Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Probabilistic deconstruction of a theory of gravity, part II: Curved space

  Sunok Josephine Suh

  SciPost Phys. 16, 012 (2024) · published 17 January 2024 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We propose that the underlying context of holographic duality and the Ryu-Takayanagi formula is that the volume measure of spacetime is a probability measure constrained by quantum dynamics. We define quantum stochastic processes using joint quantum distributions which are realized in a quantum system as expectation values of products of projectors. In anti-de Sitter JT gravity, we show that Einstein's equations arise from the evolution of probability under the quantum stochastic process induced by the boundary, with the area of compactified space in the gravitational theory identified as a probability density evolving under the quantum process. Extrapolating these and related results in flat JT gravity found in [SciPost Phys. 15, 174 (2023)], we conjecture that general relativity arises in the semi-classical limit of the evolution of probability with respect to quantum stochastic processes.

• Disorder in AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$

  Moritz Dorband, Daniel Grumiller, René Meyer, Suting Zhao

  SciPost Phys. 16, 017 (2024) · published 18 January 2024 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We perturbatively study marginally relevant quenched disorder in AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$ to second order in the disorder strength. Using the Chern-Simons formulation of AdS$_3$ gravity for the Poincaré patch, we introduce disorder via the chemical potentials. We discuss the bulk and boundary properties resulting from the disorder-averaged metric. The disorder generates a small mass and angular momentum. In the bulk and the boundary, we find unphysical features due to the disorder average. Motivated by these features, we propose a Poincaré-Lindstedt-inspired resummation method. We discuss how this method enables us to remove all of the unphysical features and compare with other approaches to averaging.

• Neutrinos from near and far: Results from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory

  Tianlu Yuan for the IceCube Collaboration

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 13, 010 (2023) · published 28 September 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Instrumenting a gigaton of ice at the geographic South Pole, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory has been at the forefront of groundbreaking scientific discoveries over the past decade. These include the observation of a flux of TeV-PeV astrophysical neutrinos, detection of the first astrophysical neutrino on the Glashow resonance and evidence of the blazar TXS 0506+056 as the first known astronomical source of high-energy neutrinos. Several questions, however, remain, pertaining to the precise origins of astrophysical neutrinos, their production mechanisms at the source and in Earth’s atmosphere and in the context of physics beyond the Standard Model. This proceeding highlights some of our latest results, from new constraints on neutrino interactions and oscillations to the latest measurements of the astrophysical neutrino flux and searches for their origins to future prospects with IceCube-Gen2.

• Point sources of ultra-high-energy neutrinos: Minimalist predictions for near-future discovery

  Damiano F. G. Fiorillo, Mauricio Bustamante, Victor B. Valera

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 13, 009 (2023) · published 28 September 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The discovery of ultra-high-energy neutrinos, with energies above 100 PeV, may soon be within reach of upcoming neutrino telescopes. We present a robust framework to compute the statistical significance of point-source discovery via the detection of neutrino multiplets. We apply it to the radio array component of IceCube-Gen2. To identify a source with $3\sigma$ significance, IceCube-Gen2 will need to detect a triplet, at best, and an octuplet, at worst, depending on whether the source is steady-state or transient, and on its position in the sky. The discovery, or absence, of sources significantly constrains the properties of the source population.

• Sub-TeV hadronic interaction model differences and their impact on air showers

  Michael Schmelling, Álvaro Pastor-Gutiérrez, Harm Schorlemmer, Robert Daniel Parsons

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 15, 015 (2024) · published 2 April 2024 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  In the sub-TeV regime, the most widely used hadronic interaction models disagree significantly in their predictions of particle spectra from cosmic ray induced air showers. We investigate the nature and impact of model uncertainties, focussing on air shower primaries with energies around the transition between high and low energy hadronic interaction models, where the dissimilarities are largest and which constitute the bulk of the interactions in air showers.

