arXiv subjects

Pierpaolo Mastrolia

Publications and source records attributed to Pierpaolo Mastrolia.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Six-loop gravitational interactions at the sixth post-Newtonian order

We compute the gravitational interaction of two coalescing compact objects at sixth post-Newtonian order in the static limit, employing the diagrammatic approach within the effective field theory framework of General Relativity. The calculation requires the evaluation of six-loop Feynman diagrams that are mapped onto two-point integrals with a gauge-theory-like structure, which are computed here for the first time. The resulting seventh-order contribution in Newton's constant is finite in three space dimensions. This result provides the most technically demanding missing ingredient for the determination of the conservative dynamics of the gravitational two-body system at sixth post-Newtonian order.

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arXiv2026

All-order structure of static gravitational interactions and the seventh post-Newtonian potential

We present a closed formula for the computation of static post-Newtonian corrections to the two-body gravitational dynamics at any odd order, assuming the lower-order results are known. The formula is derived within a correlation function framework and exploits the $\mathbb{Z}_2$ symmetry of the static sector, leading to a novel theoretical interpretation of the factorization theorem. As an application, we compute the gravitational interaction of two compact coalescing objects at the seventh post-Newtonian order in the static limit, which receives contributions from seven-loop graphs at order $\mathcal{O}(G_N^8 v^0)$, and find complete agreement with the results obtained using the diagrammatic approach of the factorization theorem.

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arXiv2026

Charged Black-Hole Binary Evolution at Second Post-Newtonian Order

We study the dynamics of electrically charged black-hole binaries and their gravitational-wave emission during the inspiral phase. Within the post-Newtonian framework, we derive the conservative and dissipative dynamics up to second order (2PN), combining Effective Field Theory and classical methods. We compute the NNLO conservative Lagrangian, LO dissipative effects in harmonic and Lorenz gauges, and provide the equations of motion, center-of-mass transformations, and the Lagrangian/Hamiltonian in ADM-type coordinates. We also obtain gauge-invariant expressions for the binding energy, periastron advance in quasi-circular orbits, and the scattering angle in unbound orbits. Our results extend previous analyses and are fully consistent with recent post-Minkowskian findings.

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arXiv2026

Three-loop helicity amplitudes of four-lepton scattering in QED

We present the analytic expressions of the three-loop virtual corrections to the helicity amplitudes of 2 -> 2 four-fermion scattering processes in massless QED. The contributing Feynman diagrams are grouped into integrand families characterised by independent Symanzik polynomials and decomposed in terms of master integrals using an optimised integration-by-parts strategy. Upon the renormalisation of the ultraviolet divergences and the extraction of the universal infrared pole structure, the finite results are expressed in terms of generalised polylogarithms up to transcendental weight six. Amplitudes for dimuon production in electron-positron annihilations, electron-muon scattering, and Bhabha scattering are explicitly derived.

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arXiv2025

Renormalization of effective field theories via on-shell methods: the case of axion-like particles

We consider the most general axion-like particle effective field theory, including both CP-odd and CP-even types of interactions, and evaluate the corresponding renormalization group equations, improving and extending previous results in the literature. Our calculations exploit on-shell and unitarity-based methods. The relevant phase-space cut-integrals are carried out using different integration methods, among which the double-cut integration via Stokes' theorem proves to be technically simpler. A close comparison between the standard Feynman diagrammatic approach and the unitarity-based method enables us to explicitly verify the reduction of complexity in the latter case, along with a more direct and elegant way to establish a connection among anomalous dimensions of operators that are dual under the CP symmetry.

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arXiv2025

Intersection Numbers from Companion Tensor Algebra

Twisted period integrals are ubiquitous in theoretical physics and mathematics, where they inhabit a finite-dimensional vector space governed by an inner product known as the intersection number. In this work, we uncover the associated tensor structures of intersection numbers and integrate them with the fibration method to develop a novel evaluation scheme. Companion matrices allow us to cast the computation of the intersection numbers in terms of a matrix operator calculus within the ambient tensor space. For illustrative purposes, our algorithm has been successfully applied to the numerical decomposition of a sample of two-loop integrals, coming from planar five-point massless functions, representing a significant advancement for the direct projection of Feynman integrals to master integrals via intersection numbers.

