science in the Earth-Moon System

The renewed interest in lunar exploration and the development of future lunar communication and navigation services highlight the need for a precise, stable, and interoperable geodetic and timing infrastructure on the Moon. NovaMoon, proposed as a scientific and navigation payload for ESA's Argonaut lander, is designed as a lunar-based local differential, geodetic, and timing station supporting both operational needs in the Moon's south polar region and a broad range of scientific investigations. The payload integrates a lunar laser retroreflector, a Very Long Baseline Interferometry transmitter, a receiver for navigation signals compatible with LunaNet standards, high-stability atomic clocks, and direct-to-Earth radio links -- making it the first lunar station to co-locate multiple ranging, tracking, and timing techniques. NovaMoon will enable sub-metre to decimetre positioning, provide local differential corrections for lunar users, and ensure an accurate and stable realisation of position and time. Preliminary simulation studies show that this multi-technique dataset improves the lunar reference frame, orientation and ephemerides, and estimates of interior parameters like tidal response and core properties. NovaMoon will also provide the first long-duration physical realisation of a lunar time reference. Beyond its primary goals, it supports improved cartography, precise surface geolocation, and higher-resolution topography, contributing to safer landings and operations. It also enables new tests of fundamental physics, including constraints on relativity and possible deviations from classical gravity.

astro-ph.EP↗

arXiv2025

Effective delta sources and Newtonian limit in nonlocal gravity

We investigate the Newtonian limit of a class of nonlocal gravity models with exponential form factors $f_s (\Box) = \exp [(-\Box/μ_s^2)^{N_s}]$. Our main goal is to identify similarities and differences between models in this family in regard to weak-field solutions. To this end, we use the effective source formalism to compare the related effective delta sources, mass functions, and Newtonian potentials. We obtain a variety of representations for these quantities in terms of series, integrals, and special functions, as well as simple approximations that capture the relevant dependence on the parameters $N_s$ and $μ_s$ - which can be used to explore the weak-field phenomenology of nonlocal gravity. We explain why only for $N_s>1$ the Newtonian potential oscillates and prove that, despite the oscillations, the effective masses are positive. Moreover, we verify that these linearized solutions are regular (without curvature singularities). Finally, we also calculate the form of the leading logarithmic quantum correction to the Newtonian potential in these models. In all our considerations, we assume that $N_s$ is a positive real parameter. The cases of non-integer $N_s$ might be applied beyond nonlocal gravity, in effective approaches to implement quantum corrections in the weak field regime.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2024

On effective models of regular black holes inspired by higher-derivative and nonlocal gravity

In this work we study static spherically symmetric solutions of effective field equations related to local and nonlocal higher-derivative gravity models, based on their associated effective delta sources. This procedure has been applied to generate modifications of the Schwarzschild geometry in several contexts (e.g., modified gravity, string theory, noncommutative geometry, generalized uncertainty principle scenarios), but a general analysis of the possible equations of state and their influence on the solutions was still lacking. Here, we aim to fill this gap in the literature and investigate whether these metrics might be able to reproduce features of the solutions of higher-derivative gravity models. In particular, we present an equation of state such that the solution matches the Newtonian-limit one in both regimes of large and small $r$. A significant part of the work is dedicated to studying the curvature regularity of the solutions and the comparison with the linearized solutions. Explicit metrics are presented for effective sources originating from local and nonlocal models. The results obtained here might be regarded as possible links between the previous research on linearized higher-derivative gravity and the solutions of the nonlinear complete field equations, which remain unknown at the moment.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2023

Regular multi-horizon Lee-Wick black holes

In this paper we carry out a detailed analysis of the static spherically symmetric solutions of a sixth-derivative Lee-Wick gravity model in the effective delta source approximation. Previous studies of these solutions have only considered the particular case in which the real and the imaginary part of the Lee-Wick mass $μ=a +i b$ are equal. However, as we show here, the solutions exhibit an interesting structure when the full parameter space is considered, owing to the oscillations of the metric that depend on the ratio $b/a$. Such oscillations can generate a rich structure of horizons, a sequence of mass gaps and the existence of multiple regimes for black hole sizes (horizon position gaps). In what concerns the thermodynamics of these objects, the oscillation of the Hawking temperature determines the presence of multiple mass scales for the remnants of the evaporation process and may permit the existence of cold black holes with zero Hawking temperature $T$ and quasi-stable intermediate configurations with $T \approx 0$ and a long evaporation lifetime. For the sake of generality, we consider two families of solutions, one with a trivial shift function and the other with a non-trivial one (dirty black hole). The latter solution has the advantage of reproducing the modified Newtonian-limit metric of Lee-Wick gravity for small and large values of $r$.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2022

Stringballs and Planckballs for Dark Matter

As a follow up of the seminal work by Guiot, Borquez, Deur, and Werner on "Graviballs and Dark Matter", we explicitly show that contrary to Einstein's gravity, in string theory, local and nonlocal higher derivative theories, as well as general asymptotically-free or finite theories, gravitationally interacting bound states can form when the energy is larger than the Planck energy. On the other hand, in higher derivative or nonlocal theories with interaction governed by a dimensionless or a dimensionful coupling constant, the bound states form when the energy is smaller than the Planck energy. Such bound states are allowed because of the softness of the scattering amplitudes in the ultraviolet region. Indeed, in such theories, the potential is finite while the force is zero or constant in $r=0$. Finally, since the bound states that form in the early Universe may have an energy that ranges from the Planck mass to any arbitrarily large or small value, we argue that they can serve as dark matter candidates and/or as the seeds for the structure's formation at large scale in the Cosmos.

hep-th↗

arXiv2021

Higher-order regularity in local and nonlocal quantum gravity

In the present work we investigate the Newtonian limit of higher-derivative gravity theories with more than four derivatives in the action, including the non-analytic logarithmic terms resulting from one-loop quantum corrections. The first part of the paper deals with the occurrence of curvature singularities of the metric in the classical models. It is shown that in the case of local theories, even though the curvature scalars of the metric are regular, invariants involving derivatives of curvatures can still diverge. Indeed, we prove that if the action contains $2n+6$ derivatives of the metric in both the scalar and the spin-2 sectors, then all the curvature-derivative invariants with at most $2n$ covariant derivatives of the curvatures are regular, while there exist scalars with $2n+2$ derivatives that are singular. The regularity of all these invariants can be achieved in some classes of nonlocal gravity theories. In the second part of the paper, we show that the leading logarithmic quantum corrections do not change the regularity of the Newtonian limit. Finally, we also consider the infrared limit of these solutions and verify the universality of the leading quantum correction to the potential in all the theories investigated in the paper.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2021

Newtonian potential in higher-derivative quantum gravity

We hereby derive the Newtonian metric potentials for the fourth-derivative gravity including the one-loop logarithm quantum corrections. It is explicitly shown that the behavior of the modified Newtonian potential near the origin is improved respect to the classical one, but this is not enough to remove the curvature singularity in $r=0$. Our result is grounded on a rigorous proof based on numerical and analytic computations.

gr-qc↗