Papers

We study moduli stabilization in 4D effective field theories with Sp(4,$\mathbb{Z}$) self-duality inspired by heterotic orbifold compactifications with Wilson lines. The target-space duality group of these theories is enhanced from SL$(2,\mathbb{Z})$ to Sp$(4,\mathbb{Z})$, making Siegel modular forms the appropriate language to formulate the effective supergravity action. We construct the corresponding effective theory including moduli-dependent threshold corrections to the gauge kinetic function and nonperturbative effects in the superpotential. The degeneration limit of the Wilson lines distinguishes different sectors and dictates which combination of cusp forms appears in threshold corrections. We compute the resulting scalar potential and prove several general statements about its extrema. In particular, we show that the fixed points of Sp$(4,\mathbb{Z})$ are extrema of the potential, and derive genus-2 analogues of no-go theorems for de Sitter vacua. Finally, we show how positive-energy metastable minima can arise once supersymmetry is broken in the dilaton direction by nonperturbative contributions to the Kähler potential.

The no-boundary wavefunction for slow-roll inflation on the 3-sphere exponentially favors a small universe, in sharp disagreement with observations. We show that this problem is resolved by changing the spatial topology to the 3-torus. The sum over the ${\rm SL}(3,\mathbb{Z})$ family of geometries, computed using the theory of automorphic forms for ${\rm GL}(3)$, produces a wavefunction favoring a large inflating universe with ${\cal N} \gtrsim 250$ e-folds. We also compute corrections to the CMB power spectrum induced by torus moduli fluctuations.

We present MAPFF1.0_Lambda, the first global analysis at next-to-next-to-leading order in perturbative QCD of the collinear unpolarised fragmentation functions of Lambda hyperons. The fit is based on data from single-inclusive electron-positron annihilation, and from both neutral-current and – for the first time – charged-current semi-inclusive deep-inelastic scattering. We have adopted a statistical framework based on Monte Carlo sampling and parametrised fragmentation functions in terms of a neural network. The fragmentation function set comprises a total of seven independent parton flavours, allowing for the first independent determination of valence-quark distributions. Our analysis offers new insights into the hadronisation mechanism of strange baryons and establishes a baseline for future phenomenological and experimental investigations.

We present the quantization of all symmetry reductions of the Einstein–Hilbert Lagrangian that correctly reproduce the reduced Einstein's field equations – i.e., characterized by the infinitesimal group actions obeying the principle of symmetric criticality. These correspond to the spacetime symmetries of spherical/hyperbolic/planar Schwarzschild/Taub–NUT, BI/BII/BIII-metrics, near-horizon extreme Kerr geometry, swirling universe, closed/open/flat FLRW cosmologies, other FLRW-type metrics, and Bianchi type I, II, VIII, and IX spacetimes. We derive the Hamiltonian and the conformal symmetries of the superspace metrics (the conditional symmetries), promote them to operators, and solve the Wheeler–DeWitt equation with and without imposing these symmetries.

NANOGrav and various pulsar timing array experiments recently reported compelling evidence for a stochastic gravitational wave background (SGWB). Such a background may originate from several astrophysical or cosmological sources. Assuming an inflationary origin, we use the latest NANOGrav 15-year dataset to constrain inflationary parameters, including the tensor spectral index ($n_t$), tensor-to-scalar ratio ($r$), and explore the implications for reheating through constraints on the reheating equation of state ($\omega_{\text{re}}$) and reheating temperature ($T_{\text{re}}$). We find a preference for an extremely blue-tilted tensor spectrum and a non-instantaneous reheating epoch. Despite no concrete evidence on primordial vacua, inflationary vacuum is commonly assumed to be the Bunch-Davies vacuum. In this work, we study modifications to the GW spectrum arising from a two-parameter Bogoliubov family of non-Bunch-Davies vacua. Within this framework, we find that NANOGrav observations favour a subclass of non-Bunch-Davies vacuum, known as the alpha-vacuum. In addition, our analysis demonstrates that the observations strikingly narrow the range of the parameter $\alpha$ that characterizes the vacua. Our analysis indicates that the NANOGrav data can accommodate both matter- and radiation-like reheating scenarios for the standard Bunch-Davies vacuum case. However, within the non-Bunch-Davies framework considered here, a non-matter-like reheating is preferred because matter-like reheating requires relatively large $\alpha$, violating both the NANOGrav upper bound and the backreaction constraint. We further show that a frequency-dependent parametrization of $\alpha$ beyond a threshold frequency can yield a minimal solution that alleviates the blue-tilted issue. Finally, we highlight the possibility of testing such frequency dependence of $\alpha$ through future GW experiments.

