Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Applying Quantum Tomography to Hadronic Interactions

  J. C. Martens, J. P. Ralston, D. Tapia Takaki

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 8, 154 (2022) · published 14 July 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  A proper description of inclusive reactions is expressed with density matrices. Quantum tomography reconstructs density matrices from experimental observables. We review recent work that applies quantum tomography to practical experimental data analysis. Almost all field-theoretic formalism and modeling used in a traditional approach is circumvented with great efficiency. Tomographically-determined density matrices can express information about quantum systems which cannot in principle be expressed with distributions defined by classical probability. Topics such as entanglement and von Neumann entropy can be accessed using the same natural language where they are defined. A deep relation exists between {\it separability}, as defined in quantum information science, and {\it factorization}, as defined in high energyphysics. Factorization acquires a non-perturbative definition when expressed in terms of a conditional form of separability. An example illustrates how to go from data for momentum 4-vectors to a density matrix while bypassing almost all the formalism of the Standard Model.

• Probing dielectric breakdown in Mott insulators through current oscillations

  Joan Triadú-Galí, Artur Garcia-Saez, Bruno Juliá-Díaz, Axel Pérez-Obiol

  SciPost Phys. 19, 010 (2025) · published 7 July 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We investigate the dielectric breakdown of mesoscopic Mott insulators, a phenomenon where a strong electric field destabilizes the insulating state, resulting in a transition to a metallic phase. Using the Landau-Zener formalism, which models the excitation of a two-level system, we derive a theoretical expression for the threshold value of the field. To validate our predictions, we present an efficient protocol for estimating the charge gap and threshold field via non-equilibrium current oscillations, overcoming the computational limitations of exact diagonalization. Our simulations demonstrate the accuracy of our theoretical formula for systems with small gaps. Moreover, our findings are directly testable in ultracold atomic experiments with ring geometries and artificial gauge fields, as our method uses measurable quantities and relies on already available technologies. This work aims to bridge the gap between theoretical models and experimentally realizable protocols, providing tools to explore non-equilibrium mesoscopic phenomena in strongly correlated quantum systems.

• Improved Galactic diffuse emission model strengthens the case for a Millisecond Pulsar explanation of the Fermi GeV excess

  Oscar Macias, Martin Pohl, Chris Gordon, Phaedra Coleman

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 12, 049 (2023) · published 4 July 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  After more than a decade since its discovery, the Galactic center gamma-ray excess - discovered with the Fermi Large Area Telescope - remains puzzling. While the spectrum of the signal can be explained by either dark matter or an unresolved population of millisecond pulsars, the spatial morphology of this excess seems to hold the key to separate the two theories. In this contribution, we present the results of a recent study in which we use bleeding edge models for interstellar gas, inverse Compton emission, and stellar mass models to reanalyze the Galactic center excess. We find that the spatial morphology of the excess is highly correlated with stellar matter in the Galactic bulge, providing strong support for the millisecond pulsar hypothesis.

• First measurement of the forward rapidity gap distribution in pPb collisions at 8 TeV

  Dmitry E. Sosnov

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 8, 065 (2022) · published 12 July 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present the forward rapidity gap spectra from proton-lead collisions for both I\!P-Pb and I\!P-p topologies measured at the CMS at a center-of-mass energy of 8.16 TeV. For the I\!P-Pb topology, the cross-section predicted by EPOS-LHC is a factor of two lower than the data while has reasonable description of the spectrum shape. For the I\!P-p topology, the EPOS-LHC, QGSJET~II and HIJING predictions are significantly lower than the data, what can be explained by a contribution of ultra-peripheral photoproduction events. The obtained data may be of significant input for understanding the high energy limit of QCD and modeling cosmic ray air showers.

• Higher-order corrections to the kinetic mass definition for the bottom and the charm quarks

  Matteo Fael

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 7, 026 (2022) · published 21 June 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  In these proceedings we discuss the relation between the kinetic and the on-shell schemes for the bottom and the charm quarks and present the methods for the calculation of the mass relation to higher orders in perturbative QCD. The bottom mass in the kinetic scheme is a pivotal input parameter in the inclusive determination of $|V_{cb}|$ from $B\to X_c \ell \nu_\ell$ decays. By combining the relation between the kinetic and the on-shell mass with well-know results for the $\overline{\mathrm{MS}}$-on-shell conversion, we obtain a prediction for $m_b^\mathrm{kin}$ based on precise determinations of $\overline{m}_b(\overline{m}_b)$.

