Search

We perform a simultaneous fit to BESIII data on $e^+e^-\to \gamma (D^0\bar{D}^{*0}\pi^0/J/\psi\pi^+\pi^-)$ and LHCb data on $B^+\to K^+(J/\psi\pi^+\pi^-)$ to precisely determine the properties of the $X(3872)$, with full consideration of three-body effects from $D^*\to D\pi$ decay, respecting both analyticity and unitarity. The $X(3872)$ is determined to be a bound state with a significance of $6\sigma$, and its pole is located at $E_X{=}\left(-53^{+~9}_{-24}-\,i\,34^{+~2}_{-12}\right) \rm keV$, relative to the nominal $D^0\bar{D}^{*0}$ threshold. Moreover, we confirm the presence of an isovector partner state, $W_{c1}$. It is found as a virtual state at $(1.6^{+0.7}_{-0.9}+ i\, 1.4^{+0.3}_{-0.6})\ \rm MeV$ relative to the $D^+ D^{*-}$ threshold on an unphysical Riemann sheet, strongly supporting a molecular nature of both $X(3872)$ and $W_{c1}$. As a highly non-trivial prediction we show that the $W_{c1}$ leads to nontrivial lineshapes in $B^0\to K^0X(3872)\to K^0 D^0\bar D^0\pi^0$ and $K^0J/\psi\pi^+\pi^-$ -- thus the scheme presented here can be tested further by improved measurements., Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures and 1 table

Accurately determining the size of the atomic nucleus with realistic nuclear forces is a long outstanding issue of nuclear physics. The no-core shell model (NCSM), one of the powerful ab initio methods for nuclear structure, can achieve accurate energies of light nuclei. The extraction of converged radii is more difficult. In this work, we present a novel method to effectively extract the radius of light nuclei by restoring the long-range behavior of densities from NCSM calculations. The correct large distance asymptotic of two-body relative densities are deduced based on the NCSM densities in limited basis size. The resulting radii using the corrected densities show a nice convergence. The root-mean-square matter and charge radii of $^{4,6,8}$He and $^{6,7,8}$Li can be accurately obtained based on Jacobi-NCSM calculations with the high-precision chiral two-nucleon and three-nucleon forces combined with this new method. Our method can be straightforwardly extended to other ab initio calculations, potentially providing a better description of nuclear sizes with realistic nuclear forces., Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, 1 table

I review the status of chiral dynamics. Topics include pion-pion scattering, dynamically generated states in the hadron spectrum and the emergence of two-pole structures, chiral symmetry in nuclear physics and chiral dynamics in the Big Bang., Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, Special Plenary Session talk at Chiral Dynamics 2024

Natural systems, such as tendons and spider silk, demonstrate how the combination of strength and stretchability can be effectively achieved by integrating stiff and flexible network structures. Inspired by these systems, we developed a novel, solvent-free dual-network adhesive based on a self-assembling ABA triblock copolymer, poly(methyl methacrylate)-poly(n-butyl acrylate)-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA-b-PnBA-b-PMMA), designed for applications requiring both high strength and stretchability. The triblock copolymer forms a physically crosslinked network through microdomains of PMMA end-blocks that provide structural integrity, while the PnBA mid-block forms a soft, stretchable matrix. To further enhance mechanical performance, a second poly(n-butyl acrylate) (PnBA) network is polymerized in situ, locking the PMMA microdomains in place and creating a load-bearing system. By varying the crosslinking density of the secondary network, we tailor the adhesive's mechanical properties (Young's modulus: 0.17 - 1.18 MPa) to suit different substrates, creating a mechanically transparent seam. The resulting dual-network system combines different strategies to achieve high strength and stretchability, with adhesive performance comparable to industrial methods such as sewing, particularly in bonding neoprene fabric composites and sealing the joints. Our solvent-free approach also eliminates the need for lengthy solvent evaporation steps, offering an eco-friendly and more efficient alternative for flexible adhesive applications in fields such as soft robotics, flexible electronics, and sports apparel., Comment: 28 pages, 5 figures, supplemental included at the end

We analyze the large-$N_c$ structure of the baryon-baryon potential derived in the framework of SU(3) chiral perturbation theory up to next-to-leading order including contact interactions as well as one-meson and two-meson exchange diagrams. Moreover, we assess the impact of SU(3) symmetry breaking from a large-$N_c$ perspective and show that the leading order results can successfully be applied to the hyperon-nucleon potential., Comment: 23 pages, 4 figures