The annihilation of self-interacting dark matter with long-range interactions can be significantly enhanced at low velocities through the Sommerfeld effect. At special points in parameter space, where near-zero-energy resonances exist in the spectrum of the theory, the standard calculation of this enhancement appears to violate unitarity. Recently, several approaches have been proposed to regulate this behavior, some introducing explicit ultraviolet (UV) scales and others not, raising the question of whether these prescriptions are consistent. In this paper, we compare these approaches and show that even in nominally cutoff-dependent methods, the regulated Sommerfeld-enhanced cross sections are independent of the UV regulator to a good approximation, and that when the unitarity-preserving corrections are large, the regulation schemes coincide to leading order. We use these insights to write down a regulator-independent prescription for unitarization applicable to multi-state systems, where the modified enhancement can be written solely in terms of the standard enhancement factor, the hard annihilation amplitude, and the $S$-matrix for scattering in the long-range potential.

We study the crystalline phase of the $O(2N)$ Gross–Neveu model with a chemical potential for $a \leq N-2$ of the fermions. We analyze the problem in three independent ways: using perturbative QFT methods, a semiclassical large $N$ analysis, and integrability techniques (both at finite and large $N$). The resulting picture is consistent across all three approaches: at sufficiently large chemical potential $h$, an inhomogeneous phase emerges in which $a$-particle bound states condense and which, at large $N$, corresponds to a periodically oscillating chiral condensate. In this phase, the usual dynamically generated scale $\Lambda$ is replaced by two new dynamically generated scales $\Lambda_{\rm n}$ and $\Lambda_{\rm c}$. These two scales govern the multiple nonperturbative effects in the theory, corresponding in particular to the mass gaps of neutral and charged excitations on top of the inhomogeneous vacuum, respectively. They also control the nonperturbative corrections to observables such as the free energy and provide the parameters characterizing the oscillatory profile of the mean field at large $N$. In this paper, we provide the necessary details of each of the three methods, thereby complementing the results announced in a previous, shorter publication.

The gravitational path integral can compute inner products between different states of open and closed universes. To have a well-defined Hilbert space, these inner products should be positive semi-definite, which is not manifest in the low-energy effective theory. In this letter, we analyze the constraints that the positivity of inner products imposes on gravitational theories coupled to axions. If the axion has an exact shift symmetry, we show that, under mild assumptions, a combined positivity constraint on closed and open universes is violated when one includes certain wormholes. In low-energy effective theories where these wormholes are perturbatively stable, positivity requires that the wormholes have a non-perturbative instability that breaks the shift symmetry. This leads to a sharp version of the axion weak gravity conjecture, including precise numerical constants. We relate the bound to possible extensions of other swampland conjectures, arguing for an imaginary continuation of the distance conjecture. We comment on how the bound applies to axions in string theory and discuss phenomenological implications.

We explore the coincidence of scales between cosmic inflation and right-handed neutrinos in seesaw models. We show that inflation models, which will be tested by next-generation CMB experiments, can produce right-handed neutrinos in sufficient abundance to explain the observed baryon asymmetry of the universe. The model can be tested by gravitational wave signatures from cosmic inflation and particle production.

