arXiv subjects

Tanmay Vachaspati

Publications and source records attributed to Tanmay Vachaspati.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2016

Stability of superfluid vortices in dense quark matter

Superfluid vortices in the color-flavor-locked (CFL) phase of dense quark matter are known to be energetically disfavored relative to well-separated triplets of "semi-superfluid" color flux tubes. However, the short-range interaction (metastable versus unstable) has not been established. In this paper we perform numerical calculations using the effective theory of the condensate field, mapping the regions in the parameter space of coupling constants where the vortices are metastable versus unstable. For the case of zero gauge coupling we analytically identify a candidate for the unstable mode, and show that it agrees well with the results of the numerical calculations. We find that in the region of the parameter space that seems likely to correspond to real-world CFL quark matter the vortices are unstable, indicating that if such matter exists in neutron star cores it is very likely to contain semi-superfluid color flux tubes rather than superfluid vortices.

nucl-th↗

arXiv2015

Morphology of blazar-induced gamma ray halos due to a helical intergalactic magnetic field

We study the characteristic size and shape of idealized blazar-induced cascade halos in the $1-100 \, {\rm GeV}$ energy range assuming various non-helical and helical configurations for the intergalactic magnetic field (IGMF). While the magnetic field creates an extended halo, the helicity provides the halo with a twist. Under simplifying assumptions, we assess the parameter regimes for which it is possible to measure the size and shape of the halo from a single source and then to deduce properties of the IGMF. We find that blazar halo measurements with an experiment similar to Fermi-LAT are best suited to probe a helical magnetic field with strength and coherence length today in the ranges $10^{-17} \lesssim B_{0} / {\rm Gauss} \lesssim 10^{-13}$ and $10 \, {\rm Mpc} \lesssim λ\lesssim 10 \, {\rm Gpc}$ where $\mathcal{H} \sim B_0^2 / λ$ is the magnetic helicity density. Stronger magnetic fields or smaller coherence scales can still potentially be investigated, but the connection between the halo morphology and the magnetic field properties is more involved. Weaker magnetic fields or longer coherence scales require high photon statistics or superior angular resolution.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2015

Magnetic monopole - domain wall collisions

Interactions of different types of topological defects can play an important role in the aftermath of a phase transition. We study interactions of fundamental magnetic monopoles and stable domain walls in a Grand Unified theory in which $SU(5) \times Z_2$ symmetry is spontaneously broken to $SU(3)\times SU(2)\times U(1)/Z_6$. We find that there are only two distinct outcomes depending on the relative orientation of the monopole and the wall in internal space. In one case, the monopole passes through the wall, while in the other it unwinds on hitting the wall.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Monopoles on strings

In cosmological scenarios based on grand unification, string theory or braneworlds, many kinds of topological or non-topological defects, including monopoles and cosmic strings, are predicted to be formed in the early universe. Here we review specifically the physics of composite objects involving monopoles tied to strings. There is a wide variety of these, including for example "dumbbells" and "necklaces," depending on how many strings attach to each monopole and on the extent to which the various fluxes are confined to the strings. We also briefly survey the prospects for observing such structures, the existing observational limits, and potential evidence for a cosmological role.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2015

Cosmic Strings

This article, written for Scolarpedia, provides a brief introduction into the subject of cosmic strings, together with a review of their main properties, cosmological evolution and observational signatures.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2015

Implications of a Primordial Magnetic Field for Magnetic Monopoles, Axions, and Dirac Neutrinos

We explore some particle physics implications of the growing evidence for a helical primordial magnetic field (PMF). From the interactions of magnetic monopoles and the PMF, we derive an upper bound on the monopole number density, $n(t_0) < 1 \times 10^{-20}~{\rm cm}^{-3}$, which is a "primordial" analog of the Parker bound for the survival of galactic magnetic fields. Our bound is weaker than existing constraints, but it is derived under independent assumptions. We also show how improved measurements of the PMF at different redshifts can lead to further constraints on magnetic monopoles. Axions interact with the PMF due to the $φ{\bf E}\cdot {\bf B}$ interaction. Including the effects of the cosmological plasma, we find that the helicity of the PMF is a source for the axion field. Although the magnitude of the source is small for the PMF, it could potentially be of interest in astrophysical environments. Finally we apply constraints on the neutrino magnetic dipole moment that arise from requiring successful big bang nucleosynthesis in the presence of a PMF, and using the suggested strength $\sim 10^{-14}~{\rm G}$ and coherence length $\sim 10~{\rm Mpc}$ we find $μ_ν\lesssim 10^{-16} μ_B$.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

