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Renato M. Fonseca

Publications and source records attributed to Renato M. Fonseca.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2026

Gauge theories from scattering amplitudes with minimal assumptions

We revisit the emergence of a Yang-Mills symmetry in theories with massless spin 1 particles from fundamental physical properties of scattering amplitudes. In the standard proofs, some symmetry and reality properties of the coupling constants in three-point amplitudes are assumed. These properties cannot be justified using only three-point amplitudes but we show that they arise as consequences of the consistent factorization of four-particle amplitudes, for particular choices of the particle basis. This applies to self-interactions of massless spin 1 particles and also to their interactions with spin 0 and 1/2 particles. CP invariance is a derived property, not an additional assumption. The situation for gravity interactions is analogous and it is dealt with in the same fashion.

hep-th↗
arXiv2025

Renormalization of general Effective Field Theories: Renormalization of fermionic operators

Renormalization group equations play a central role in effective field theories, both maintaining perturbative control and allowing one to determine the correct low-energy phenomenology. In this work, we complete the one-loop renormalization of the recently developed general effective field theory up to mass dimension six by providing the beta functions for physical fermionic operators. Together with Ref. [1], our results allow one to renormalize any effective theory up to dimension six at one loop using only a group-theoretical calculation.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2025

Using SimTeEx to simplify polynomial expressions with tensors

Computations with tensors are ubiquitous in fundamental physics, and so is the usage of Einstein's dummy index convention for the contraction of indices. For instance, $T_{ia}U_{aj}$ is readily recognized as the same as $T_{ib}U_{bj}$, but a computer does not know that T[i,a]U[a,j] is equal to T[i,b]U[b,j]. Furthermore, tensors may have symmetries which can be used to simply expressions: if $U_{ij}$ is antisymmetric, then $αT_{ia}U_{aj}+βT_{ib}U_{jb}=\left(α-β\right)T_{ia}U_{aj}$. The fact that tensors can have elaborate symmetries, together with the problem of dummy indices, makes it complicated to simplify polynomial expressions with tensors. In this work I will present an algorithm for doing so, which was implemented in the Mathematica package SimTeEx (Simplify Tensor Expressions). It can handle any kind of tensor symmetry.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2025

Renormalization of general Effective Field Theories: Formalism and renormalization of bosonic operators

We describe the most general local, Lorentz-invariant, effective field theory of scalars, fermions and gauge bosons up to mass dimension 6. We first obtain both a Green and a physical basis for such an effective theory, together with the on-shell reduction of the former to the latter. We then proceed to compute the renormalization group equations for the bosonic operators of this general effective theory at one-loop order.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2024

Computing Tools for Effective Field Theories

In recent years, theoretical and phenomenological studies with effective field theories have become a trending and prolific line of research in the field of high-energy physics. In order to discuss present and future prospects concerning automated tools in this field, the SMEFT-Tools 2022 workshop was held at the University of Zurich from 14th-16th September 2022. The current document collects and summarizes the content of this workshop.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2022

A triplet gauge boson with hypercharge one

A vector boson $W_{1}^μ$ with the quantum numbers $\left(\boldsymbol{3},1\right)$ under $SU\left(2\right)_{L}\times U(1)_{Y}$ could in principle couple with the Higgs field via the renormalizable term $W_{1}^{μ*}HD_μH$. This interaction is known to affect the $T$ parameter and, in so doing, it could potentially explain the recent CDF measurement of the W-boson mass. As it is often the case with vectors, building a viable model with a $W_{1}$ gauge boson is non-trivial. In this work I will describe two variations of a minimal setup containing this field; they are based on an extended $SO(5)\times SU\left(2\right)\times U(1)$ electroweak group. I will nevertheless show that interactions such as $W_{1}^{μ*}H\partial_μH$ are never generated in a Yang-Mills theory. A coupling between $W_{1}$, $H$ and another Higgs doublet $H^{\prime}$ is possible though. Finally, I will provide an explicit recipe for the construction of viable models with gauge bosons in arbitrary representations of the Standard Model group; depending on the quantum numbers, they may couple to pairs of Standard Model fermions, or to a Standard Model fermion and an exotic one.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2021