We construct an $N=1$ supergravity action whose bosonic part contains an arbitrary function of the scalar curvature, the so-called $F(R)$ gravity. As in $R+R^2$ supergravity, it can be described in terms of two chiral superfields of no-scale supergravity: one contains the scalaron which plays the role of the Starobinsky inflaton and the other contains the goldstone fermion of spontaneously broken supersymmetry during the inflation plateau. Its (complex) scalar component acquires a non-tachyonic mass in the presence of the string dilaton and can be set to zero, together with the pseudoscalar partner of the scalaron, so that the scalar potential is reduced to the one of $F(R)$ gravity. In a perturbative expansion in powers of $R$, one obtains a small deformation of the Starobinsky cosmological model that solves the problem of initial conditions within the validity of the effective field theory, below the scale of tower of states predicted by the swampland distance conjecture. We also show that a particular example of an underlying microscopic theory with such properties is provided by a four-dimensional heterotic string model containing the Standard Model of particle physics.

We analyze three saddle points of the path integral computing the partition function of the SYK model with a Maldacena-Qi coupling in the double scaling limit. The three saddle points are holographically dual to three topologically different spacetimes: a pair of Euclidean black holes (two thermal disks), a thermal AdS$_2$ (a cylinder), and a thermal AdS$_2$ with a baby universe (a cylinder with a handle). We develop explicit chord rules that span and probe these three bulk geometries. We derive the rules by expanding the effective $G,\Sigma$ action in powers of the coupling $\mathcal{J}$ and writing the partition function as a weighted sum of chord diagrams. By slicing the diagrams open, we generate a Hilbert space description on a spatial slice for each saddle point. The Hartle-Hawking chord state for the third saddle point has genuine entanglement between the baby universe and the external spacetimes, providing evidence that a closed universe can support a nontrivial Hilbert space.

We study quantum dynamics generated by time-dependent Hamiltonians in Krylov space, the minimal subspace in which the evolution takes place. We establish a direct link between dynamics in the time-dependent Krylov subspace and the underlying Lie-algebraic structure of the Hamiltonian. We develop a general framework in which the dynamics in the time-dependent Krylov subspace is generated by ladder operators of the associated Lie algebra. In particular, we identify the minimal conditions under which the exact time-dependent Krylov dynamics is naturally determined by the interaction-picture Hamiltonian and governed by an embedded $\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb{C})$ subalgebra. We further show that an exact single-exponential representation of the time-evolution operator gives rise to a distinct time-independent Krylov dynamics in a unitarily related basis, from which the exact time-dependent Krylov dynamics can nevertheless be recovered. We also extend the framework to the oscillator algebra as the simplest extension of the nilpotent Heisenberg–Weyl algebra, and provide further examples, including the translated and dilated harmonic oscillator, systems governed by closed Virasoro subalgebras, a spin in a rotating magnetic field, and higher-dimensional generalizations for multi-level systems. In addition, we introduce a new quantum speed limit to the complexity growth rate generated by a time-dependent generator and show that, for evolutions governed by a Lie algebra, it retains the same functional form as in the time-independent case. Remarkably, saturation of this bound is strongly affected by temporal driving and persists only when the Hamiltonian commutes with itself at different times. These results establish a unified framework for characterizing operator growth and Krylov complexity in time-dependent quantum systems with underlying Lie-algebraic structures.