Intergalactic magnetic field spectra from diffuse gamma rays

Non-vanishing parity-odd correlators of gamma ray arrival directions observed by Fermi-LAT indicate the existence of a helical intergalactic magnetic field (Tashiro et al.2013). We successfully test this hypothesis using more stringent cuts of the data, Monte Carlo simulations with Fermi-LAT time exposure information, separate analyses for the northern and southern galactic hemispheres, and confirm predictions made in Tashiro & Vachaspati (2014). With some further technical assumptions, we show how to reconstruct the magnetic helicity spectrum from the parity-odd correlators.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2014

Cosmic Strings in Hidden Sectors: 2. Cosmological and Astrophysical Signatures

Cosmic strings can arise in hidden sector models with a spontaneously broken Abelian symmetry group. We have studied the couplings of the Standard Model fields to these so-called dark strings in the companion paper. Here we survey the cosmological and astrophysical observables that could be associated with the presence of dark strings in our universe with an emphasis on low-scale models, perhaps TeV. Specifically, we consider constraints from nucleosynthesis and CMB spectral distortions, and we calculate the predicted fluxes of diffuse gamma ray cascade photons and cosmic rays. For strings as light as TeV, we find that the predicted level of these signatures is well below the sensitivity of the current experiments, and therefore low scale cosmic strings in hidden sectors remain unconstrained. Heavier strings with a mass scale in the range 10^(13) GeV to 10^(15) GeV are at tension with nucleosynthesis constraints.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

Parity-odd correlators of diffuse gamma rays and intergalactic magnetic fields

We develop the connection between intergalactic helical magnetic fields and parity odd signatures in the diffuse gamma ray sky. We find that the location and the amplitude of a peak in a parity odd correlator, $Q(R)$, can be used to infer the normal and helical power spectra of the intergalactic magnetic field. When applied to Fermi-LAT data, the amplitude of the observed peak in $Q(R)$ gives $\sim 10^{-14}~{\rm G}$ intergalactic magnetic field strength, which is consistent with an earlier independent estimate that only used the peak location (Tashiro et al. 2014). We discuss features in the observed $Q(R)$ that further support the intergalactic magnetic field hypothesis and make predictions for future tests.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2014

Search for CP Violating Signature of Intergalactic Magnetic Helicity in the Gamma Ray Sky

The existence of a cosmological magnetic field could be revealed by the effects of non-trivial helicity on large scales. We evaluate a CP odd statistic, $Q$, using gamma ray data obtained from Fermi satellite observations at high galactic latitudes to search for such a signature. Observed values of $Q$ are found to be non-zero; the probability of a similar signal in Monte Carlo simulations is $\sim 0.2\%$. Contamination from the Milky Way does not seem to be responsible for the signal since it is present even for data at very high galactic latitudes. Assuming that the signal is indeed due to a helical cosmological magnetic field, our results indicate left-handed magnetic helicity and field strength $\sim 10^{-14}~{\rm G}$ on $\sim 10~{\rm Mpc}$ scales.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2014

Cosmic Strings in Hidden Sectors: 1. Radiation of Standard Model Particles

In hidden sector models with an extra U(1) gauge group, new fields can interact with the Standard Model only through gauge kinetic mixing and the Higgs portal. After the U(1) is spontaneously broken, these interactions couple the resultant cosmic strings to Standard Model particles. We calculate the spectrum of radiation emitted by these "dark strings" in the form of Higgs bosons, Z bosons, and Standard Model fermions assuming that string tension is above the TeV scale. We also calculate the scattering cross sections of Standard Model fermions on dark strings due to the Aharonov-Bohm interaction. These radiation and scattering calculations will be applied in a subsequent paper to study the cosmological evolution and observational signatures of dark strings.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

