arXiv subjects

Thomas W. Kephart

Publications and source records attributed to Thomas W. Kephart.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2015

The Excess Radio Background and Fast Radio Transients

In the last few years ARCADE 2, combined with older experiments, has detected an additional radio background, measured as a temperature and ranging in frequency from 22 MHz to 10 GHz, not accounted for by known radio sources and the cosmic microwave background. One type of source which has not been considered in the radio background is that of fast transients (those with event times much less than the observing time). We present a simple estimate, and a more detailed calculation, for the contribution of radio transients to the diffuse background. As a timely example, we estimate the contribution from the recently-discovered fast radio bursts (FRBs). Although their contribution is likely 6 or 7 orders of magnitude too small (though there are large uncertainties in FRB parameters) to account for the ARCADE~2 excess, our development is general and so can be applied to any fast transient sources, discovered or yet to be discovered. We estimate parameter values necessary for transient sources to noticeably contribute to the radio background.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2015

Origins of Inert Higgs Doublets

We consider beyond the standard model embedding of inert Higgs doublet fields. We argue that inert Higgs doublets can arise naturally in grand unified theories where the necessary associated $Z_2$ symmetry can occur automatically. Several examples are discussed.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Sum Rule Constraint on Models Beyond the Standard Model

In most versions of beyond the standard model (BSM) physics, the Yukawa couplings of the quarks and charged leptons are not all to the same complex scalar doublet but to different ones. Comparison to the standard model (SM) with only one scalar doublet, using the known mass of the W boson, provides a sum rule constraint on the Yukawa couplings $Y_i,~~ i=t, b, τ,.....$ of the form $Σ_i r_i^2 = 1$ where $r_i = Y_i^{(SM)}/Y_i^{(BSM)}$ and the sum is over distinct scalar doublets. The LHC data on the branching ratios $H \rightarrow γγ, ~\bar{b}b, ~τ^+τ^-, ~etc.,$ allows detailed comparison to this sum rule constraint and, as accuracy improves, will constrain or exclude many BSM theories.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Knotty inflation and the dimensionality of spacetime

We suggest a structure for the vacuum comprised of a network of tightly knotted/linked flux tubes formed in a QCD-like cosmological phase transition and show that such a network can drive cosmological inflation. As the network can be topologically stable only in three space dimensions, this scenario provides a dynamical explanation for the existence of exactly three large spatial dimensions in our Universe.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Grand Unification and Exotic Fermions

We exploit the recently developed software package LieART to show that SU(N) grand unified theories with chiral fermions in mixed tensor irreducible representations can lead to standard model chiral fermions without additional light exotic chiral fermions, i.e., only standard model fermions are light in these models. Results are tabulated which may be of use to model builders in the future. An SU(6) toy model is given and model searches are discussed.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

A New Approach to Cosmological Bulk Viscosity

We examine the cosmological consequences of an alternative to the standard expression for bulk viscosity, one which was proposed to avoid the propagation of superluminal signals without the necessity of extending the space of variables of the theory. The Friedmann equation is derived for this case, along with an expression for the effective pressure. We find solutions for the evolution of the density of a viscous component, which differs markedly from the case of conventional Eckart theory; our model evolves toward late-time phantom-like behavior with a future singularity. Entropy production is addressed, and some similarities and differences to approaches based on the Mueller-Israel-Stewart theory are discussed.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2014

Viable Alternative to the Standard Model

As an alternative to the standard model, we couple two scalar doublets such that, in the third family, one (${\cal H}$) couples only to the top quark, the other ($H$), that is identified as the 126 GeV state already observed, to the bottom quark and the tau lepton. Three explicit predictions of the model are that the partial decay rate $Γ(H \rightarrow γγ)$ is 28.1\% higher than predicted by the standard model, and the two partial decay widths $Γ(H \rightarrow \bar{b}b)$ and $Γ(H \rightarrow \barττ)$ are both predicted to be greater than, or equal to, their standard model values.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

LieART -- A Mathematica Application for Lie Algebras and Representation Theory

We present the Mathematica application LieART (Lie Algebras and Representation Theory) for computations frequently encountered in Lie Algebras and representation theory, such as tensor product decomposition and subalgebra branching of irreducible representations. LieART can handle all classical and exceptional Lie algebras. It computes root systems of Lie algebras, weight systems and several other properties of irreducible representations. LieART's user interface has been created with a strong focus on usability and thus allows the input of irreducible representations via their dimensional name, while the output is in the textbook style used in most particle-physics publications. The unique Dynkin labels of irreducible representations are used internally and can also be used for input and output. LieART exploits the Weyl reflection group for most of the calculations, resulting in fast computations and a low memory consumption. Extensive tables of properties, tensor products and branching rules of irreducible representations are included in the appendix.