We present an exact black hole solution in anti-de Sitter (AdS) spacetime with a Kalb-Ramond field coupled to nonlinear electrodynamics (NLED), characterized by mass, magnetic monopole charge, and Lorentz-violating parameters. The geometry admits two horizons (inner and outer) that coalesce into a degenerate horizon at a critical monopole charge. Beyond this critical point, no black hole solutions exist. In the limit of vanishing Lorentz-violating parameters, the solution reduces to the modified Kalb-Ramond and Bardeen black holes, while suitable parameter choices reproduce the Reissner-Nordström-AdS and Schwarzschild-AdS geometries. We analyze the thermodynamics of the solution by computing the Hawking temperature, entropy, specific heat, and Gibbs free energy. The NLED source introduces nontrivial modifications: the Hawking temperature displays nonmonotonic behavior with possible local extrema, the entropy deviates from the standard area law, and the specific heat may assume negative values, signaling thermodynamic instabilities. The Gibbs free energy exhibits swallow-tail structures, indicative of first-order phase transitions. Furthermore, we derive the first law of black hole thermodynamics in the extended phase space, together with the Smarr relation, and confirm their validity for the Kalb-Ramond black holes with NLED sources. Our findings highlight the rich thermodynamic structure induced by Lorentz-violating effects and nonlinear electrodynamics in AdS black hole backgrounds.

We consider the supersymmetric solutions of several supergravity theories (ungauged $\mathcal{N}=2,d=4$ and $\mathcal{N}=1,d=5$ supergravities coupled to vector supermultiplets and pure $\mathcal{N}=1,d=10$ supergravity) and show that their generalized Komar charges vanish identically for the supersymmetric Killing vector which is constructed as a bilinear of the Killing spinors of those solutions. This property can be used to prove the supersymmetry (“BPS”) bounds satisfied by some of those solutions in a rigorous, coordinate-independent way.

We investigate the quantum entanglement properties of the Dirac field near a charged Reissner–Nordström black hole, incorporating the effects of Hawking radiation within the framework of quantum field theory in curved spacetime. Using concurrence \( C \) and Bures distance \( B \) as measures of entanglement, we analyze how quantum correlations evolve with respect to the electric charge \( Q \) of the black hole, the frequency \( \omega \) of fermionic modes, and the initial entanglement angle \( \theta \). Our results show that the electric charge \( Q \) enhances decoherence inside the event horizon while, counterintuitively, temporarily increasing accessible entanglement outside. The Hawking effect induces an apparent loss of entanglement for an external observer, due to correlation transfer to inaccessible regions. High-frequency modes \( \omega \) exhibit greater resilience to gravitational effects, maintaining robust correlations near the horizon. These findings highlight the redistribution of entanglement in a multipartite system in curved spacetime, with significant implications for quantum information in relativistic and gravitational contexts.

Chern-Simons perturbations introduce corrections to soft theorems for gauge theories at subleading $\mathcal{O}\left(\omega^0\right)$ order in soft momenta. We investigate these soft theorems in flat spacetime with perturbative $1/\ell^2$ de Sitter corrections. Following previous works, we define the perturbative scattering matrix in a compact region in the static patch of de Sitter. We show that Chern-Simons corrections do not mix with the $1/\ell^2$ de Sitter curvature corrections at subleading order $\mathcal{O}\left(\omega^0\right)$. Alternatively, one can say that the subleading Chern-Simons soft factors are insensitive to the de Sitter curvature at this order, indicating their topological nature at the level of amplitudes. This also suggests a universal behavior of these Chern-Simons soft factors.

Motivated by the indications of time-varying dark energy equation of state reported from DESI, we investigate a quintessence model with an exponential potential $V_0 e^{-\lambda\phi/m_{\mathrm{pl}}}$. We derive an analytical relationship between the current equation of state parameter for the quintessence field and the potential parameter $\lambda$ required to realize radiation and matter domination. Our results provide a useful analytical relation for inferring the potential parameter $\lambda$ from the observed current equation of state parameter. Furthermore, based on this framework, we provide a new approximate analytical upper bound on the potential parameter $\lambda$ for current accelerated expansion. Concretely, we obtain $\lambda<1.94$ as an approximate analytic estimate by adopting $\Omega_{\phi0}=0.685$.