We employ vacuum-to-$B$ meson correlation functions with interpolating currents $\bar{q}'\slashed{n}q$ and $\bar{q}'\slashed{n}\gamma_{\perp}q$ to construct light-cone sum rules (LCSR) for calculating the $B\to K^*$ form factors in the large recoil region. We investigate several subleading-power corrections to these form factors at tree level, including the next-to-leading power contributions from the hard-collinear propagator, the subleading power corrections from the effective current $\bar{q}\Gamma[i\slashed{D}_{\perp}/(2m_b)]h_v$, and four-body higher-twist effects. By utilizing the available leading-power results at $\mathcal{O}(\alpha_s)$ and the power corrections from higher-twist $B$-meson light-cone distribution amplitudes from our previous work, we further derive the improved numerical predictions for $B\to K^*$ form factors by applying the three-parameter model for $B$-meson light-cone distribution amplitudes (LCDAs). The subleading-power contribution is about $30\%$ relative to the corresponding leading-power result. Taking the well-adopted Bourrely-Caprini-Lellouch (BCL) parametrization, we then provide the numerical results of $B\to K^*$ form factors in the entire kinematic range, by adopting the combined fit to both LCSR predictions and lattice QCD results. Taking advantage of the newly obtained $B\to K^*$ form factors, we analyse the rare exclusive decay $B \to K^* \nu_\ell\bar{\nu}_\ell$ and estimate the Standard Model predictions of $\mathcal{BR}(\bar{B}^0 \to \bar{K}^{*0} \nu_\ell\bar{\nu}_\ell)=7.54(86)\times 10^{-6}$, $\mathcal{BR}(\bar{B}^+ \to \bar{K}^{*+} \nu_\ell\bar{\nu}_\ell)=9.35(94)\times 10^{-6}$ and longitudinal $K^*$ polarization fraction $F_L=0.44(4)$., Comment: 33 pages, 9 figures

We review the status of baryon form factors with a special focus on the nucleon electromagnetic form factors which are known best. First, we give an introduction into the dispersive analyses and emphasize the role of unitarity and analyticity in the construction of the isoscalar and isovector spectral functions. Second, we present the state of the art in our understanding of nucleon form factors and radii including reliable uncertainty estimates from bootstrap and Bayesian methods. Third, we discuss the physics of the time-like form factors and point out further issues to be addressed in this framework. Finally, we review the status of hyperon form factors and comment on the pion cloud., Comment: 18 pages, 9 figures, commissioned article for the Encyclopedia of Particle Physics

We present new parton distribution functions (PDFs) at next-to-leading order (NLO) and next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in perturbative QCD, derived from a comprehensive global QCD analysis of high-precision data sets from combined HERA deep-inelastic scattering (DIS), the Tevatron, and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). To improve constraints on quark flavor separation, we incorporate Drell-Yan pair production data, which provides critical sensitivity to the quark distributions. In addition, we include the latest W and Z boson production data from the CDF, D0, ATLAS, and CMS collaborations, further refining both quark and gluon distributions. Our nominal global QCD fit integrates these datasets and examines the resulting impact on the PDFs and their associated uncertainties. Uncertainties in the PDFs are quantified using the Hessian method, ensuring robust error estimates. Furthermore, we explore the sensitivity of the strong coupling constant, $\alpha_s(M_Z^2)$, and proton PDFs in light of the projected measurements from the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC), where improvements in precision are expected. The analysis also investigates the effects of inclusive jet and dijet production data, which provide enhanced constraints on the gluon PDF and $\alpha_s(M_Z^2)$., Comment: 41 pages, 23 figures

We study the properties of the $X(1880)$, the structure around the $\bar{p}p$ threshold that appears in the $3(\pi^+\pi^-)$ invariant mass spectrum in the decay process of $J/\psi \to \gamma 3(\pi^+\pi^-)$. Nucleon-antinucleon rescattering is taken into account in our analysis, and the decay amplitude of $J/\psi \to \gamma 3(\pi^+\pi^-)$ can be obtained by the distorted wave Born approximation. With these amplitudes, we analyze the contributions to the $X(1880)$ from different partial waves. Our analysis suggests that the $X(1880)$ should be isoscalar $0^{-+}$, and it is generated by the threshold behavior., Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures

We review recent experimental and theoretical results for the electromagnetic form factors of hyperons (Y) in the timelike region, accessible in the reactions $e^+e^-\to \bar YY$. Specifically, we focus on the final states $\bar \Lambda\Lambda$, $\bar\Lambda\Sigma^0$/$\bar \Sigma^0\Lambda$, $\bar \Sigma\Sigma$, $\bar \Xi\Xi$, and $\bar\Omega\Omega$. The $\bar \Lambda_c\Lambda_c$ system is also discussed., Comment: 9 pages , 8 figures

We work out the spatial density distributions corresponding to the axial-vector charge density operator for spin-1/2 systems using states described by sharply localized wave packets in arbitrary Lorentz-frames. The static approximation, leading to the frequently assumed Breit-frame distributions, is also considered. We discuss the interpretation of the resulting spatial densities in terms of the axial charge density.