• Unfrustrating the t-J Model: d-wave BCS Superconductivity in the t'-J_z-V Model

  Kevin Slagle

  SciPost Phys. 7, 046 (2019) · published 9 October 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The t-J model is believed to be a minimal model that may be capable of describing the low-energy physics of the cuprate superconductors. However, although the t-J model is simple in appearance, obtaining a detailed understanding of its phase diagram has proved to be challenging. We are therefore motivated to study modifications to the t-J model such that its phase diagram and mechanism for d-wave superconductivity can be understood analytically without making uncontrolled approximations. The modified model we consider is a t'-J_z-V model on a square lattice, which has a second-nearest-neighbor hopping t' (instead of a nearest-neighbor hopping t), an Ising (instead of Heisenberg) antiferromagnetic coupling J_z, and a nearest-neighbor repulsion V. In a certain strongly interacting limit, the ground state is an antiferromagnetic superconductor that can be described exactly by a Hamiltonian where the only interaction is a nearest-neighbor attraction. BCS theory can then be applied with arbitrary analytical control, from which nodeless d-wave or s-wave superconductivity can result.

• Nucleon and pion PDFs: large-x asymptotics meets functional mimicry

  Aurore Courtoy, Pavel M. Nadolsky

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 8, 063 (2022) · published 12 July 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We review strategies to unveil the primordial large-$x$ structure of the nucleons as well as the pion from hard-scattering experiments. Ideas are presented for learning about the $x\to 1$ limit of nonperturbative QCD dynamics at energy scales of order 1 GeV from collider experiments at much higher scales. The behavior of parton distributions at $x\to 1$ predicted by the quark counting rules and other low-energy theoretical approaches is contrasted with phenomenological PDFs. Polynomial mimicry of PDF parametrizations is one of many factors that influence the apparent power of the $(1-x)$ falloff. We discuss implications of the mimicry for the large-$x$ falloff of the pion PDFs.

• Josephson effects between the Kitaev ladder superconductors

  Osamu Kanehira, Hiroki Tsuchiura

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 11, 014 (2023) · published 6 June 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The two-leg ladder system consisting of the Kitaev chains is known to exhibit a richer phase diagram than that of the single chain. We theoretically investigate the variety of the Josephson effects between the ladder systems. We consider the Josephson phase difference $\theta$ between these two ladder systems as well as the phase difference $\phi$ between the parallel chains in each ladder system. The total energy of the junction at $T = 0$ is calculated by a numerical diagonalization method as functions of $\theta$, $\phi$, and also a transverse hopping $t_{\perp}$ in the ladders. We find that, by controlling $t_{\perp}$ and $\phi$, the junction exhibits not only the fractional Josephson effect for the phase difference $\theta$, but also the usual 0-junction and even $\pi$-junction properties.

• Searching for strongly coupled AdS matter with multi-trace deformations

  Luis Apolo, Alexandre Belin, Suzanne Bintanja

  SciPost Phys. 19, 139 (2025) · published 27 November 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Holographic CFTs admit a dual emergent description in terms of semiclassical general relativity minimally coupled to matter fields. While the gravitational interactions are required to be suppressed by the Planck scale, the matter sector is allowed to interact strongly at the AdS scale. From the perspective of the dual CFT, this requires breaking large-$N$ factorization in certain sectors of the theory. Exactly marginal multi-trace deformations are capable of achieving this while still preserving a consistent large-$N$ limit. We probe the effect of these deformations on the bulk theory by computing the relevant four-point functions in conformal perturbation theory. We find a simple answer in terms of a finite sum of conformal blocks, indicating that the correlators display no bulk-point singularities. This implies that the matter of the bulk theory is made strongly coupled by boundary terms rather than local bulk interactions. Our results suggest that holographic CFTs that describe strongly coupled AdS matter must be isolated points on the CFT landscape or sit infinitely far away on the conformal manifold from conventional holographic CFTs.

• Collective dynamics of densely confined active polar disks with self- and mutual alignment

  Weizhen Tang, Yating Zheng, Amir Shee, Guozheng Lin, Zhangang Han, Pawel Romanczuk, Cristián Huepe

  SciPost Phys. 19, 012 (2025) · published 8 July 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We study the emerging collective states in a simple mechanical model of a dense group of self-propelled polar disks with off-centered rotation, confined within a circular arena. Each disk presents self-alignment towards the sum of contact forces acting on it, resulting from disk-substrate interactions, while also displaying mutual alignment with neighbors due to having its center of rotation located a distance $R$ behind its centroid, so that central contact forces can also introduce torques. The effect of both alignment mechanisms produces a variety of collective states that combine high-frequency localized circular oscillations with low-frequency milling around the center of the arena, in fluid or solid regimes. We consider cases with small/large $R$ values, isotropic/anisotropic disk-substrate damping, smooth/rough arena boundaries, different densities, and multiple systems sizes, showing that the emergent collective states that we identify are robust, generic, and potentially observable in real-world natural or artificial systems.