String theory, holography and Quantum Gravity

title: Holographic cosmology 3.0
abstract: We present a new version of holographic cosmology, which is compatible with present observations. A primordial p = ρ phase of the universe is followed by a brief matter dominated era and a brief period of inflation, whose termination heats the universe. The flatness and horizon problems are solved by the p = ρ dynamics. The model is characterized by two parameters, which should be calculated in a more fundamental approach to the theory. For a large range in the phenomenologically allowed parameter space, the observed fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background were generated during the p = ρ era, and are exactly scale invariant. The scale invariant spectrum cuts off sharply at both upper and lower ends, and this may have observational consequences. We argue that the amplitude of fluctuations is small but cannot yet calculate it precisely.

title: Essay: Supersymmetry, the Cosmological Constant, and a Theory of Quantum Gravity in Our Universe
abstract: There are many theories of quantum gravity, depending on asymptotic boundary conditions, and the amount of supersymmetry. The cosmological constant is one of the fundamental parameters that characterizes different theories. If it is positive, supersymmetry must be broken. A heuristic calculation shows that a cosmological constant of the observed size predicts superpartners in the TeV range. This mechanism for SUSY breaking also puts important constraints on low energy particle physics models.

title: Anharmonic Oscillator with Polynomial Self‐Interaction
abstract: A quantum anharmonic oscillator with a polynomial self‐interaction is defined in coordinate space by a Hamiltonian of the form H = −d2/dx2 + ¼x2 + g[(½x2)N + a(½x2)N−1 + b(½x2)N−2 + ⋯]. Using WKB techniques we derive a secular equation which determines the eigenvalues of H for small |g|. We find that the qualitative analytic structure of these eigenvalues as functions of complex g remains unchanged for all fixed values of a, b,…, including a = b = ⋯ = 0. The secular equation also implies an elegant theorem which predicts how the a,b,⋯ terms in H affect the large‐order growth of perturbation theory. We use this theorem to compare the perturbative behavior of non‐Wick‐ordered and Wick‐ordered field theories in one‐dimensional space‐time. In particular, we show that the perturbation series ∑Angn and ∑Bngn for the energy levels of the (gψ2N)1 and (:gψ2N:)1 field theories differ in large order by an over‐all multiplicative constant limn→∞An/Bn = exp[N(2N − 1)/(2N − 2)].

title: Cosmological SUSY Breaking and the Pyramid Scheme

title: Black Crunch
abstract: We study the growth of fluctuations in collapsing cosmologies, extending old work of Lifschitz and Khalatnikov. As examples of systems where the fluctuations have a different composition than the background we study scalar fields with general improvement terms. Fluctuations always grow, and often dominate the homogeneous background. We argue that even for very dilute fluctuations, scattering processes inevitably lead to a dense gas of black holes. This leads us to hypothesize that the generic final state of a Big Crunch is described by a collapsing p = ρ FRW cosmology. We conjecture that the black hole fluid is invariant under the conformal Killing symmetry of this metric, so that the final state is in fact stationary.

title: Search for 14.4 keV solar axions from M1 transition of Fe-57 with CUORE crystals
abstract: We report the results of a search for axions from the 14.4 keV M1 transition from Fe-57 in the core of the sun using the axio-electric effect in TeO2 bolometers. The detectors are 5x5x5 cm(3) crystals operated at about 10 mK in a facility used to test bolometers for the CUORE experiment at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy. An analysis of 43.65 kg.d of data was made using a newly developed low energy trigger which was optimized to reduce the energy threshold of the detector. An upper limit of 0.58 c.kg(-1).d(-1) is established at 95% C.L., which translates into lower bounds f(A) >= 3.12 x 10(5) GeV 95% C.L. (DFSZ model) and f(A) >= 2.41 x 10(4) GeV 95% C.L. (KSVZ model) on the Peccei-Quinn symmetry-breaking scale, for a value of S = 0.5 of the flavor-singlet axial vector matrix element. These bounds can be expressed in terms of axion masses as m(A) <= 19.2 eV and m(A) <= 250 eV at 95% C.L. in the DFSZ and KSVZ models respectively. Bounds are given also for the interval 0.35 <= S <= 0.55.