The proton-rich nucleus $^{22}$Si is studied using Nuclear Lattice Effective Field Theory with high-fidelity chiral forces. Our results indicate that $^{22}$Si is more tightly bound than $^{20}$Mg, thereby excluding the possibility of two-proton emission. The $Z = 14$ shell closure in $^{22}$Si is supported by the evolution of the $2^+$ state in the neighboring nuclei. We then focus on the charge radius and spatial distribution information of $^{22}$Si, considering the novel phenomena that may emerge due to the small two-proton separation energy and the shell closure. We present the distribution of the $14$ protons and $8$ neutrons obtained from our lattice simulation, revealing insights into the spatial arrangement of the nucleons. Moreover, the spatial localization of the outermost proton and neutron suggests that $^{22}$Si is a doubly magic nucleus. Furthermore, we develop the pinhole method based on the harmonic oscillator basis, which gives insight into the nuclear structure in terms of the shell model picture from lattice simulations. Our calculated occupation numbers support that $Z = 14$ and $N = 8$ are the shell closures and show that the $\pi 1s_{1/2}$ orbital component is minor in $^{22}$Si., Comment: 5+4 pages, 3+2 figures

Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations are a powerful tool for studying matter at the atomic scale. However, to simulate solids, an initial atomic structure is crucial for the successful execution of MD simulations, but can be difficult to prepare due to insufficient atomistic information. At the same time Wide Angle X-ray Scattering (WAXS) measurements can determine the Radial Distribution Function (RDF) of atomic structures. However, the interpretation of RDFs is often challenging. Here we present an algorithm that can bias MD simulations with RDFs by combining the information of the MD atomic interaction potential and the RDF under the principle of maximum relative entropy. We show that this algorithm can be used to adjust the RDF of one liquid model, e.g., the TIP3P water model, to reproduce the RDF and improve the Angular Distribution Function (ADF) of another model, such as the TIP4P/2005 water model. In addition, we demonstrate that the algorithm can initiate crystallization in liquid systems, leading to both stable and metastable crystalline states defined by the RDF, e.g., crystallization of water to ice and liquid TiO2 to rutile or anatase. Finally, we discuss how this method can be useful for improving interaction models, studying crystallization processes, interpreting measured RDFs, or training machine learned potentials., Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures (including TOC). For the simulation code, see https://collaborating.tuhh.de/m-29/software/maxentrdf . Supplementary information is stored as ancillary file

Quanto options allow the buyer to exchange the foreign currency payoff into the domestic currency at a fixed exchange rate. We investigate quanto options with multiple underlying assets valued in different foreign currencies each with a different strike price in the payoff function. We carry out a comparative performance analysis of different stochastic volatility (SV), stochastic correlation (SC), and stochastic exchange rate (SER) models to determine the best combination of these models for Monte Carlo (MC) simulation pricing. In addition, we test the performance of all model variants with constant correlation as a benchmark. We find that a combination of GARCH-Jump SV, Weibull SC, and Ornstein Uhlenbeck (OU) SER performs best. In addition, we analyze different discretization schemes and their results. In our simulations, the Milstein scheme yields the best balance between execution times and lower standard deviations of price estimates. Furthermore, we find that incorporating mean reversion into stochastic correlation and stochastic FX rate modeling is beneficial for MC simulation pricing. We improve the accuracy of our simulations by implementing antithetic variates variance reduction. Finally, we derive the correlation risk parameters Cora and Gora in our framework so that correlation hedging of quanto options can be performed., Comment: 76 pages with 43 figures

We present a systematic \textit{ab initio} study of the low-lying states in beryllium isotopes from $^7\text{Be}$ to $^{12}\text{Be}$ using nuclear lattice effective field theory with the N$^3$LO interaction. Our calculations achieve excellent agreement with experimental data for energies, radii, and electromagnetic properties. We introduce a novel, model-independent method to quantify nuclear shapes, uncovering a distinct pattern in the interplay between positive and negative parity states across the isotopic chain. Our geometrical analysis reveals prominent two-center cluster structures, the emergence of one-neutron halo, and complex nuclear molecular dynamics, underscoring the strong clustering features inherent to beryllium isotopes., Comment: 9+8 pages, 4+4 figures

In the limit of vanishing up, down and strange quark masses, QCD exhibits a chiral symmetry. This symmetry is broken spontaneously to its vector subgroup, giving rise to Goldstone bosons. These acquire a small mass through the explicit chiral symmetry breaking for non-vanishing quark masses. The consequences of these broken symmetries can be investigated in a suitably tailored effective field theory called chiral pertubation theory. It admits a perturbative expansion in the external momenta and the Goldstone boson masses and can be systematically analyzed in terms of a loop expansion. The appearing ultraviolet divergences in loop diagrams can be dealt with order-by-order through the Goldstone boson contact interactions. Matter fields like the lowest-lying baryons can also included, leading to a rich and testable phenomenology of low-energy QCD., Comment: 23 pages, 3 figures, commissioned article for the Enzyclopedia of Particle Physics, typos corrected, one equation added for clarity

We derive a systematic perturbative expansion for the finite-volume energy spectrum of the non-linear $O(N)$ $\sigma$-model in the $\delta$-regime. The violation of the power-counting rules that emerges after the separation of the fast and slow modes is dealt with to all orders by use of the threshold expansion. The known result for the rest-frame energy spectrum up-to-and-including next-to-next-to-leading order is reproduced., Comment: 30 pages, 3 figures

