Annual Review of Nuclear and Particle Science - Volume 55, 2005
Volume 55, 2005
- Preface
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FROM PIONS TO PROTON DECAY: Tales of the Unexpected
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 1–26More Less▪ AbstractThis account recalls early observations of elementary particles from cosmic ray experiments, using the nuclear emulsion technique. Discoveries in this field in the 1940s and 50s led to the development of high energy particle accelerators and associated detectors, resulting eventually in the observation of the quark and lepton constituents of matter and of the fundamental interactions between them, as described in the Standard Model. The concept of unification of the fundamental interactions led to the prediction of proton decay, and although this has not been observed, the unwanted background due to atmospheric neutrino interactions led to the discovery of neutrino oscillations and neutrino mass, and the first indications of new physics beyond that of the Standard Model. In all this research, unexpected developments have often played an important role.
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FUNDAMENTAL NEUTRON PHYSICS
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 27–69More Less▪ AbstractExperiments using slow neutrons address a growing range of scientific issues spanning nuclear physics, particle physics, astrophysics, and cosmology. The field of fundamental physics using neutrons has experienced a significant increase in activity over the last two decades. This review summarizes some of the recent developments in the field and outlines some of the prospects for future research.
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TOWARD REALISTIC INTERSECTING D-BRANE MODELS
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 71–139More Less▪ AbstractWe provide a pedagogical introduction to a recently studied class of phenomenologically interesting string models known as Intersecting D-Brane Models. The gauge fields of the Standard Model are localized on D-branes wrapping certain compact cycles on an underlying geometry, whose intersections can give rise to chiral fermions. We address the basic issues and also provide an overview of the recent activity in this field. This article is intended to serve non-experts with explanations of the fundamental aspects of string phenomenology and also to provide some orientation for both experts and non-experts in this active field.
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BLIND ANALYSIS IN NUCLEAR AND PARTICLE PHYSICS
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 141–163More Less▪ AbstractDuring the past decade, blind analysis has become a widely used tool in nuclear and particle physics measurements. A blind analysis avoids the possibility of experimenters biasing their result toward their own preconceptions by preventing them from knowing the answer until the analysis is complete. There is at least circumstantial evidence that such a bias has affected past measurements, and as experiments have become costlier and more difficult and hence harder to reproduce, the possibility of bias has become a more important issue than in the past. We describe here the motivations for performing a blind analysis, and give several modern examples of successful blind analysis strategies.
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STUDY OF THE FUNDAMENTAL STRUCTURE OF MATTER WITH AN ELECTRON-ION COLLIDER
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 165–228More Less▪ AbstractWe present an overview of the scientific opportunities that would be offered by a high-energy electron-ion collider. We discuss the relevant physics of polarized and unpolarized electron-proton collisions and of electron-nucleus collisions. We also describe the current accelerator and detector plans for a future electron-ion collider.
This review is dedicated to the memory of Professor Vernon W. Hughes.
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LITTLE HIGGS THEORIES
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 229–270More Less▪ AbstractRecently there has been renewed interest in the possibility that the Higgs particle of the Standard Model is a pseudo-Nambu-Goldstone boson. This development was spurred by the observation that if certain global symmetries are broken only by the interplay between two or more coupling constants, then the Higgs mass-squared is free from quadratic divergences at one loop. This collective symmetry breaking is the essential ingredient in little Higgs theories, which are weakly coupled extensions of the Standard Model with little or no fine tuning, describing physics up to an energy scale ∼10 TeV. Here we give a pedagogical introduction to little Higgs theories. We review their structure and phenomenology, focusing mainly on the SU(3) theory, the Minimal Moose, and the littlest Higgs as concrete examples.
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PHYSICS OF ULTRA-PERIPHERAL NUCLEAR COLLISIONS
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 271–310More Less▪ AbstractMoving highly-charged ions carry strong electromagnetic fields that act as a beam of photons. In collisions at large impact parameters, hadronic interactions are not possible, and the ions interact through photon-ion and photon-photon collisions known as ultra-peripheral collisions (UPCs). Hadron colliders like the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), the Tevatron, and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) produce photonuclear and two-photon interactions at luminosities and energies beyond that accessible elsewhere; the LHC will reach a γp energy ten times that of the Hadron-Electron Ring Accelerator (HERA). Reactions as diverse as the production of anti-hydrogen, photoproduction of the ρ0, transmutation of lead into bismuth, and excitation of collective nuclear resonances have already been studied. At the LHC, UPCs can study many types of new physics processes.