In this work we study driven $SU(2)$ Gross-Neveu (GN) model whose time-dependent interaction strength is constrained by quantum integrability within the recently developed generalized Bethe ansatz framework. Integrability requires the coupling strengths to evolve according to the same equation as the renormalization-group (RG) flow of the corresponding static theory, where time `$t$' of the time-dependent model is identified with the logarithm of the cutoff `$\ln \Lambda$' of the static model. We reformulate the exact quantum Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov (qKZ) solution in terms of a Yang-Yang functional, whose saddle-point equations determine the long-time dynamics of the system. In the scaling regime, this analysis reveals the emergence of a characteristic time scale $t_0$. In the case of coupling strength decreasing with time, we show that in the adiabatic regime, which corresponds to $t\sim t_0$ for drive rate $\alpha_0=1$, the system exhibits a dynamically generated time-dependent mass gap, which at time $t=t_0+\Delta t$ is given by $m(t)=m_0 e^{-\pi\alpha_0\Delta t}$, where $m_0=\Lambda e^{-\pi \alpha_0 t_0}$, which possesses the same functional dependence as the non-perturbatively generated mass scale of the static GN model. We thereby establish a time-dependent analogue of dynamical dimensional transmutation and identify the adiabatic regime of the driven system with the scaling regime of the static theory. In the case of very large time scales $t\gg t_0$ for drive rate $\alpha_0$ or for very fast drive rates $\alpha$ such that $\alpha t \gg \alpha_0t_0$, for any $t<L$, we argue that the system is asymptotically free and approaches the $SU(2)_1$ WZNW model, which corresponds to the UV fixed point of the $SU(2)$ GN model.

Our work explore the time evolution of entanglement, local quantum uncertainty, and correlated coherence, within a system modeled by two double quantum dots. The dynamics is represented using a time-fractional Schrödinger equation, which includes memory effects in a non-Markovian regime. We vary the fractional parameter $\tau$, the tunneling amplitudes $\delta_A$ and $\delta_B$, as well as the inter-dot interaction strength $\mathcal{V}$, to investigate how these key parameters govern the generation, stabilization, and decay of quantum resources within the system. The obtained results reveal that, for both initial states, fractional dynamics with a low $\tau$ rapidly generates entanglement expecting maximal values $\mathcal{LN}\approx 1$ and non-classical correlations quantified by local quantum uncertainty. Conversely, higher values of $\tau$ lead to slower entanglement but memory effects allow quantum resources to remain significant for a longer time, with the negativity remaining above ($\approx 0.6$). We also find that higher interaction frequencies $\mathcal{V}$ accelerate correlations and stabilize coherence, while a strong tunneling asymmetry degrades entanglement and coherence despite the initial benefits of increasing quantum resources.

We investigate the gravitational multipole structure derived from scattering amplitudes in both four- and higher-dimensional spacetimes, with particular focus on the five-dimensional case. We develop a systematic procedure to extract multipole data from scattering amplitudes in arbitrary dimensions. In four dimensions, only two independent multipole moments exist: mass and current moments. In this setting, we analyze the coupling of massive spin-1 and spin-3/2 fields to gravity, showing how the quadrupole and octupole structure of the Kerr solution arises from minimally coupled theories. We then extend the analysis to include non-minimal couplings, deriving the most general rotating solution with spin-induced multipoles up to octupole order. In higher dimensions, an additional infinite family of “stress” multipole moments arises. Focusing on the five-dimensional case, we consider both a massive vector and a massive antisymmetric tensor coupled to gravity, and show that the resulting quadrupolar structure is qualitatively different: while the vector field produces only a mass quadrupole, the antisymmetric tensor generates only a stress quadrupole. By computing the corresponding stress-energy tensor, we demonstrate that minimally coupled theories fail to reproduce the multipolar structure of the Myers-Perry solution. This provides a direct manifestation of the breakdown of spin universality in higher dimensions.