A study of light $\Lambda$ hypernuclei in chiral effective field theory is presented. For the first time chiral $\Lambda$NN and $\Sigma$NN three-body forces are included consistently. The calculations are performed within the no-core shell model. Results for the separation energies of the hypernuclei $^3_{\Lambda}\mathrm{H}$, $^4_{\Lambda}\mathrm{H}$/$^4_{\Lambda}\mathrm{He}$, $^5_{\Lambda}\mathrm{He}$, and $^7_{\Lambda}\mathrm{Li}$ are given. It is found that the experimental values can be fairly well reproduced once YNN three-body forces are taken into account., Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures

We analyze the latest LHCb data on the $\pi^+\pi^-$ spectrum in the isospin-violating $X(3872)\to J/\psi \pi^+\pi^-$ decay, based on dispersion theory to deal with the $\pi\pi$ final state interactions. Additionally, the isospin breaking effects are properly introduced, allowing for a reliable and accurate extraction of the ratio, $R_X$, between the $X(3872)$ couplings to the $J/\psi \rho$ and $J/\psi \omega$ channels from the data. We find very good agreement with the LHCb data for the whole range of the $\pi^+\pi^-$ invariant mass, and $R_X$ is determined to be {$0.26\pm 0.03$}. Using this value, we make predictions for the $\pi^+\pi^0\pi^-$ mass distribution in the $X(3872)\to J/\psi \pi^+\pi^0\pi^-$ process, which is currently accessible by the BESIII Collaboration, and update a prediction for the pole positions of the isovector partner states of the $X(3872)$, $W_{c1}$, with $I(J^{PC})=1(1^{++})$., Comment: 9 pages, 1 table and 2 figures. Version to be published in Phys. Rev. D; results updated with a mistake on the rho-omega mixing corrected and a new appendix explaining how the mixing was obtained

Taking part in surveys, experiments, and studies is often compensated by rewards to increase the number of participants and encourage attendance. While privacy requirements are usually considered for participation, privacy aspects of the reward procedure are mostly ignored. To this end, we introduce PrePaMS, an efficient participation management system that supports prerequisite checks and participation rewards in a privacy-preserving way. Our system organizes participations with potential (dis-)qualifying dependencies and enables secure reward payoffs. By leveraging a set of proven cryptographic primitives and mechanisms such as anonymous credentials and zero-knowledge proofs, participations are protected so that service providers and organizers cannot derive the identity of participants even within the reward process. In this paper, we have designed and implemented a prototype of PrePaMS to show its effectiveness and evaluated its performance under realistic workloads. PrePaMS covers the information whether subjects have participated in surveys, experiments, or studies. When combined with other secure solutions for the actual data collection within these events, PrePaMS can represent a cornerstone for more privacy-preserving empirical research., Comment: Prototype source code: https://github.com/vs-uulm/prepams/ Public test deployment: https://vs-uulm.github.io/prepams/

In this work, we present a calculation of the triton $\beta$-decay lifetime using Nuclear Lattice Effective Field Theory (NLEFT) at next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order in the chiral expansion. By incorporating a non-perturbative treatment of the higher-order corrections, we achieve consistent predictions for the Fermi and Gamow-Teller matrix elements, which are crucial for determining the triton lifetime. Our results are consistent with earlier theoretical calculations, confirming the robustness of our approach. This study marks a significant advancement in the systematic application of NLEFT to nuclear $\beta$-decay processes, paving the way for future high-precision calculations in more complex nuclear systems. Additionally, we discuss potential improvements to our approach, including the explicit inclusion of two-pion exchange mechanisms and the refinement of three-nucleon forces. These developments are essential for extending the applicability of NLEFT to a broader range of nuclear phenomena, including neutrinoless double-$\beta$ decay., Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, more details and more discussion, version accepted for publication in Phys. Lett. B

We investigate the feasibility of measuring the proton charge radius through dimuon photoproduction off a proton target. Our findings indicate that the Bethe-Heitler mechanism, which dominates at small momentum transfers, allows for an extraction of the proton electromagnetic form factors in the extremely low $Q^2$ region below $10^{-3}$ GeV$^2$ in the spacelike region, when the incident photon beam energy exceeds several hundred MeV. The optimal kinematical region and a sensitivity study of the proton charge radius from dimuon photoproduction are presented. Such a measurement is expected to provide an alternative to the elastic muon-proton scattering measurements such as MUSE at PSI and AMBER at CERN., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures. The version to be published in PLB

Many excited states in the hadron spectrum have large branching ratios to three-hadron final states. Understanding such particles from first principles QCD requires input from lattice QCD with one-, two-, and three-meson interpolators as well as a reliable three-body formalism relating finite-volume spectra at unphysical pion mass values to the scattering amplitudes at the physical point. In this work, we provide the first-ever calculation of the resonance parameters of the $\omega$ meson from lattice QCD, including an update of the formalism through matching to effective field theories. The main result of this pioneering study, the pole position of the $\omega$ meson at $\sqrt{s_\omega}= (778.0(11.2)-i\,3.0(5) )\,\mathrm{MeV}$, agrees reasonably well with experiment. In addition we provide an estimate of the $\omega-\rho$ mass difference as $29(15)\,\mathrm{MeV}$., Comment: 14 pages, 11 figures, 3 tables. v2: version published in PRL