Boundedness from below of SU(n) potentials

Vacuum stability requires that the scalar potential is bounded from below. Whether or not this is true depends on the scalar quartic interactions alone, but even so the analysis is arduous and has only been carried out for a limited set of models. Complementing the existing literature, this work contains the necessary and sufficient conditions for two SU(n) invariant potentials to be bounded from below. In particular, expressions are given for models with the fundamental and the 2-index (anti)symmetric representations of this group. A sufficient condition for vacuum stability is also provided for models with the fundamental and the adjoint representations. Finally, some considerations are made concerning the model with the gauge group SU(2) and the scalar representations $\boldsymbol{1}$, $\boldsymbol{2}$ and $\boldsymbol{3}$; such a setup is particularly important for neutrino mass generation and lepton number violation.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2020

Explaining the SM flavor structure with grand unified theories

We do not know why there are three fermion families in the Standard Model (SM), nor can we explain the observed pattern of fermion masses and mixing angles. Standard grand unified theories based on the SU(5) and SO(10) groups fail to shed light on this issue, since they also contain three copies of fermion representations of an enlarged gauge group. However, it does not need to be so: the Standard Model families might be distributed over distinct representations of a grand unified model, in which case the gauge symmetry itself might discriminate the various families and explain (at least partially) the flavor puzzle. The most ambitious version of this idea consists on embedding all SM fermions in a single irreducible representation of the gauge group.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2020

Flavorgenesis

We present a model where all fermions are contained in a single irreducible representation of an SU(19) gauge symmetry group. If there is only one scalar field, Yukawa interactions are controlled by a single number rather than by one or more $3\times3$ matrices of couplings. The low-energy concept of flavor emerges entirely from the scalar-sector parameters; more specifically, entries of the Standard Model Yukawa matrices are controlled by several vacuum expectation values.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2020

$(g-2)$ anomalies and neutrino mass

Motivated by the experimentally observed deviations from standard model predictions, we calculate the anomalous magnetic moments $a_α= (g-2)_α$ for $α=e,μ$ in a neutrino mass model originally proposed by Babu-Nandi-Tavartkiladze (BNT). We discuss two variants of the model, the original model plus a minimally extended version with an additional hypercharge zero triplet scalar. While the original BNT model can explain $a_μ$, only the variant with the triplet scalar can explain both experimental anomalies. The heavy fermions of the model can be produced at the high-luminosity LHC and in the part of parameter space, where the model explains the experimental anomalies, it predicts certain specific decay patterns for the exotic fermions.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2020

Enumerating the operators of an effective field theory

Until recently little was known about the high-dimensional operators of the standard model effective field theory (SMEFT). However, in the past few years the number of these operators has been counted up to mass dimension 15 using techniques involving the Hilbert series. In this work I will show how to perform the same counting with a different method. This alternative approach makes it possible to cross-check results (it confirms the SMEFT numbers), but it also provides some more information on the operators beyond just counting their number. The considerations made here apply equally well to any other model besides SMEFT and, with this purpose in mind, they were implemented in a computer code.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2019