The construction of a traversable wormhole with double-trace deformation has been achieved so far by using boson fields as the perturbation. In this work, we study double-trace deformation with fermion fields in the two-sided Kerr background to open a traversable wormhole. We construct the fermionic double-trace deformation within the Kerr/CFT framework. We consider the near-horizon, near-extremal Kerr geometry, which is dual to a conformal field theory. The lack of fermionic superradiance let us describe the wormhole at every region, even at the off-axis region where bosonic field experiences instability due to superradiance. By choosing a certain coupling between the left and right boundaries, the two-point function is modified, and its first order correction contributes the negative energy to open the wormhole. The wormhole is most traversable when the perturbation is turned on at early times, with opening that depends on the mode's frequency, the black hole temperature, and the fermion mass. At late times, the average null energy has damped oscillation behavior until eventually reaches zero. Wormhole with lower temperature have less traversability and it is completely closed at extreme limit. The same traversability can also be reproduced by using eikonal method. On the other hand, rotation and the number of fields involved in the deformation can increases the upper bound on information transfer up to the order of the entropy. Additionally, symmetrical effective potential bumps connected by the wormhole can produce observable echoes. We find that the echo time delay cannot exceed the scrambling time of the black hole.

We investigate the propagation of massless fields with spins $s=0$, $s=1$, and $s=1/2$ in the spacetime of an Euler-Heisenberg (EH) black hole surrounded by perfect fluid dark matter (PFDM). This background incorporates both the nonlinear electrodynamic correction associated with the EH effective theory and the logarithmic contribution induced by the surrounding dark matter distribution. After deriving the corresponding Schrödinger-like radial equations, we construct the effective potentials for scalar, electromagnetic, and Dirac perturbations and analyze how they are modified by the black hole charge, the EH parameter, and the PFDM parameter. The greybody factors are estimated through the rigorous Boonserm-Visser lower-bound method, and the associated partial absorption cross sections are obtained for different spin sectors using these bounds. Our results show that the nonlinear electrodynamic and dark matter parameters significantly deform the effective potential barrier, leading to potentially distinguishable changes in the transmission probabilities and absorption spectra within the model. In particular, the greybody lower bounds increase monotonically with the frequency and approach the high-frequency limit, while their low-frequency behavior is strongly affected by the geometry and by the spin of the perturbing field. Moreover, we utilize the greybody lower bound to calculate the energy emission rate. Finally, we make comparisons with the Schwarzschild, Reissner-Nordström, and pure EH limits, showing that the combined EH+PFDM background produces distinguishable corrections to black-hole scattering within the model. These results highlight greybody bounds as sensitive diagnostic probes of nonlinear electrodynamic effects and dark matter halos around compact objects.

We propose a simple ansatz that reduces the sourceless SU(2) Yang–Mills equations in (3+1) dimensions to nine algebraic constraints. Solving these constraints yields three closed-form families of exact wave solutions. Family I embeds linear electromagnetic waves into the non-Abelian theory, with vanishing commutators and dispersion \(\omega = kc\). Family II describes genuinely nonlinear self-interacting waves that also propagate at the speed of light but exhibit a constant, gauge-invariant offset in the color-electric field, nonvanishing commutators, and a discrete topological parameter \(\xi\eta = \pm 1\) that controls the position of energy-density nodes (\(\theta=0\) or \(\theta=\pi\)). This provides an observable signature with no analogue in Abelian electromagnetism. Family III is a pure gauge solution with vanishing field strengths, valid for arbitrary \(k\) and \(\omega\) without any dispersion relation. These exact solutions offer new insights into how non-Abelian self-interactions fundamentally alter wave propagation and serve as benchmarks for numerical simulations, perturbative studies, and experiments on synthetic non-Abelian gauge fields.