In clinical studies, measurement scales are often collected to report disease-related manifestations from clinician or patient perspectives. Their analysis can help identify relevant manifestations throughout the disease course, enhancing knowledge of disease progression and guiding clinicians in providing appropriate support. However, the analysis of measurement scales in health studies is not straightforward as made of repeated, ordinal, and potentially multidimensional item data. Their sum-score summaries may considerably reduce information and impend interpretation, their change over time occurs along clinical progression, and as many other longitudinal processes, their observation may be truncated by events. This work establishes a comprehensive strategy in four consecutive steps to leverage repeated data from multidimensional measurement scales. The 4S method successively (1) identifies the scale structure into subdimensions satisfying three calibration assumptions (unidimensionality, conditional independence, increasing monotonicity), (2) describes each subdimension progression using a joint latent process model which includes a continuous-time item response theory model for the longitudinal subpart, (3) aligns each subdimension's progression with disease stages through a projection approach, and (4) identifies the most informative items across disease stages using the Fisher's information. The method is comprehensively illustrated in multiple system atrophy (MSA), an alpha-synucleinopathy, with the analysis of daily activity and motor impairments over disease progression. The 4S method provides an effective and complete analytical strategy for any measurement scale repeatedly collected in health studies.

In a previous work [K.A. Meissner and H. Nicolai, Eur. Phys. J. C {\bf 84}, 269 (2024)], two of the present authors have suggested possible experimental ways to search for stable supermassive particles with electric charges of $\cO(1)$ in upcoming underground experiments, in particular the new Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) experiment. In the current paper, we present a detailed analysis of the specific signature of such gravitino-induced events for the JUNO detector and for upcoming liquid argon detectors like DUNE (Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment). The proposed method of detection relies on the ``glow'' produced by photons during the passage of such particles through the detector liquid, which would last for about a few to a few hundred microseconds depending on its velocity and the track. The cross sections for electronic excitation of the main component of the scintillator liquid, namely linear alkylbenzene (LAB), by the passing gravitino are evaluated using quantum-chemical methods. The results show that, if such particles exist, the resulting signals would lead to a unique and unmistakable signature, for which we present event simulations as they would be seen by the JUNO or DUNE photomultipliers. Our analysis brings together two very different research areas, namely fundamental particles physics and the search for a fundamental theory on the one hand, and methods of advanced quantum chemistry on the other.

Explicit expressions for the leading chiral hyperon-nucleon-nucleon three-body forces have been derived by Petschauer et al [Phys. Rev. C93.014001 (2016)]. An important prerequisite for including these three-body forces in few- and many-body calculations is the accuracy and efficiency of their partial-wave decomposition. A careful benchmark of the {\Lambda}NN potential matrix elements, computed using two robust and efficient partial-wave decomposition methods, is presented. In addition, results of a first quantitative assessment for the contributions of $\Lambda$NN forces to the separation energies in A=3-5 hypernuclei are reported., Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures

Understanding the strong interactions within baryonic systems beyond the up and down quark sector is pivotal for a comprehensive description of nuclear forces. This study explores the interactions involving hyperons, particularly the $\Lambda$ particle, within the framework of nuclear lattice effective field theory (NLEFT). By incorporating $\Lambda$ hyperons into the NLEFT framework, we extend our investigation into the $S = -1$ sector, allowing us to probe the third dimension of the nuclear chart. We calculate the $\Lambda$ separation energies ($B_{\Lambda}$) of hypernuclei up to the medium-mass region, providing valuable insights into hyperon-nucleon ($YN$) and hyperon-nucleon-nucleon ($YNN$) interactions. Our calculations employ high-fidelity chiral interactions at N${}^3$LO for nucleons and extend it to $\Lambda$ hyperons with leading-order S-wave $YN$ interactions as well as $YNN$ forces constrained only by the $A=4,5$ systems. Our results contribute to a deeper understanding of the SU(3) symmetry breaking and establish a foundation for future improvements in hypernuclear calculations., Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, 9 tables, typos corrected, extended discussion, final version accepted for publication

3D-localization of gamma sources has the potential to improve the outcome of radio-guided surgery. The goal of this paper is to analyze the localization accuracy for point-like sources with a single coded aperture camera. We both simulated and measured a point-like $^{241}$Am source at $17$ positions distributed within the field of view of an experimental gamma camera. The setup includes a 0.11mm thick tungsten sheet with a MURA mask of rank $31$ and pinholes of $0.08$mm in diameter and a detector based on the photon counting readout circuit Timepix3. Two methods, namely an iterative search (ISL) including either a symmetric Gaussian fitting or an exponentially modified Gaussian fitting (EMG) and a center of mass method were compared to estimate the 3D source position. Considering the decreasing axial resolution with source-to-mask distance, the EMG improved the results by a factor of $4$ compared to the Gaussian fitting based on the simulated data. Overall, we obtained a mean localization error of $0.77$mm on the simulated and $2.64$mm on the experimental data in the imaging range of $20$mm to $100$ mm. This paper shows that despite the low axial resolution, point-like sources in the nearfield can be localized as well as with more sophisticated imaging devices such as stereo cameras. The influence of the source size and the photon count on the imaging and localization accuracy remains an important issue for further research. The acquired datasets and the localization methods of this research are publicly available on GitHub at "https://zenodo.org/records/11449544"., Comment: 19 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables. Submitted to the IOP Physics in Medicine and Biology