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arXiv2025

Differential Space of Feynman Integrals: Annihilators and $\mathcal{D}$-module

We present a novel algorithm for constructing differential operators with respect to external variables that annihilate Feynman-like integrals and give rise to the associated $\mathcal{D}$-modules, based on Griffiths-Dwork reduction. By leveraging the Macaulay matrix method, we derive corresponding relations among partial differential operators, including systems of Pfaffian equations and Picard-Fuchs operators. Our computational approach is applicable to twisted period integrals in projective coordinates, and we showcase its application to Feynman graphs and Witten diagrams. The method yields annihilators and their algebraic relations for generic regulator values, explicitly avoiding contributions from surface terms. In the cases examined, we observe that the holonomic rank of the $\mathcal{D}$-modules coincides with the dimension of the corresponding de Rham co-homology groups, indicating an equivalence relation between them, which we propose as a conjecture.

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arXiv2025

Radiating Love: adiabatic tidal fluxes and modes up to next-to-next-to-leading post-Newtonian order

We present the analytic evaluation of the gravitational energy and of the angular momentum flux with tidal effects for inspiraling compact binaries, at next-to-next-to-leading post-Newtoian (2PN) order, within the effective field theory diagrammatic approach. We first compute the stress-energy tensor for a binary system, that requires the evaluation of two-point Feynman integrals, up to two loops. Then, we extract the multipole moments of the system, which we present for generic orbits in center-of-mass coordinates, and which are needed for the evaluation of the total gravitational energy and the angular momentum flux, for generic orbits. Finally, we provide the expression of gauge invariant quantities such as the fluxes, and the mode amplitudes and phase of the emitted gravitational wave, for circular orbits. Our findings are useful to update earlier theoretical studies as well as related phenomenological analyses, and waveform models

gr-qc↗

arXiv2024

Gluing via Intersection Theory

Higher-point functions in N = 4 super Yang-Mills theory can be constructed using integrability by triangulating the surfaces on which Feynman graphs would be drawn. It remains hard to analytically compute the necessary re-gluing of the tiles by virtual particles. We propose a new approach to study a series of residues encountered in the two-particle gluing of the planar one-loop five-point function of stress tensor multiplets. After exposing the twisted period nature of the integral functions, we employ intersection theory to derive canonical differential equations and present a solution.

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arXiv2024

On one-loop corrections to the Bunch-Davies wavefunction of the universe

Understanding the loop corrections to cosmological observables is of paramount importance for having control on the quantum consistency of a theory in an expanding universe as well as for phenomenological reasons. In the present work, we begin with a systematic study of such corrections in the context scalar toy models whose perturbative Bunch-Davies wavefunction enjoys an intrinsic definition in terms of cosmological polytopes, focusing on one-loop graphs. Owing to the underlying twisted period integral representation they admit, their combinatorial structure along with their vector space structure, emerging from polynomial ideals algebra and intersection theory, are exploited to set-up and analyse the differential equations that the two- and three-site one-loop corrections have to satisfy upon variation of the external kinematic variables. We find that, while the two-site contribution can be written in terms of multiple-polylogarithms, this is no longer true for the three-site case, for which elliptic structures appear. As a non-trivial check, we consider the scattering amplitude limit, recovering the known result in terms of polylogarithms only.

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arXiv2024

Fourier Calculus from Intersection Theory

Building on recent advances in studying the co-homological properties of Feynman integrals, we apply intersection theory to the computation of Fourier integrals. We discuss applications pertinent to gravitational bremsstrahlung and deep inelastic scattering in the saturation regime. After identifying the bases of master integrals, the latter are evaluated by means of the differential equation method. Finally, new results with exact dependence on the spacetime dimension D are presented.