In this paper, we investigate the thermodynamic and radiative properties of a regular black hole sourced by primordial dark matter (PDM), modeled effectively through a Dirac–Born–Infeld (DBI) scalar field. We compute the Hawking temperature, the entropy obtained from the first law at fixed PDM scale, the specific heat capacity, the sparsity parameter of the Hawking flux, and the spectral energy emission rate. Particular attention is devoted to the role played by the regularity scale parameter \(\alpha\) and to the recovery of the Schwarzschild limit. Using the normalization in which the integration constant \(M\) is the ADM mass and \(f(r)=1-2M/r+\mathcal{O}(r^{-3})\), we find that the PDM scale suppresses the Hawking temperature and the spectral energy emission rate relative to the Schwarzschild case. The fixed-\(\alpha\) heat capacity remains negative along the physical branch, indicating the persistence of local thermodynamic instability in the canonical ensemble. Moreover, within the effective-area prescription adopted here, the geometrical sparsity parameter receives a negative leading correction in the perturbative regime \(\alpha\ll 2M\), implying a slight reduction of the intermittency of the Hawking flux. We also distinguish between the near-horizon geometrical estimate and the shadow-based high-energy absorption cross-section used in the emission rate.

The singlet-doublet dark matter (SDDM) model is a well-motivated WIMP framework that accommodates viable DM over a broad range of parameter space. In this work, we explore the possibility of TeV-scale leptogenesis within two realizations of the SDDM setup: Majorana SDDM scenario and Dirac SDDM scenario. The light neutrino mass, in either case, arises radiatively at one loop level. The particles running in the loop are responsible for DM relic and TeV-scale leptogenesis while satisfying other phenomenological constraints. In the Majorana setup, the Standard Model is extended by three generations of singlet fermions $N_i$ and doublet fermions $\Psi_i$, and a singlet scalar $\phi$. The CP-violating, out-of-equilibrium decays of the heavier singlets ($N_{2,3}$) generate baryon asymmetry via the leptogenesis route, while the first generation of singlet-doublet fermions give rise to the usual SD Majorana DM. In the Dirac setup, the standard model is extended by three generations of complex scalars ($\phi_i$) and right-handed Dirac partners ($\nu_{R_i}$) of SM neutrinos ($\nu_{L_i}$), along with a pair of singlet-doublet fermions $\chi$ and $\Psi$. The CP-violating out-of-equilibrium decays of the scalar fields $\phi_i$ generate baryon asymmetry via the Dirac leptogenesis route. We show that in the Majorana setup, successful leptogenesis is possible even in the sub-TeV regime, whereas in the Dirac setup, the leptogenesis scale is at a few TeV. With the particle mass at the TeV scale, the model remains promising for collider experiments, particularly through signatures such as prompt decays and displaced vertex searches. In addition, the presence of Dirac neutrinos can contribute to $\Delta N_{\rm eff}$, providing complementary cosmological signatures.

We investigate an integrable boundary quench, in which one integrable boundary condition is suddenly switched to another. We develop a general framework for analyzing the resulting real-time dynamics based on form factors of bulk and boundary-changing operators. We first study the problem at the conformal point of the Lee-Yang model and then extend the analysis to its massive perturbation, where we examine the time evolution of the pre-quench vacuum and compute the vacuum-to-vacuum matrix elements of local operators inserted after the quench. The analytical results are validated by numerical calculations using the truncated conformal space approach adapted to boundary-changing situations.

Primordial black holes (PBHs) can be produced from inflation if the primordial curvature power spectrum is strongly enhanced on scales much shorter than those probed by cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments. In single-field models this typically requires a transient departure from slow-roll, attractor dynamics, for example realized through a brief ultra-slow-roll phase. In these scenarios, there is reasonable concern that large-scale modes, whose statistics is tightly constrained by CMB observations, might back-react to the amplified perturbations on much shorter scales. In a perturbative expansion for the long-mode power spectrum, this effect first appears at 1-loop. In these proceedings we summarize recent works on this issue, based on the application of the separate-universe framework and its general extension with multi-point propagators. We show that back-reaction at 1-loop is due to either (i) non-linear super-horizon evolution, or (ii) 1-loop-corrected initial conditions. By assuming separation of scales and adiabaticity of the long mode, we show that the 1-loop back-reaction is not observable and large scales decouple from enhanced short ones. While we demonstrate that PBH production within single-field inflation does not disrupt large-scale predictions, we close by discussing scenarios to which our results do not apply.