Autonomous vehicles rely on camera, LiDAR, and radar sensors to navigate the environment. Adverse weather conditions like snow, rain, and fog are known to be problematic for both camera and LiDAR-based perception systems. Currently, it is difficult to evaluate the performance of these methods due to the lack of publicly available datasets containing multimodal labeled data. To address this limitation, we propose the SemanticSpray++ dataset, which provides labels for camera, LiDAR, and radar data of highway-like scenarios in wet surface conditions. In particular, we provide 2D bounding boxes for the camera image, 3D bounding boxes for the LiDAR point cloud, and semantic labels for the radar targets. By labeling all three sensor modalities, the SemanticSpray++ dataset offers a comprehensive test bed for analyzing the performance of different perception methods when vehicles travel on wet surface conditions. Together with comprehensive label statistics, we also evaluate multiple baseline methods across different tasks and analyze their performances. The dataset will be available at https://semantic-spray-dataset.github.io ., Comment: Accepted at IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (IV 2024)

Adverse weather conditions can severely affect the performance of LiDAR sensors by introducing unwanted noise in the measurements. Therefore, differentiating between noise and valid points is crucial for the reliable use of these sensors. Current approaches for detecting adverse weather points require large amounts of labeled data, which can be difficult and expensive to obtain. This paper proposes a label-efficient approach to segment LiDAR point clouds in adverse weather. We develop a framework that uses few-shot semantic segmentation to learn to segment adverse weather points from only a few labeled examples. Then, we use a semi-supervised learning approach to generate pseudo-labels for unlabelled point clouds, significantly increasing the amount of training data without requiring any additional labeling. We also integrate good weather data in our training pipeline, allowing for high performance in both good and adverse weather conditions. Results on real and synthetic datasets show that our method performs well in detecting snow, fog, and spray. Furthermore, we achieve competitive performance against fully supervised methods while using only a fraction of labeled data., Comment: Accepted for publication in IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L)

This paper proposes a sparse regression strategy for discovery of ordinary and partial differential equations from incomplete and noisy data. Inference is performed over both equation parameters and state variables using a statistically motivated likelihood function. Sparsity is enforced by a selection algorithm which iteratively removes terms and compares models using statistical information criteria. Large scale optimization is performed using a second-order variant of the Levenberg-Marquardt method, where the gradient and Hessian are computed via automatic differentiation. Illustrations involving canonical systems of ordinary and partial differential equations are used to demonstrate the flexibility and robustness of the approach. Accurate reconstruction of systems is found to be possible even in extreme cases of limited data and large observation noise., Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures

The System for Measuring Overlap with Gas (SMOG2) at the LHCb detector enables the study of fixed-target ion-ion collisions at relativistic energies ($\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}\sim100$ GeV in the centre-of-mass). With input from \textit{ab initio} calculations of the structure of $^{16}$O and $^{20}$Ne, we compute 3+1D hydrodynamic predictions for the anisotropic flow of Pb+Ne and Pb+O collisions, to be tested with upcoming LHCb data. This will allow the detailed study of quark-gluon plasma (QGP) formation as well as experimental tests of the predicted nuclear shapes. Elliptic flow ($v_2$) in Pb+Ne collisions is greatly enhanced compared to the Pb+O baseline due to the shape of $^{20}$Ne, which is deformed in a bowling-pin geometry. Owing to the large $^{208}$Pb radius, this effect is seen in a broad centrality range, a unique feature of this collision configuration. Larger elliptic flow further enhances the quadrangular flow ($v_4$) of Pb+Ne collisions via non-linear coupling, and impacts the sign of the kurtosis of the elliptic flow vector distribution ($c_2\{4\}$). Exploiting the shape of $^{20}$Ne proves thus an ideal method to investigate the formation of QGP in fixed-target experiments at LHCb, and demonstrates the power of SMOG2 as a tool to image nuclear ground states.