Systematic classification of three-loop realizations of the Weinberg operator

We study systematically the decomposition of the Weinberg operator at three-loop order. There are more than four thousand connected topologies. However, the vast majority of these are infinite corrections to lower order neutrino mass diagrams and only a very small percentage yields models for which the three-loop diagrams are the leading order contribution to the neutrino mass matrix. We identify 73 topologies that can lead to genuine three-loop models with fermions and scalars, i.e. models for which lower order diagrams are automatically absent without the need to invoke additional symmetries. The 73 genuine topologies can be divided into two sub-classes: Normal genuine ones (44 cases) and special genuine topologies (29 cases). The latter are a special class of topologies, which can lead to genuine diagrams only for very specific choices of fields. The genuine topologies generate 374 diagrams in the weak basis, which can be reduced to only 30 distinct diagrams in the mass eigenstate basis. We also discuss how all the mass eigenstate diagrams can be described in terms of only five master integrals. We present some concrete models and for two of them we give numerical estimates for the typical size of neutrino masses they generate. Our results can be readily applied to construct other $d=5$ neutrino mass models with three loops.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2019

Violation of lepton number in 3 units

The number of leptons may or may not be a conserved quantity. The Standard Model predicts that it is (in perturbative processes), but there is the well known possibility that new physics violates lepton number in one or two units. The first case ($ΔL=1$) is associated to proton decay into mesons plus a lepton or an anti-lepton, while the second one ($ΔL=2$) is usually associated to Majorana neutrino masses and neutrinoless double beta decay. It is also conceivable that leptons can only be created or destroyed in groups of three ($ΔL=3$). Colliders and proton decay experiments can explore this possibility.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2019

High-dimensional neutrino masses

For Majorana neutrino masses the lowest dimensional operator possible is the Weinberg operator at $d=5$. Here we discuss the possibility that neutrino masses originate from higher dimensional operators. Specifically, we consider all tree-level decompositions of the $d=9$, $d=11$ and $d=13$ neutrino mass operators. With renormalizable interactions only, we find 18 topologies and 66 diagrams for $d=9$, and 92 topologies plus 504 diagrams at the $d=11$ level. At $d=13$ there are already 576 topologies and 4199 diagrams. However, among all these there are only very few genuine neutrino mass models: At $d=(9,11,13)$ we find only (2,2,2) genuine diagrams and a total of (2,2,6) models. Here, a model is considered genuine at level $d$ if it automatically forbids lower order neutrino masses {\em without} the use of additional symmetries. We also briefly discuss how neutrino masses and angles can be easily fitted in these high-dimensional models.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2018

$ΔL \ge 4$ processes

We discuss the experimental prospects for observing processes which violate lepton number ($ΔL$) in four units (or more). First, we reconsider neutrinoless quadruple beta decay, deriving a model independent and very conservative lower limit on its half-life of the order of $10^{41}$ ys for $^{150}$Nd. This renders quadruple beta decay unobservable for any feasible experiment. We then turn to a more general discussion of different possible low-energy processes with values of $ΔL \ge 4$. A simple operator analysis leads to rather pessimistic conclusions about the observability at low-energy experiments in all cases we study. However, the situation looks much brighter for accelerator experiments. For two example models with $ΔL=4$ and another one with $ΔL=5$, we show how the LHC or a hypothetical future pp-collider, such as the FCC, could probe multi-lepton number violating operators at the TeV scale.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2018

$ΔL = 3$ processes: Proton decay and LHC

We discuss lepton number violation in three units. From an effective field theory point of view, $ΔL=3$ processes can only arise from dimension 9 or higher operators. These operators also violate baryon number, hence many of them will induce proton decay. Given the high dimensionality of these operators, in order to have a proton half-life in the observable range, the new physics associated to $ΔL=3$ processes should be at a scale as low as 1 TeV. This opens up the possibility of searching for such processes not only in proton decay experiments but also at the LHC. In this work we analyze the relevant $d=9,11,13$ operators which violate lepton number in three units. We then construct one simple concrete model with interesting low- and high-energy phenomenology.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2017

The Sym2Int program: going from symmetries to interactions

Model builders often need to find the most general Lagrangian which can be constructed from a given list of fields. These fields are actually representations of the Lorentz and gauge groups (and maybe of some discrete symmetry group as well). I will describe a simple program (Sym2Int) which helps to automate this task by listing all possible interactions between Lorentz/gauge group representations.

hep-ph↗