Maximising the new physics reach of the LHC through Effective Field Theories

通过有效场论最大化大型强子对撞机的新物理范围

• 批准号: ST/X004155/1
• 负责人: Ken Mimasu
• 金额: $ 65.74万
• 依托单位: University of Southampton
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Fellowship
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ST%2FX004155%2F1
• 关键词: Maximising; new; physics; reach; LHC

Particle physics inspires a sense of wonder, probing the infinitely small in the way that astronomers and space programs explore the infinitely big. Moreover, its collider experiments benefit society, advancing technology in material sciences, electronics and informatics. This global effort to advance our understanding of the fundamental theory of the universe requires a monumental collaboration between theory and experiment, exemplified by the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).We know that the recently discovered Higgs boson at the LHC is not the end of the story; new particles are likely to exist. However, data suggests that they are either too heavy to produce or are light but evade our experiments. Even if they can't be produced directly, we can still infer the presence of new particles through slight modifications of the interactions between known particles. This theoretical framework is called Effective Field Theory (EFT) and is a well established way to test many new physics models at once. The established set of particles and interactions is called the Standard Model of particle physics, and its EFT extension, the SMEFT. However, if new, light particles do exist, they can also be incorporated into a more comprehensive EFT.My proposal conceptually and technologically enhances the global high energy physics programme, providing new predictions for colliders and developing search strategies for new physics through EFTs. I will confront the SMEFT with collider data to search for hints of new physics using SMEFTatNLO, a cutting-edge tool for theoretical predictions that I developed, that has now become the industry standard for calculations of its kind. Using fitmaker, another public software for statistical analysis that I developed, the new calculations will allow me to more accurately determine the impact of collider data on new physics models, and identify pathways to improve our knowledge. These global analyses crystallise our understanding of fundamental interactions and extend the energy reach of colliders. Alongside, I will exploit the tool to perform sensitivity studies of new processes to guide and motivate future experimental measurements and searches. For light, new physics, many possibilities exist. Here, EFTs help to lay out the possible interactions of a given state and provide a framework to discover them through all of their possible interactions. I outline three studies that exploit EFT, motivated by open questions such as the nature of dark matter and the cosmic matter-antimatter asymmetry. The first devises a strategy to disentangle different types of dark matter particle through their LHC production modes. The second determines new probes for light particles coupled to the top quark, which is abundantly produced at the LHC but has not been extensively used to search for these states. Third, I will develop a general model for new physics that can explain the matter anti-matter asymmetry of the universe. Their unique feature is that they avoid the very strong constraints from measurements of the electron electric dipole moment that rule out large classes of these models.The underlying goal of my objectives is to exchange knowledge and expertise with experimental colleagues. I believe that the most important impact that a researcher in theoretical physics can have is to influence and advance the experimental strategy at colliders. It is essential that I communicate my results to the experimental community and support their efforts to search for hints of new physics with my theoretical predictions and sensitivity studies. Throughout, I will ensure that these results and associated tools are transferred experimental colleagues such that they can enhance their own dedicated searches and optimise the data presentation to maximise the impact of their results. Ultimately, my investigations will test the fundamental laws governing the interactions between the elementary constituents of the universe.

粒子物理学激发了一种奇妙的感觉，以天文学家和太空计划探索无限大的方式探索无限小的事物。此外，它的对撞机实验造福社会，推动了材料科学、电子和信息技术的发展。这种促进我们对宇宙基本理论的理解的全球努力需要理论和实验之间的巨大合作，大型强子对撞机（LHC）就是一个例子。我们知道，最近在大型强子对撞机上发现的希格斯玻色子并不是故事的结局；新粒子很可能存在。然而，数据表明，它们要么太重而无法产生，要么很轻，但无法进行实验。即使它们不能直接产生，我们仍然可以通过对已知粒子之间相互作用的轻微修改来推断新粒子的存在。这个理论框架被称为有效场论（EFT），是一种很好的方法，可以同时测试许多新的物理模型。建立的粒子和相互作用的集合被称为粒子物理学的标准模型，以及它的EFT扩展SMEFT。然而，如果新的、轻的粒子确实存在，它们也可以被纳入一个更全面的EFT。我的建议从概念上和技术上增强了全球高能物理计划，为对撞机提供了新的预测，并通过eft开发了新的物理搜索策略。我将用对撞机数据与SMEFT对峙，使用SMEFTatNLO寻找新物理学的线索，SMEFTatNLO是我开发的一个用于理论预测的前沿工具，现在已成为此类计算的行业标准。使用fitmaker（我开发的另一个公共统计分析软件），新的计算将使我能够更准确地确定对撞机数据对新物理模型的影响，并确定改进我们知识的途径。这些全局分析使我们对基本相互作用的理解具体化，并扩展了对撞机的能量范围。此外，我将利用该工具进行新过程的敏感性研究，以指导和激励未来的实验测量和搜索。对于光，新的物理学，存在许多可能性。在这里，eft帮助安排给定状态的可能的相互作用，并提供一个框架，通过所有可能的相互作用发现它们。我概述了三项利用EFT的研究，这些研究的动机是诸如暗物质的性质和宇宙物质-反物质不对称等开放性问题。第一种方法是设计一种策略，通过大型强子对撞机的生产模式来解开不同类型的暗物质粒子。第二个是确定对与顶夸克耦合的轻粒子的新探测器，顶夸克在大型强子对撞机中大量产生，但尚未广泛用于寻找这些状态。第三，我将开发一个新物理学的通用模型，可以解释宇宙的物质反物质不对称。它们的独特之处在于，它们避免了来自电子电偶极矩测量的非常强的约束，这些约束排除了这些模型的大部分。我的目标的潜在目标是与实验同事交流知识和专业知识。我相信，理论物理学研究者能产生的最重要的影响是影响和推进对撞机的实验策略。我必须将我的结果传达给实验界，并支持他们通过我的理论预测和敏感性研究来寻找新物理学的线索。在整个过程中，我将确保将这些结果和相关工具传递给实验同事，以便他们可以增强自己的专用搜索并优化数据呈现，以最大限度地提高其结果的影响。最终，我的研究将检验支配宇宙基本成分之间相互作用的基本定律。