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LEPTOGENESIS AS THE ORIGIN OF MATTER
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 311–355More Less▪ AbstractWe explore in some detail the hypothesis that the generation of a primordial lepton-antilepton asymmetry (Leptogenesis) early on in the history of the Universe is the root cause for the origin of matter. After explaining the theoretical conditions for producing a matter-antimatter asymmetry in the Universe we detail how, through sphaleron processes, it is possible to transmute a lepton asymmetry—or, more precisely, a (B – L)-asymmetry—into a baryon asymmetry. Because Leptogenesis depends in detail on properties of the neutrino spectrum, we review briefly existing experimental information on neutrinos as well as the seesaw mechanism, which offers a theoretical understanding of why neutrinos are so light. The bulk of the review is devoted to a discussion of thermal Leptogenesis, and we show that for the neutrino spectrum suggested by oscillation experiments, one obtains the observed value for the baryon to photon density ratio in the Universe, independently of any initial boundary conditions. In the latter part of the review we consider how well Leptogenesis fits with particle physics models of dark matter. Although axionic dark matter and Leptogenesis can be very naturally linked, there is a potential clash between Leptogenesis and models of supersymmetric dark matter because the high temperature needed for Leptogenesis leads to an overproduction of gravitinos, which alter the standard predictions of Big Bang Nucleosynthesis. This problem can be resolved, but it constrains the supersymmetric spectrum at low energies and the nature of the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP). Finally, as an illustration of possible other options for the origin of matter, we discuss the possibility that Leptogenesis may occur as a result of non-thermal processes.
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FEMTOSCOPY IN RELATIVISTIC HEAVY ION COLLISIONS: Two Decades of Progress
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 357–402More Less▪ AbstractAnalyses of two-particle correlations have provided the chief means for determining spatio-temporal characteristics of relativistic heavy ion collisions. We discuss the theoretical formalism behind these studies and the experimental methods used in carrying them out. Recent results from RHIC are put into context in a systematic review of correlation measurements performed over the past two decades. The current understanding of these results is discussed in terms of model comparisons and overall trends.
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SMALL-χ PHYSICS: From HERA to LHC and Beyond
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 403–465More Less▪ AbstractWe summarize the lessons learned from studies of hard scattering processes in high-energy electron-proton collisions at HERA and antiproton-proton collisions at the Tevatron, with the aim of predicting new strong interaction phenomena observable in next-generation experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Processes reviewed include inclusive deep-inelastic scattering (DIS) at small x, exclusive and diffractive processes in DIS and hadron-hadron scattering, as well as color transparency and nuclear shadowing effects. A unified treatment of these processes is outlined on the basis of factorization theorems of quantum chromodynamics, and using the correspondence between the “parton” picture in the infinite-momentum frame and the “dipole” picture of high-energy processes in the target rest frame. The crucial role of the three dimensional quark and gluon structure of the nucleon is emphasized. A new dynamical effect predicted at high energies is the unitarity, or black disk, limit (BDL) in the interaction of small dipoles with hadronic matter, owing to the increase of the gluon density at small x. This effect is marginally visible in diffractive DIS at HERA and will lead to the complete disappearance of Bjorken scaling at higher energies. In hadron-hadron scattering at LHC energies and beyond (cosmic ray physics), the BDL will be a standard feature of the dynamics, with implications for (a) hadron production at forward and central rapidities in central proton-proton and proton-nucleus collisions, in particular events with heavy particle production (Higgs), (b) proton-proton elastic scattering, and (c) heavy-ion collisions. We also outline the possibilities for studies of diffractive processes and photon-induced reactions (ultraperipheral collisions) at LHC, as well as possible measurements with a future electron-ion collider.
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ASCERTAINING THE CORE COLLAPSE SUPERNOVA MECHANISM: The State of the Art and the Road Ahead
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 467–515More Less▪ AbstractMore than four decades have elapsed since modeling of the core collapse supernova mechanism began in earnest. To date, the mechanism remains elusive, at least in detail, although significant progress has been made in understanding these multiscale, multiphysics events. One-, two-, and three-dimensional simulations of or relevant to core collapse supernovae have shown that (a) neutrino transport, (b) fluid instabilities, (c) rotation, and (d) magnetic fields, together with proper treatments of (e) the sub- and super- nuclear density stellar core equation of state, (f) the neutrino interactions, and (g) gravity are all important. The importance of these ingredients applies to both the explosion mechanism and to phenomena directly associated with the mechanism, such as neutron star kicks, supernova neutrino and gravitational wave emission, and supernova spectropolarimetry.
