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Muonium-Antimuonium Conversion

by Lorenz Willmann and Klaus Jungmann

This Submission thread is now published as

Submission summary

Authors (as registered SciPost users): Lorenz Willmann
Submission information
Preprint Link: scipost_202102_00024v1  (pdf)
Date accepted: 2021-04-28
Date submitted: 2021-02-16 17:41
Submitted by: Willmann, Lorenz
Submitted to: SciPost Physics Proceedings
Proceedings issue: Review of Particle Physics at PSI (PSI2020)
Ontological classification
Academic field: Physics
Specialties:
  • Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics - Experiment
  • High-Energy Physics - Experiment
Approach: Experimental

Abstract

The MACS experiment performed at PSI in the 1990s provided an yet unchallenged upper bound on the probability for a spontaneous conversion of the muonium atom, ${\rm M=}$($\rm{\mu^+e^-}$) , into its antiatom, antimuonium ${\overline{\rm{M}} = }$($\rm{\mu^-e^+})$. It comprises the culmination of a series of measurements at various accelerator laboratories worldwide. The experimental limits on the process have provided input and steering for the further development of a variety of theoretical models beyond the standard theory, in particular for models which address lepton number violating processes and matter-antimatter oscillations. Several models beyond the standard theory could be strongly disfavored. There is interest in a new measurement and improved sensitivity could be reached by exploiting the time evolution of the conversion process, e.g., at intense pulsed muonium sources.

Published as SciPost Phys. Proc. 5, 009 (2021)


Reports on this Submission

Anonymous Report 2 on 2021-4-21 (Invited Report)

  • Cite as: Anonymous, Report on arXiv:scipost_202102_00024v1, delivered 2021-04-21, doi: 10.21468/SciPost.Report.2814

Strengths

The authors of this manuscript:
1- Provided a great summary of the field, including the motivation from the theoretical background.
2- Described concisely the previous experiment on muonium-antimuonium conversion (MACS, utilising the SINDRUM I magnet).
3 - Pointed out the most relevant source of background (muon decay related systematics).
4 - Suggested a new revised experiment using intense pulsed muon sources.
5 - Gave an estimate on the beam requirements on the pulsed source (several 10 kHz with μ+ bunches of up to ≈ μs length).
6 - Estimated the improvement of a revised experiment in exclusion for new physics (2 OM).

Weaknesses

1 - The estimations in point 5 and 6 (from the above list of "Strengths") and the suggested new experiment were not introduced in detail. We need to note however that this might be beyond the scope of the present Proceedings.

Report

I recommend the publication of this manuscript in the SciPost Physics Proceedings in its present form.

  • validity: high
  • significance: top
  • originality: high
  • clarity: top
  • formatting: perfect
  • grammar: excellent

Report 1 by Adrian Signer on 2021-2-26 (Invited Report)

  • Cite as: Adrian Signer, Report on arXiv:scipost_202102_00024v1, delivered 2021-02-26, doi: 10.21468/SciPost.Report.2623

Report

We (the editors Cy Hoffman, Klaus Kirch, Adrian Signer) had the
opportunity to review an earlier draft of the article and were in
communication with the authors before the submission. All our comments
and suggestions have been taken into account. Hence, we think the
paper can now be published in the current form.

  • validity: -
  • significance: -
  • originality: -
  • clarity: -
  • formatting: -
  • grammar: -

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