We study the fine-structure constant dependence of the rates of some selected radiative capture reactions within the framework of so-called Halo Effective Field Theory in order to assess the adequacy of some assumptions made on the Coulomb penetrability. We find that this dependence deviates from that implied by a parameterization of the cross sections of this effect via a simple penetration factor. Some features of this fine-structure dependence are discussed, in particular its potential impact on the abundances of the light elements in primordial nucleosynthesis., Comment: 17 pages, 14 figures, references updated

A consistency condition of general relativity as an effective field theory in Minkowskian background uniquely fixes the value of the cosmological constant. In two-loop calculations, including the interaction of gravitons with matter fields, it has been shown that this value of the cosmological constant leads to vanishing vacuum energy, under the assumption that the energy-momentum tensor of the gravitational field is given by the pseudotensor of Landau-Lifshitz's classic textbook. Here, we demonstrate that this result also holds when the self-interaction of a scalar field is taken into account. That is, our two-loop-order calculation suggests that in an effective field theory of metric and scalar fields, one arrives at a consistent theory with massless gravitons if the cosmological constant is fixed from the condition of vanishing vacuum energy. Vice versa, imposing the consistency condition in Minkowskian background leads to a vanishing vacuum energy., Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure

We extend our previous study of the interactions of $\bar{D}^{(*)} \Lambda_c - \bar{D}^{(*)}\Sigma_c^{(*)}$ within an analytic, unitary, coupled-channel approach by including the $J/\psi p$ channel and performing fits to the $J/\psi p$ invariant mass distributions in the $\Lambda_b^0 \to J/\psi p K^-$ decay by the LHCb Collaboration. We take into account the contributions of $t$-channel pseudoscalar and vector meson exchanges and $u$-channel baryon exchanges in this work, and a series of bound states and resonances with different spin-parities are dynamically generated. According to the results, four states have a significant impact on the physical observables, with two having a spin-parity of $1/2^-$ and the other two having $3/2^-$. These states can be associated with the LHCb hidden-charm pentaquarks. We further provide the coupling strength between each pole and different channels, which provides some insights on how to search for them in future experiments. Moreover, we also search for poles in higher partial waves up to $J=7/2$ and find indications for the existence of several states with larger widths., Comment: 9 pages

The equation of state (EoS) of neutron matter plays a decisive role in our understanding of the properties of neutron stars as well as the generation of gravitational waves in neutron star mergers. At sufficient densities, it is known that the appearance of hyperons generally softens the EoS, thus leading to a reduction in the maximum mass of neutron stars well below the observed values of about 2 solar masses. Even though repulsive three-body forces are known to solve this so-called "hyperon puzzle", so far performing \textit{ab initio} calculations with a substantial number of hyperons has remained elusive. In this work, we address this challenge by employing simulations based on Nuclear Lattice Effective Field Theory with up to 232 neutrons (pure neutron matter) and up to 116 $\Lambda$ hyperons (hyper-neutron matter) in a finite volume. We introduce a novel auxiliary field quantum Monte Carlo algorithm, allowing us to simulate for both pure neutron matter and hyper-neutron matter systems up to 5 times the density of nuclear matter using a single auxiliary field without any sign oscillations. Also, for the first time in {\em ab initio} calculations, we not only include $N\Lambda$ two-body and $NN\Lambda$ three-body forces, but also $\Lambda\Lambda$ and $N \Lambda\Lambda$ interactions. Consequently, we determine essential astrophysical quantities such as the mass-radius relation, the speed of sound and the tidal deformability of neutron stars. Our findings also confirm the existence of the $I$-Love-$Q$ relation, which gives access to the moment of inertia of the neutron star., Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures, extended discussions, many references added

Hadronic resonances emerge from strong interactions encoding the dynamics of quarks and gluons. The structure of these resonances can be probed by virtual photons parameterized in transition form factors. In this study, twelve $N^*$ and $\Delta$ transition form factors at the pole are extracted from data with the center-of-mass energy from $\pi N$ threshold to $1.8\,{\rm GeV}$, and the photon virtuality $0\leq Q^2/{\rm GeV}^2\leq 8$. For the first time, these results are determined from a simultaneous analysis of more than one state, i.e., $\sim 10^5$ $\pi N$, $\eta N$, and $K\Lambda$ electroproduction data. In addition, about $ 5\cdot 10^4$ data in the hadronic sector as well as photoproduction serve as boundary conditions. For the $\Delta(1232)$ and $N(1440)$ states our results are in qualitative agreement with previous studies, while the transition form factors at the poles of some higher excited states are estimated for the first time. Realistic uncertainties are determined by further exploring the parameter space., Comment: Text: 6 pages, 4 figures. Supplemental Material: 3 pages, 2 figures

The electromagnetic form factors $G_{\rm E}$ and $G_{\rm M}$ of the proton and neutron in the timelike region are extracted in a study of the processes $e^+ e^-\to \bar{p}p$ and $e^+ e^-\to \bar{n}n$. The reaction amplitude is evaluated within the distorted wave Born approximation, with the interaction of the antinucleon-nucleon ($\bar{N}N$) pair taken into account. The latter is constructed within $SU(3)$ chiral effective field theory up to the next-to-leading order. An excellent description of the $e^+ e^-\to \bar{N}N$ data in the energy region from the $\bar{N}N$ threshold up to center-of-mass energies $E_{\rm cm}=2.2$~GeV is achieved. Results for the electromagnetic form factors $G_{\rm E}, G_{\rm M}$, $G_{\rm E}/G_{\rm M}$, and the subtracted effective form factors, $G_{\rm osc}$, are provided. These can be helpful for further studies of the properties of the nucleons., Comment: 37 pages, 10 figures

