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Physics

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Wednesday 29 July

Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics

Impact of numerical stability in Bayesian noise wave calibration on global 21-cm experiments

Saswata Dasgupta, Adarsh Kumar Dash, Dominic Anstey et al. (+3 more)

Detecting the global 21-cm signal from the Cosmic Dawn and Epoch of Reionization requires calibration accuracy far below the level of astrophysical foregrounds. REACH models its receiver using the noise wave formalism, with five frequency-dependent low-noise amplifier parameters fitted jointly to multiple calibration sources. We identify a numerical instability in this Bayesian calibration pipeline: the condition number of the posterior covariance matrix reaches $\kappa(\mathbf{V}^*) \sim 10^{9}$–$10^{11}$, making solutions non-reproducible across computing environments. Singular value decomposition shows that the instability is driven by near-collinearity between the design-matrix columns associated with the excess noise source temperature, $X_\mathrm{NS}$, and the load temperature, $X_\mathrm{L}$. Using a Chebyshev basis, we develop a two-step mitigation. First, fixing $T_\mathrm{NS}$ to a scalar removes the degeneracy and reduces $\kappa(\mathbf{V}^*)$ to $\sim 60$. Second, to retain frequency dependence, we recover $T_\mathrm{NS}(\nu)$ directly from the hot-load calibration measurement. On mock data, this method preserves the stability of the reduced model while achieving comparable calibration accuracy. Masking narrow channels around cable standing-wave degeneracies further removes local artefacts in the design matrix. These steps provide a stable, reproducible, and data-driven calibration procedure. Because the $X_\mathrm{NS}$–$X_\mathrm{L}$ degeneracy is inherent to the noise wave formalism, the method is relevant to other global 21-cm experiments.
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All authors Saswata Dasgupta, Adarsh Kumar Dash, Dominic Anstey, Harry T. J. Bevins, Christian Kirkham, Eloy de Lera Acedo

Quantum Physics

Optimization of C-band quantum traffic coexisting with O-band classical traffic: preliminary results

Laura d'Avossa, Elena Montella, Marco Grillo et al. (+2 more)

The coexistence of quantum and classical signals in the same optical fiber is a critical challenge for the deployment of quantum networks. Indeed, selecting an optimal channel for quantum signal transmission is crucial to minimize noise arising from co-propagating classical signals. This work experimentally investigates spontaneous Raman scattering (SpRS), a major source of noise in signals transmitted along the same fiber. Unlike most previous studies relying on narrow-linewidth laboratory lasers or architectures based on spatial or temporal multiplexing of quantum and classical signals, we employ commercial SFP optical transceivers and standard single-core single-mode fiber for the transmission of quantum and classical signals in the same fiber, reflecting conditions typical of deployed urban fiber infrastructures. Building on these measurements, we derive a compact and predictive model that captures the Raman scattering profile, enabling accurate estimation of SpRS noise as a function of source power, wavelength, and fiber length. A key outcome of this work is that the proposed model is independent of the specific optical source used, demonstrating its generality and robustness. The model can therefore be used for the identification of optimal C-band channels for quantum signal allocation, namely those least affected by SpRS noise generated by co-propagating O-band classical traffic. These results pave the way for a parameter-robust description of Raman scattering applicable to diverse fiber-based systems.
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All authors Laura d'Avossa, Elena Montella, Marco Grillo, Angela Sara Cacciapuoti, Marcello Caleffi

2607.26905 · 29 Jul · Accepted manuscript for publication in IEEE MeditCom26. This work has been funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe ERC-CoG grant QNattyNet ("Quantum-Native Communication Networks: from Quantum Message to Quantum Functioning"), n.101169850. Details at https://qnattynet.quantuminternet.it

Abstract PDF $QNTM ×7$LASR ×1

Atomic Physics

Higher-order corrections to the field shift in atomic systems

V. A. Yerokhin, Z. Harman and C. H. Keitel

Differences in nuclear charge distributions between isotopes lead to small changes in atomic spectra known as the field shift. While largely proportional to the change in the mean-square nuclear radius, the field shift also contains higher-order contributions with different dependencies on nuclear moments. Their knowledge is required in searches for new physics using King plots, since they contribute to deviations from King-plot linearity observed experimentally in recent studies. We present a systematic expansion of the field-shift energies in terms of nuclear parameters and test its validity against direct numerical calculations for H-like ions. We also compute leading- and higher-order field-shift corrections for alkali-like systems from Li-like to Rb-like ions, and find that their ratios are nearly independent of the ionic charge state, agreeing with the corresponding hydrogenic $1s$ ratios on a sub-percent level. Motivated by these findings, we introduce an approximation in which these ratios are assumed to be independent of the electronic configuration. It is shown that, within this approximation, higher-order field-shift corrections do not induce King-plot nonlinearities. We conclude that only the small contributions beyond this approximation can contribute to the nonlinearities observed experimentally.
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Quantum Physics