Not surprisingly, current two- and three-dimensional models have yet to include (a)–(d) with sufficient realism. One-dimensional spherically symmetric models have achieved a significant level of sophistication but, by definition, cannot incorporate (b)–(d), except phenomenologically. Fully general relativistic spherically symmetric simulations with Boltzmann neutrino transport do not yield explosions, demonstrating that some combination of (b), (c), and (d) is required to achieve this. Systematic layering of the dimensionality and the physics will be needed to achieve a complete understanding of the supernova mechanism and phenomenology. The past modeling efforts alluded to above have illuminated that core collapse supernovae may be neutrino driven, magnetohydrodynamically (MHD) driven, or both, but uncertainties in the current models prevent us from being able to answer even this most basic question. And it may be that more than one possibility is realized in nature. Nonetheless, if a supernova is neutrino driven, magnetic fields will likely have an impact on the dynamics of the explosion. Similarly, if a supernova is MHD driven, the neutrino transport will dictate the dynamics of stellar core collapse, bounce, and the postbounce evolution, which in turn will create the environment in which an MHD-driven explosion would occur. Thus, although reduction will allow us to sort out the roles of each of the major physics components listed above, we will not obtain a quantitative, and perhaps even qualitative, understanding of core collapse supernovae until all components and their coupling are included in the models with sufficient realism.
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DIRECT PHOTON PRODUCTION IN RELATIVISTIC HEAVY-ION COLLISIONS
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 517–554More Less▪ AbstractWe examine the uses of direct photons in diagnosing the highly excited state of nuclear matter created in high-energy nuclear collisions. The traditional focus has been on direct photons as thermal radiation from the excited state, but we also explore the many other roles direct photons can play. We review experimental and theoretical techniques as well as the history of direct photon measurements in heavy-ion collisions and their interpretation.
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TOOLS FOR THE SIMULATION OF HARD HADRONIC COLLISIONS
Vol. 55 (2005), pp. 555–588More Less▪ AbstractThis review gives a pedagogical introduction to the current status and ongoing progress in the development of QCD-based Monte Carlo tools for the calculation and simulation of high-Q2 processes in hadronic collisions.
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Previous Volumes
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Volume 74 (2024)
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Volume 73 (2023)
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Volume 72 (2022)
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Volume 71 (2021)
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Volume 70 (2020)
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Volume 69 (2019)
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Volume 68 (2018)
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Volume 67 (2017)
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Volume 66 (2016)
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Volume 65 (2015)
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Volume 64 (2014)
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Volume 63 (2013)
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Volume 62 (2012)
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Volume 61 (2011)
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Volume 60 (2010)
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Volume 59 (2009)
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Volume 58 (2008)
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Volume 57 (2007)
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Volume 56 (2006)
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Volume 55 (2005)
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Volume 54 (2004)
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Volume 53 (2003)
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Volume 52 (2002)
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Volume 51 (2001)
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Volume 50 (2000)
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Volume 49 (1999)
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Volume 48 (1998)
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Volume 47 (1997)
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Volume 46 (1996)
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Volume 45 (1995)
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Volume 44 (1994)
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Volume 43 (1993)
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Volume 42 (1992)
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Volume 41 (1991)
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Volume 40 (1990)
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Volume 39 (1989)
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Volume 38 (1988)
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Volume 37 (1987)
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Volume 36 (1986)
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Volume 35 (1985)
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Volume 34 (1984)
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Volume 33 (1983)
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Volume 32 (1982)
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Volume 31 (1981)
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Volume 30 (1980)
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Volume 29 (1979)
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Volume 28 (1978)
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Volume 27 (1977)
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Volume 26 (1976)
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Volume 25 (1975)
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Volume 24 (1974)
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Volume 23 (1973)
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Volume 22 (1972)
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Volume 21 (1971)
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Volume 20 (1970)
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Volume 19 (1969)
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Volume 18 (1968)
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Volume 17 (1967)
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Volume 16 (1966)
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Volume 15 (1965)
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Volume 14 (1964)
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Volume 13 (1963)
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Volume 12 (1962)
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Volume 11 (1961)
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Volume 10 (1960)
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Volume 9 (1959)
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Volume 8 (1958)
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Volume 7 (1957)
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Volume 6 (1956)
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Volume 5 (1955)
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Volume 4 (1954)
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Volume 3 (1953)
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Volume 2 (1953)
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Volume 1 (1952)
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Volume 0 (1932)