math-ph↗

arXiv2014

"Heterotic" Discrete Flavor Model

We present an extended 331 model with $T'$ discrete flavor symmetry that simultaneously explains the need to have exactly three generations and provides acceptable quark and lepton masses and mixings. New fermionic states and gauge bosons are predicted within the reach of the LHC. We discuss the relevance to the 126 GeV scalar discovered at the LHC.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2013

Binary Icosahedral Flavor Symmetry for Four Generations of Quarks and Leptons

To include the quark sector, the $A_{5}\equiv I$ (icosahedron) four generation lepton model is extended to a binary icosahedral symmetry $I'$ flavor model. We find the masses of fermions, including the heavy sectors, can be accommodated. At leading order the CKM matrix is the identity and the PMNS matrix, resulting from same set of vacua, corresponds to tribimaximal mixings.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2013

Generalized helicity and Beltrami fields

We propose covariant and non-abelian generalizations of the magnetic helicity and Beltrami equation. The gauge invariance, variational principle, conserved current, energy-momentum tensor and choice of boundary conditions elucidate the subject. In particular, we prove that any extremal of the Yang-Mills action functional $\tfrac{1}{4}\int_Ω\tr{F_{μν}F^{μν}}\,d^4x$ subject to the local constraint $ε^{μναβ}\tr{F_{μν}F_{αβ}}=0$ satisfies the covariant non-abelian Beltrami equation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2012

Spacetime Emergence and General Covariance Transmutation

Spacetime emergence refers to the notion that classical spacetime "emerges" as an approximate macroscopic entity from a non-spatio-temporal structure present in a more complete theory of interacting fundamental constituents. In this article, we propose a novel mechanism involving the "soldering" of internal and external spaces for the emergence of spacetime and the twin transmutation of general covariance. In the context of string theory, this mechanism points to a critical four dimensional spacetime background.

hep-th↗

arXiv2012

The tight knot spectrum in QCD

We model the observed $J^{++}$ mesonic mass spectrum in terms of energies for tightly knotted and linked chromoelectric QCD flux tubes. The data is fit with one and two parameter models. We predict a possible new state at approximately 1190 MeV and a plethora of new states above 1690 MeV.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2012

Knotted strings and leptonic flavor structure

We propose a third idea for the explanation of the leptonic flavor structure in addition to the prominent approaches based on flavor symmetry and anarchy. Typical flavor patterns can be modeled by using mass spectra obtained from the discrete lengths spectrum of tight knots and links. We assume that a string theory model exists in which this idea can be incorporated via the Majorana mass structure of a type I seesaw model. It is shown by a scan over the parameter space that such a model is able to provide an excellent fit to current neutrino data and that it predicts a normal neutrino mass hierarchy as well as a small mixing angle θ_{13}. Startlingly, such scenarios could be related to the dimensionality of space time via an anthropic argument.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2012

An Explicit SU(12) Family and Flavor Unification Model

An explicit SUSY SU(12) unification model with three light chiral families is presented which avoids any external flavor symmetries. The hierarchy of quark and lepton masses and mixings is explained by higher dimensional Yukawa interactions involving Higgs bosons containing SU(5) singlet fields with VEVs appearing at or below the SUSY GUT scale of 2 \times 10^{16} GeV, approximately 50 times smaller than the SU(12) unification scale. The model has been found to be in good agreement with the observed quark and lepton masses and mixings, with nearly all prefactors of O(1) in the four Dirac and one Majorana fermion mass matrices.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2012

Inflatonless Inflation

We consider a 4+N dimensional Einstein gravity coupled to a non-linear sigma model. This theory admits a solution in which the N extra dimensions contract exponentially while the ordinary space expand exponentially. Physically, the non-linear sigma fields induce the dynamical compactification of the extra dimensions, which in turn drives inflation. No inflatons are required.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2012

Three Generations in Minimally Extended Standard Models

We present a class of minimally extended standard models with the gauge group $SU(3)_C \times SU(N)_L \times U(1)_X$ where for all $N \geq 3$, anomaly cancelation requires three generations. At low energy, we recover the Standard Model (SM), while at higher energies, there must exist quarks, leptons and gauge bosons with electric charges shifted from their SM values by integer multiples of the electron charge up to $ \pm [N/2] e$. Since the value N=5 is the highest $N$ consistent with QCD asymptotic freedom, we elaborate on the 3-5-1 model.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2012

Toward solving the cosmological constant problem by embedding

The typical scalar field theory has a cosmological constant problem. We propose a generic mechanism by which this problem is avoided at tree level by embedding the theory into a larger theory. The metric and the scalar field coupling constants in the original theory do not need to be fine-tuned, while the extra scalar field parameters and the metric associated with the extended theory are fine-tuned dynamically. Hence, no fine-tuning of parameters in the full Lagrangian is needed for the vacuum energy in the new physical system to vanish at tree level. The cosmological constant problem can be solved if the method can be extended to quantum loops.

hep-ph↗