Leptogenesis and Primordial Magnetic Fields

The anomalous conversion of leptons into baryons during leptogenesis is shown to produce a right-handed helical magnetic field; in contrast, the magnetic field produced during electroweak baryogenesis is known to be left-handed. If the cosmological medium is turbulent, the magnetic field evolves to have a present day coherence scale and field strength that are of astrophysical interest. Observations of the amplitude, coherence scale, and helicity of the intergalactic magnetic field promise to provide a powerful probe of physics beyond the Standard Model and the very early universe.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2013

Dark Strings and their Couplings to the Standard Model

We consider the Standard Model extended by a hidden sector U(1)_X symmetry that is spontaneously broken at the TeV scale by the vacuum expectation value of an additional scalar field. We study "dark string" solutions in this model and their properties due to the Higgs portal and gauge kinetic mixing operators. We find that dark strings effectively interact with Higgs and Z bosons by linear couplings, and with leptons and baryons via Aharonov-Bohm couplings, thus possibly leading to new cosmological constraints on dark matter models with spontaneously broken extra U(1) symmetry factors.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2013

Capacitor Discharge and Vacuum Resistance in Massless QED_2

A charged parallel plate capacitor will create particle-antiparticle pairs by the Schwinger process and discharge over time. We consider the full quantum discharge process in 1+1 dimensions including backreaction, when the electric field interacts with massless charged fermions. We recover oscillatory features in the electric field observed in a semiclassical analysis and find that the amplitude of the oscillations falls off as t^{-1/2} and that stronger coupling implies slower decay. Remarkably, Ohm's law applies to the vacuum and we evaluate the quantum electrical conductivity of the vacuum to be e/π^{1/2}, where e is the fermionic charge. Similarities and differences with black hole evaporation are mentioned.

hep-th↗

arXiv2013

CMB Faraday rotation as seen through the Milky Way

Faraday Rotation (FR) of CMB polarization, as measured through mode-coupling correlations of E and B modes, can be a promising probe of a stochastic primordial magnetic field (PMF). While the existence of a PMF is still hypothetical, there will certainly be a contribution to CMB FR from the magnetic field of the Milky Way. We use existing estimates of the Milky Way rotation measure (RM) to forecast its detectability with upcoming and future CMB experiments. We find that the galactic RM will not be seen in polarization measurements by Planck, but that it will need to be accounted for by CMB experiments capable of detecting the weak lensing contribution to the B-mode. We then discuss prospects for constraining the PMF in the presence of FR due to the galaxy under various assumptions that include partial de-lensing and partial subtraction of the galactic FR. We find that a realistic future sub-orbital experiment, covering a patch of the sky near the galactic poles, can detect a scale-invariant PMF of 0.1 nano-Gauss at better than 95% confidence level, while a dedicated space-based experiment can detect even smaller fields.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2013

CMB Distortions from Damping of Acoustic Waves Produced by Cosmic Strings

We study diffusion damping of acoustic waves in the photon-baryon fluid due to cosmic strings, and calculate the induced $μ$- and $y$-type spectral distortions of the cosmic microwave background. For cosmic strings with tension within current bounds, their contribution to the spectral distortions is subdominant compared to the distortions from primordial density perturbations.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2013

Damping of Primordial Gravitational Waves from Generalized Sources

It has been shown that a cosmological background with an anisotropic stress tensor, appropriate for a free streaming thermal neutrino background, can damp primordial gravitational waves after they enter the horizon, and can thus affect the CMB B-mode polarization signature due to such tensor modes. Here we generalize this result, and examine the sensitivity of this effect to non-zero neutrino masses, extra neutrino species, and also a possible relativistic background of axions from axion strings. In particular, additional neutrinos with cosmologically interesting neutrino masses at the O(1) eV level will noticeably reduce damping compared to massless neutrinos for gravitational wave modes with $kτ_0 \approx 100-200$, where $τ_0 \approx 2/H_0$ and $H_0$ is the present Hubble parameter, while an axion background would produce a phase-dependent damping distinct from that produced by neutrinos.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2013

Cosmological magnetic field correlators from blazar induced cascade

TeV blazars offer an exciting prospect for discovering cosmological magnetic fields and for probing high energy processes, including CP violation, in the early universe. We propose a method for reconstructing both the non-helical and the helical magnetic field correlators using observations of cascade photons from TeV blazars.

astro-ph.CO↗