title: ODYSSEUS: description of and results from a strong-strong beam-beam simulation for storage rings
abstract: ODYSSEUS is a simulation of the beam-beam interaction in e/sup +/e/sup -/ storage ring colliders which is specifically intended to reveal the dynamic collective behavior of the colliding beams. This program is a true six-dimensional strong-strong simulation in which the electromagnetic fields of longitudinal slices of the colliding beams are recalculated for each slice collision. Broadband wake fields are included. No constraints are placed on the distribution of particles in the beams. The program achieves its speed through adaptively choosing between alternative electromagnetic field calculation methods. Benchmarking tests and various results are presented.

title: Initial performance of the CUORE-0 experiment
abstract: CUORE-0 is a cryogenic detector that uses an array of tellurium dioxide bolometers to search for neutrinoless double-beta decay of $$\mathrm {^{130}Te}$$130Te. We present the first data analysis with $$7.1 \,\mathrm {kg\cdot y}$$7.1kg·y of total $$\mathrm {TeO_2}$$TeO2 exposure focusing on background measurements and energy resolution. The background rates in the neutrinoless double-beta decay region of interest (2.47 to $$2.57 \,\mathrm {MeV}$$2.57MeV) and in the $$\alpha $$α background-dominated region (2.70 to $$3.90\,\mathrm {MeV}$$3.90MeV) have been measured to be $${0.071\pm 0.011}$$0.071±0.011 and $${0.019\pm 0.002}\,\mathrm {counts/(keV\cdot kg\cdot y)}$$0.019±0.002counts/(keV·kg·y), respectively. The latter result represents a factor of 6 improvement from a predecessor experiment, Cuoricino. The results verify our understanding of the background sources in CUORE-0, which is the basis of extrapolations to the full CUORE detector. The obtained energy resolution (full width at half maximum) in the region of interest is $$5.7\,\mathrm {keV}$$5.7keV. Based on the measured background rate and energy resolution in the region of interest, CUORE-0 half-life sensitivity is expected to surpass the observed lower bound of Cuoricino with one year of live time.

title: Partial radiogenic heat model for Earth revealed by geoneutrino measurements
abstract: The Earth has cooled since its formation, yet the decay of radiogenic isotopes, and in particular uranium, thorium and 
potassium, in the planet’s interior provides a continuing heat source. The current total heat flux from the Earth to space is 44:2±1.0 TW, but the relative contributions from residual primordial heat and radiogenic decay remain uncertain. However, radiogenic decay can be estimated from the flux of geoneutrinos, electrically neutral particles that are emitted during radioactive decay and can pass through the Earth virtually unaffected. Here we combine precise measurements of the geoneutrino flux from the Kamioka Liquid-Scintillator Antineutrino Detector, Japan, with existing measurements from the Borexino detector, Italy.We find that decay of uranium-238 and thorium-232 together contribute 20.0^(+8.8)_(-8.6)TW to Earth’s heat 
flux. The neutrinos emitted from the decay of potassium-40 are below the limits of detection in our experiments, but are known to contribute 4TW. Taken together, our observations indicate that heat from radioactive decay contributes about half of Earth’s total heat flux. We therefore conclude that Earth’s primordial heat supply has not yet been exhausted.

title: Improved measurement of the positive-muon lifetime and determination of the Fermi constant.
abstract: The mean life of the positive muon has been measured to a precision of 11 ppm using a low-energy, pulsed muon beam stopped in a ferromagnetic target, which was surrounded by a scintillator detector array. The result, tau(micro)=2.197 013(24) micros, is in excellent agreement with the previous world average. The new world average tau(micro)=2.197 019(21) micros determines the Fermi constant G(F)=1.166 371(6)x10(-5) GeV-2 (5 ppm). Additionally, the precision measurement of the positive-muon lifetime is needed to determine the nucleon pseudoscalar coupling g(P).