No Arabic abstract
Matrix elements of six-quark operators are needed to extract new physics constraints from experimental searches for neutron-antineutron oscillations. This work presents in detail the first lattice quantum chromodynamics calculations of the necessary neutron-antineutron transition matrix elements including calculation methods and discussions of systematic uncertainties. Implications of isospin and chiral symmetry on the matrix elements, power counting in the isospin limit, and renormalization of a chiral basis of six-quark operators are discussed. Calculations are performed with a chiral-symmetric discretization of the quark action and physical light quark masses in order to avoid the need for chiral extrapolation. Non-perturbative renormalization is performed, including a study of lattice cutoff effects. Excited-state effects are studied using two nucleon operators and multiple values of source-sink separation. Results for the dominant matrix elements are found to be significantly larger compared to previous results from the MIT bag model. Future calculations are needed to fully account for systematic uncertainties associated with discretization and finite-volume effects but are not expected to significantly affect this conclusion.
Fundamental symmetry tests of baryon number violation in low-energy experiments can probe beyond the Standard Model (BSM) explanations of the matter-antimatter asymmetry of the universe. Neutron-antineutron oscillations are predicted to be a signature of many baryogenesis mechanisms involving low-scale baryon number violation. This work presents first-principles calculations of neutron-antineutron matrix elements needed to accurately connect measurements of the neutron-antineutron oscillation rate to constraints on $|Delta B|=2$ baryon number violation in BSM theories. Several important systematic uncertainties are controlled by using a state-of-the-art lattice gauge field ensemble with physical quark masses and approximate chiral symmetry, performing nonperturbative renormalization with perturbative matching to the $overline{text{MS}}$ scheme, and studying excited state effects in two-state fits. Phenomenological implications are highlighted by comparing expected bounds from proposed neutron-antineutron oscillation experiments to predictions of a specific model of post-sphaleron baryogenesis. Quantum chromodynamics is found to predict at least an order of magnitude more events in neutron-antineutron oscillation experiments than previous estimates based on the MIT bag model for fixed BSM parameters. Lattice artifacts and other systematic uncertainties that are not controlled in this pioneering calculation are not expected to significantly change this conclusion.
Over the past few years new physics methods and algorithms as well as the latest supercomputers have enabled the study of the QCD thermodynamic phase transition using lattice gauge theory numerical simulations with unprecedented control over systematic errors. This is largely a consequence of the ability to perform continuum extrapolations with physical quark masses. Here we review recent progress in lattice QCD thermodynamics, focussing mainly on results that benefit from the use of physical quark masses: the crossover temperature, the equation of state, and fluctuations of the quark number susceptibilities. In addition, we place a special emphasis on calculations that are directly relevant to the study of relativistic heavy ion collisions at RHIC and the LHC.
We present the latest lattice QCD results for baryon interactions obtained at nearly physical quark masses. $N_f = 2+1$ nonperturbatively ${cal O}(a)$-improved Wilson quark action with stout smearing and Iwasaki gauge action are employed on the lattice of $(96a)^4 simeq (8.1mbox{fm})^4$ with $a^{-1} simeq 2.3$ GeV, where $m_pi simeq 146$ MeV and $m_K simeq 525$ MeV. In this report, we study the two-nucleon systems and two-$Xi$ systems in $^1S_0$ channel and $^3S_1$-$^3D_1$ coupled channel, and extract central and tensor interactions by the HAL QCD method. We also present the results for the $NOmega$ interaction in $^5S_2$ channel which is relevant to the $NOmega$ pair-momentum correlation in heavy-ion collision experiments.
We determine the second Mellin moment of the isovector quark parton distribution function <x>_{u-d} from lattice QCD with N_f=2 sea quark flavours, employing the non-perturbatively improved Wilson-Sheikholeslami-Wohlert action at a pseudoscalar mass of 157(6) MeV. The result is converted non-perturbatively to the RI-MOM scheme and then perturbatively to the MSbar scheme at a scale mu = 2 GeV. As the quark mass is reduced we find the lattice prediction to approach the value extracted from experiments.
Nuclear forces and hyperon forces are studied by lattice QCD. Simulations are performed with (almost) physical quark masses, $m_pi simeq 146$ MeV and $m_K simeq 525$ MeV, where $N_f=2+1$ nonperturbatively ${cal O}(a)$-improved Wilson quark action with stout smearing and Iwasaki gauge action are employed on the lattice of $(96a)^4 simeq (8.1mbox{fm})^4$ with $a^{-1} simeq 2.3$ GeV. In this report, we give the overview of the theoretical framework and present the numerical results for two-nucleon forces ($S=0$) and two-$Xi$ forces ($S=-4$). Central forces are studied in $^1S_0$ channel, and central and tensor forces are obtained in $^3S_1$-$^3D_1$ coupled channel analysis.