The discovery of the Higgs boson by the ATLAS and CMS experiments concluded a glorious century of experimental particle physics discoveries, from Rutherford's discovery of the nucleus in 1911, through the discoveries of quarks and leptons from the 1950s to the 1970s, to the discoveries of the weak vector bosons in the 1980s. It cemented the Standard Model of particle physics as providing the viable parameterisation of all sub-atomic observables up to the TeV scale and possibly up to the GUT and Planck scales. The experimental determination of the Higgs properties and parameters will shed light on these fundamental theories. A particularly pertaining question from the point of view of String Phenomenology is whether the Higgs boson is a fundamental or composite particle. The fermionic Z2xZ2 orbifolds provide bench mark models to explore how the parameters of the Standard Model can arise from a theory of quantum gravity, as well as for physics Beyond the Standard Model. Observation that the Higgs is composite will nullify much of the work that have gone into heterotic string model building over the past 40 years and will indicate the relevance of other classes of string vacua or possibly other approaches to quantum gravity. An ideal facility in the near future to investigate this question is a hadron collider at 50-60 TeV that utilises contemporary magnet technology and can be built in 10-15 years from decision.

We investigate the relativistic generalization of the classical Störmer problem, which describes the motion of charged particles in a purely magnetic dipole field. By incorporating special relativistic effects, the particle dynamics is governed by a strongly nonlinear system of second-order differential equations derived from the Lorentz force law. We present a rigorous and fully covariant derivation of the relativistic equations of motion, together with the associated conservation laws. An exact solution for planar motions is obtained in parametric form, providing analytical insight into the structure of the trajectories. In addition, we perform a detailed numerical analysis of the particle dynamics across both nonrelativistic and relativistic regimes, exploring a range of initial conditions and highlighting the impact of relativistic corrections. The electromagnetic radiation emitted by the accelerated charges is also examined. We compute the time dependence of the total radiated power and determine the corresponding frequency spectrum. Our results provide a comprehensive characterization of magnetic dipole–type radiation associated with Störmer-like motion. In particular, the power spectral density consistently exhibits distinct peaks, indicating the presence of preferred frequency bands in the emitted radiation.

We study the signatures of the Chiral Magnetic Effect (CME) in $SU(2)$ gauge theory with $N_f = 2$ flavours of dynamical fermions at finite temperature $T$, quark chemical potential $\mu$ and a weak external magnetic field $e B$. We consider both the correlator of the axial density and the vector current, which gives direct access to the out-of-equilibrium CME, and the correlator of two vector currents, which probes the CME indirectly via the enhancement of the longitudinal electric conductivity (Negative Magnetoresistance, NMR). We find that the CME response extracted from the vector-axial correlator exhibits a rather weak dependence on temperature and density in the quark-gluon plasma regime, and is very close to the universal value for free massless quarks. The CME appears to be mildly suppressed at low temperatures in the hadronic phase. In contrast, the NMR behaves in a qualitatively different way across the phase diagram, and is strongly suppressed at either large densities or temperatures. The magnitude of the NMR response appears to be considerably smaller than the prediction based on the lowest Landau level calculation for free quarks. Our findings suggest that for relatively small magnetic field strengths $e B \lesssim m_{\pi}^2$ the relation between the CME and NMR might not be as direct as expected. We also do not find statistically significant indications for an enhancement of the CME or NMR strength in the vicinity of the crossover or second-order phase transition lines in the $(\mu, T)$ phase diagram.