arXiv subjects

S. Sarkar

Publications and source records attributed to S. Sarkar.

113 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

arXiv1995

Remarks on the KARMEN Anomaly

A recently reported anomaly in the time structure of signals in the KARMEN neutrino detector suggests the decay of a new particle $x$, produced in $π^+ \to μ^+ x$ with mass $m_x=33.9$ MeV. We discuss the constraints and difficulties in interpreting $x$ as a neutrino. We show that a mainly-sterile neutrino scenario is compatible with all laboratory constraints, within narrow limits on the mixing parameters, although there are problems with astrophysical and cosmological constraints. This scenario predicts that appreciable numbers of other $x$-decay events with different origins and time structures should also be observable in the KARMEN detector. Such $x$-decay events should also be found in the LSND experiment and may be relevant to the search for $\barν_μ\to\barν_e$ oscillations.

hep-ph↗

arXiv1995

On the Cosmological Domain Wall Problem for the Minimally Extended Supersymmetric Standard Model

We study the cosmology of the Supersymmetric Standard Model augmented by a gauge singlet to solve the $μ$-problem and describe the evolution of the domain walls which are created during electroweak symmetry breaking due to the discrete $Z_{3}$ symmetry in this model. The usual assumption, that non-renormalizable terms induced by gravity (which explicitly break this symmetry) may cause the walls to collapse on a cosmologically safe timescale, is reconsidered. Such terms are constrained by considerations of primordial nucleosynthesis, and also by the fact that by not respecting the $Z_{3}$ symmetry they induce divergences which destabilise the hierarchy and reintroduce the $μ$--problem. We find that, even when the Kähler potential is `non-minimal' (i.e. when the hidden sector couples directly to the visible) the model is either ruled out cosmologically or suffers from a naturalness problem.

hep-ph↗

arXiv1994

Cosmological Constraints on Perturbative Supersymmetry Breaking

We discuss the cosmology of string models with perturbative supersymmetry breaking at a scale of ${\cal O}$(TeV). Such models exhibit Kaluza-Klein like spectra and contain unstable massive gravitinos/gravitons. We find that considerations of primordial nucleosynthesis constrain the maximum temperature following inflation to be not much larger than the supersymmetry breaking scale. This imposes conflicting requirements on the scalar field driving inflation, making it rather difficult to construct a consistent cosmological history for such models.

hep-ph↗

arXiv1992

Neutralino Dark Matter in a Class of Unified Theories

The cosmological significance of the neutralino sector is studied for a class of models in which electroweak symmetry breaking is seeded by a gauge singlet. Extensive use is made of the renormalisation group equations to significantly reduce the parameter space, by deriving analytic expressions for all the supersymmetry-breaking couplings in terms of the universal gaugino mass $m_{1/2}$, the universal scalar mass $m_0$ and the coupling $A$. The composition of the LSP is determined exactly below the W mass, no approximations are made for sfermion masses, and all particle exchanges are considered in calculating the annihilation cross-section; the relic abundance is then obtained by an analytic approximation. We find that in these models, stable neutralinos may make a significant contribution to the dark matter in the universe.

hep-ph↗

arXiv1992

Cosmic Neutrinos from Unstable Relic Particles

We derive constraints on the relic abundance of a generic particle of mass $\sim~1-10^{14}$ TeV which decays into neutrinos at cosmological epochs, using data from the Fréjus and IMB nucleon decay detectors and the Fly's Eye air shower array. The lifetime of such unstable particles which may constitute the dark matter today is bounded to be greater than $\sim~10^{14}-10^{18}$ yr, depending on the mass. For lifetimes shorter than the age of the universe, neutrino energy losses due to scattering and the expansion redshift become important and set limits to the ability of neutrino observatories to probe the early universe.

hep-ph↗