Using chiral effective field theory, we predict that there must be isovector charmonium-like $D\bar D^*$ hadronic molecules with $J^{PC}=1^{++}$ denoted as $W_{c1}$. The inputs are the properties of the $X(3872)$, including its mass and the ratio of its branching fractions of decays into $J/\psi\rho^0$ and $J/\psi\omega$. The predicted states are virtual state poles of the scattering matrix, pointing at a molecular nature of the $X(3872)$ as well as its spin partners. They should show up as either a mild cusp or dip at the $D\bar D^*$ thresholds, explaining why they are elusive in experiments. The so far negative observation also indicates that the $X(3872)$ is either a bound state with non-vanishing binding energy or a virtual state, only in these cases the $X(3872)$ signal dominates over that from the $W_{c1}^0$. The pole positions are $3881.2^{+0.8}_{-0.0}- i 1.6^{+0.7}_{-0.9}$ MeV for $W_{c1}^0$ on the fourth Riemann sheet of the $D^0\bar D^{*0}$-$D^+D^{*-}$ coupled-channel system, and $3866.9^{+4.6}_{-7.7}- i (0.07\pm0.01)$ MeV for $W_{c1}^\pm$ on the second Riemann sheet of the $(D\bar D^*)^\pm$ single-channel system. The findings imply that the peak in the $J/\psi\pi^+\pi^-$ invariant mass distribution is not purely from the $X(3872)$ but contains contributions from $W_{c1}^0$ predicted here. The states should have isovector heavy quark spin partners with $J^{PC}=0^{++}$, $2^{++}$ and $1^{+-}$, with the last one corresponding to $Z_c$. We suggest to search for the charged $0^{++}$, $1^{++}$ and $2^{++}$ states in $J/\psi\pi^\pm \pi^0$., Comment: 26 pages, 8 figures; version to be published in JHEP

Molecular dynamics simulations at a constant electric potential are an essential tool to study electrochemical processes, providing microscopic information on the structural, thermodynamic, and dynamical properties. Despite the numerous advances in the simulation of electrodes, they fail to accurately represent the electronic structure of materials such as graphite. In this work, we introduce a simple parameterization method that allows to tune the metallicity of the electrode based on a quantum chemistry calculation of the density of states. As a first illustration, we study the interface between graphite electrodes and two different liquid electrolytes, an aqueous solution of NaCl and a pure ionic liquid, at different applied potentials. We show that the simulations reproduce qualitatively the experimentally-measured capacitance; in particular, they yield a minimum of capacitance at the point of zero charge, which is due to the quantum capacitance contribution. An analysis of the structure of the adsorbed liquids allows to understand why the ionic liquid displays a lower capacitance despite its large ionic concentration. In addition to its relevance for the important class of carbonaceous electrodes, this method can be applied to any electrode materials (e.g. 2D materials, conducting polymers, etc), thus enabling molecular simulation studies of complex electrochemical devices in the future.

In this study, we revisit the extraction of parton-to-$K^0_S$ hadron fragmentation functions, named FF24-$K^0_S$, focusing on both next-to-leading-order and next-to-next-to-leading-order accuracy in perturbative QCD. Our approach involves the analysis of single inclusive electron-positron annihilation (SIA) data. The two key improvements are, on the one hand, the incorporation of the latest experimental data from the BESIII experiment and, on the other hand, the adoption of Neural Networks in the fitting procedure. To address experimental uncertainties, the Monte Carlo method is employed. Our investigation also explores the impact of hadron mass corrections on the description of SIA data, spanning a broad kinematic regime with a particular emphasis on the range of small $z$ values. The theory prediction for $K^0_S$ production at both NLO and NNLO accuracy exhibits good agreement with experimental data within their respective uncertainties., Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, Accepted for publication in Physical Review D

Near-threshold $p\bar\Lambda$ mass spectra for the reactions $e^+e^- \to K^- p\bar\Lambda$ and $J/\psi \to K^- p\bar\Lambda$ are investigated with an emphasis on the role played by the interaction in the $p\bar\Lambda$ system. As guideline for the $p\bar\Lambda$ interaction a variety of $\Lambda\bar\Lambda$ potential models is considered that have been established in the analysis of data on $p\bar p\to \Lambda\bar\Lambda$ in the past. Arguments why the properties of the $p\bar\Lambda$ and $\Lambda\bar\Lambda$ interactions can be expected to be very similar are provided. It is shown that the near-threshold enhancement in the invariant mass observed for the $e^+e^-$ reaction can be reproduced quantitatively by the assumed $p\bar\Lambda$ final-state interaction in the partial wave suggested by an amplitude analysis of the experiment. The effect of the $p\bar\Lambda$ final-state interaction in other decays is explored, including the recently measured reactions $B^- \to J/\psi\, \bar p \Lambda$ and $B^+ \to J/\psi\, p \bar\Lambda$. It is found that the final-state interaction improves the description of the measured invariant mass near threshold in most cases., Comment: 9 pages, 11 figures