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arXiv2024

Renormalizing Love: tidal effects at the third post-Newtonian order

We present the conservative effective two-body Hamiltonian at the third order in the post-Newtonian expansion with gravitoelectric quadrupolar dynamical tidal-interactions. Our derivation of the effective two-body Lagrangian is based on the diagrammatic effective field theory approach and it involves Feynman integrals up to three loops, which are evaluated within the dimensional regularization scheme. The elimination of the divergent terms occurring in the effective Lagrangian requires the addition of counterterms to ensure finite observables, thereby introducing a renormalization group flow to the post-adiabatic Love number. As a limiting case of the renormalized dynamical effective Hamiltonian, we also derive the effective Hamiltonian for adiabatic tides, and, in this regime, calculate the binding energy for a circular orbit, and the scattering angle in a hyperbolic scattering.

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arXiv2024

Gravitoelectric dynamical tides at second post-Newtonian order

We present a gravitoelectric quadrupolar dynamical tidal-interaction Hamiltonian for a compact binary system, that is valid to second order in the post-Newtonian expansion. Our derivation uses the diagrammatic effective field theory approach, and involves Feynman integrals up to two loops, evaluated with the dimensional regularization scheme. We also derive the effective Hamiltonian for adiabatic tides, obtained by taking the appropriate limit of the dynamical effective Hamiltonian, and we check its validity by verifying the complete Poincaré algebra. In the adiabatic limit, we also calculate two gauge-invariant observables, namely, the binding energy for a circular orbit and the scattering angle in a hyperbolic scattering. Our results are important for developing accurate gravitational waveform models for neutron-star binaries for present and future gravitational-wave observatories.

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arXiv2024

Two-loop Vertices with Vacuum Polarization Insertion

We present the analytic evaluation of the second-order corrections to the massive form factors, due to two-loop vertex diagrams with a vacuum polarization insertion, with exact dependence on the external and internal fermion masses, and on the squared momentum transfer. We consider vector, axial-vector, scalar and pseudoscalar interactions between the external fermion and the external field. After renormalization, the finite expressions of the form factors are expressed in terms of polylogarithms up to weight three.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2023

Gravitational Spin-Orbit Hamiltonian at NNNLO in the post-Newtonian framework

We present the result of the spin-orbit interaction Hamiltonian for binary systems of rotating compact objects with generic spins, up to NNNLO corrections within the post-Newtonian expansion. The calculation is performed by employing the effective field theory diagrammatic approach, and it involves Feynman integrals up to three loops, evaluated within the dimensional regularization scheme. We apply canonical transformations to eliminate the non-physical divergences and spurious logarithmic behaviours of the Hamiltonian, and use the latter to derive the gauge-invariant binding energy and the scattering angle, in special kinematic regimes.

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arXiv2023

Intersection Numbers, Polynomial Division and Relative Cohomology

We present a simplification of the recursive algorithm for the evaluation of intersection numbers for differential $n$-forms, by combining the advantages emerging from the choice of delta-forms as generators of relative twisted cohomology groups and the polynomial division technique, recently proposed in the literature. We show that delta-forms capture the leading behaviour of the intersection numbers in presence of evanescent analytic regulators, whose use is, therefore, bypassed. This simplified algorithm is applied to derive the complete decomposition of two-loop planar and non-planar Feynman integrals in terms of a master integral basis. More generally, it can be applied to derive relations among twisted period integrals, relevant for physics and mathematical studies.

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arXiv2023

Intersection Numbers from Higher-order Partial Differential Equations

We propose a new method for the evaluation of intersection numbers for twisted meromorphic $n$-forms, through Stokes' theorem in $n$ dimensions. It is based on the solution of an $n$-th order partial differential equation and on the evaluation of multivariate residues. We also present an algebraic expression for the contribution from each multivariate residue. We illustrate our approach with a number of simple examples from mathematics and physics.

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arXiv2023

Macaulay Matrix for Feynman Integrals: Linear Relations and Intersection Numbers

We elaborate on the connection between Gel'fand-Kapranov-Zelevinsky systems, de Rham theory for twisted cohomology groups, and Pfaffian equations for Feynman integrals. We propose a novel, more efficient algorithm to compute Macaulay matrices, which are used to derive Pfaffian systems of differential equations. The Pfaffian matrices are then employed to obtain linear relations for ${\cal A}$-hypergeometric (Euler) integrals and Feynman integrals, through recurrence relations and through projections by intersection numbers.

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