• New determination of the production cross section for secondary positrons and electrons in the Galaxy

  Luca Orusa, Mattia Di Mauro, Fiorenza Donato, Michael Korsmeier

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 13, 006 (2023) · published 28 September 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The cosmic-ray fluxes of electrons and positrons ($e^{±}$) are measured with high precision by the space-borne particle spectrometer AMS-02. To infer a precise interpretation of the production processes for $e^{±}$ in our Galaxy, it is necessary to have an accurate description of the secondary component, produced by the interaction of cosmic-ray proton and helium with the interstellar medium atoms. We determine new analytical functions of the Lorentz invariant cross section for the production of $e^±$ by fitting data from collider experiments. The total differential cross section $d\sigma/dT_{e^±}(p+p→ e^±+X)$ is predicted with an uncertainty of about 5-7% in the energies relevant for AMS-02 positron flux. For further information about this work refer to [Phys. Rev. D 105, 123021 (2022)].

• Air showers and hadronic interactions with CORSIKA 8

  Maximilian Reininghaus

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 15, 019 (2024) · published 3 April 2024 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The CORSIKA 8 project is a collaborative effort aiming to develop a versatile C++ framework for the simulation of extensive air showers, intended to eventually succeed the long-standing FORTRAN version. I present an overview of its current capabilities, focusing on aspects concerning the hadronic and muonic shower components. In particular, I demonstrate the "cascade lineage" feature and its application to quantify the importance of certain phase-space regions in hadronic interactions for muon production. Additionally, I show first results using Pythia 8.3, which as of late is usable as interaction model in cosmic-ray applications and is currently being integrated into CORSIKA 8.

• Status and prospects of the JUNO experiment

  Matthias Raphael Stock, on behalf of the JUNO collaboration

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 17, 020 (2025) · published 23 July 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is a multi-purpose neutrino experiment currently under construction in China. It is located 52.5 km away from two nuclear power plants in a newly constructed 700-m-deep underground laboratory. JUNO will be the largest liquid scintillator (LS) detector in the world comprising 20 kt of ultra-pure LS filled in an acrylic sphere. Its main goal is to determine the neutrino mass ordering by measuring the energy spectrum of reactor neutrinos with highest accuracy. In addition, JUNO will cover precision measurements of oscillation parameters and several aspects in the field of astroparticle physics. Data taking will start in late 2024.

• TAMBO: Searching for tau neutrinos in the Peruvian Andes

  William G. Thompson, on behalf of the TAMBO collaboration.

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 17, 021 (2025) · published 23 July 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  TAMBO is a planned next-generation neutrino observatory sensitive to 1-100 PeV Earth-skimming tau neutrinos. This tau neutrino specificity will provide a high-purity sample of astrophysical neutrinos whose locations on the sky can then be used to improve the sensitivities of all-flavor neutrino observatories. The observatory will be located in a deep canyon and will comprise an array of water-Cherenkov and plastic scintillator air-shower detectors. In this proceeding, I will summarize the current status of the updated TAMBO simulation package, which is currently being used for detector optimization and reconstruction studies.

• Muon puzzle in inclined muon bundles detected by NEVOD-DECOR

  A. G. Bogdanov, N. S. Barbashina, S. S. Khokhlov, V. V. Kindin, R. P. Kokoulin, K. G. Kompaniets, A. Y. Konovalova, G. Mannocchi, A. A. Petrukhin, V. V. Shutenko, G. Trinchero, V. S. Vorobev, I. I. Yashin, E. A. Yurina, E. A. Zadeba

  SciPost Phys. Proc. 13, 003 (2023) · published 28 September 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The data of cosmic ray NEVOD-DECOR experiment on the investigation of inclined muon bundles for a long time period (May 2012 - March 2021) are presented. The analysis showed that the observed intensity of muon bundles at primary cosmic ray energies of about 1 EeV and higher can be compatible with the expectation in frame of widely used hadron interaction models only under the assumption of an extremely heavy mass composition. This conclusion is consistent with data of several experiments on investigations of muon content in air showers, but contradicts the available fluorescence data on $X_{\text{max}}$ which favor a light mass composition at these energies. In order to clarify the nature of the "muon puzzle", investigations of the muon bundle energy deposit in the detector material were carried out. For the first time, experimental estimates of the average energy of muons in the bundles of inclined air showers initiated by primary particles with energies from 10 to 1000 PeV have been obtained.