Revival of transport reciprocity via quantum interference in asymmetric nonlinear devices

Rupak Bag and Dibyendu Roy

Structural asymmetry combined with optical nonlinearity often leads to nonreciprocal light transport. We explore the mechanism by which 1-photon interference effects can revive reciprocity in such nonlinear models. To this end, we study correlated 2-photon scattering where an artificial atom is asymmetrically (a) side-coupled to an infinite waveguide at two spatially separated points, and (b) direct-coupled to two semi-infinite waveguides. The setup (a) gives robust reciprocal transport for the two photons. However, the setup (b) shows a transition from a nonreciprocal to a reciprocal regime by tuning the interference effect via an additional tunneling path for photons between the two waveguides.
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Fluid Dynamics

Disentangling intermittent flow structure contributions to anomalous scaling and multifractality in turbulence

Ritwik Mukherjee and Siddhartha Mukherjee

Intermittency in turbulence manifests as intense vortices and sharp peaks of dissipation. Causing the breakdown of Kolmogorov's simple self-similar theory, it leads to anomalous scaling, multifractality and so far remains beyond the scope of a complete theoretical description. How intermittent flow structures influence these different measurements is not known quantitatively. With a simple filtering procedure-thresholding vorticity and inverting the Biot-Savart law to generate filtered velocity fields-we show the effects of intermittent flow structures can be disentangled. As extreme vorticity contributions to the velocity field are filtered out, the energy spectrum scaling persists, while the bottleneck is flattened, and structure function scalings tend towards their Kolmogorov values. The approach is more rapid for transverse exponents, revealing the selective importance of intensely swirling flow regions. Similarly, the extent of multifractality reduces as intermittency is filtered, shrinking the range of roughness singularity exponents. The residual fields are curiously more multifractal, but their structure begins to break away from an underlying turbulence skeleton. The effects on vortex stretching and strain self-amplification are quantified. Our work shows that a Biot-Savart approach can selectively remove the effects of intermittency from turbulence, and hence from its scalings.
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Fluid Dynamics

Learning Backward Transport for Source Localization

Maurizio Carbone and Lorenzo Piro

We address the problem of locating a chemical source in a flow. Based on the duality between the concentration field and Lagrangian tracer trajectories, we interpret concentration detections as evidence of paths connecting the source to the detection points. This Schrödinger bridge formulation between plausible emission positions and detection points leverages the backward propagator of passive tracers to frame source localization as the sampling of candidate emission locations via Langevin dynamics. The associated drift reveals classical chemotaxis and cast-and-surge as complementary behaviors emerging from a single transport-based principle. Applied to olfactory search in two-dimensional turbulence, the proposed backtracking framework outperforms classical strategies across varying wind regimes using a single, Galilean-invariant learned propagator.
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Materials Science

Structure-Property Correlation of Cr/Cu-MnFeCoNi High-Entropy Alloys for Alkaline Water Electrolysis

Shreyasi Chattopadhyaya, Raphael B. de Oliveira, Deepti Gangwar et al. (+10 more)

High-entropy alloys (HEAs), with their unique compositional-complexity and tunable surface chemistry, have emerged as promising electrocatalysts for energy conversion. The catalytic activity of HEA often arises from the interplay between the intrinsic activity of the individual elements and the synergistic effects generated at the interfaces. Even a single-element substitution in a multicomponent HEA can substantially alter the surface-chemistry and electrochemical kinetics of the active surface. Here we investigated the structure-property relationship of CrMnFeCoNi (HEA-Cr) and MnFeCoNiCu (HEA-Cu) HEAs by comparing the alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity. Under the same experimental condition, HEA-Cu outperforms HEA-Cr towards both HER and OER. Substituting Cr with Cu significantly enhances the bifunctional activity, where HEA-Cu achieved a lower overpotential (538 mV) and Tafel slope (165 mVdec-1) when compared with HEA-Cr. Computational analysis corroborates these findings, showing that Cu substitution modulates the electronic-structure to provide favorable binding energies for reaction intermediates (H*, O*, OH*, and OOH*). Interestingly, unlike HER, recovered HEA-Cu after OER showed migration of Cu forming a Cu-rich outer layer shell with a multimetallic core. These findings demonstrate the potential of single-element substitution in HEAs as a strategy for designing high-performance, cost-effective catalysts for efficient water electrolysis.
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All authors Shreyasi Chattopadhyaya, Raphael B. de Oliveira, Deepti Gangwar, Tymofii S Pieshkov, Marcelo L. Pereira Junior, Dhiman Banik, Astrid Campos-Mata, Atin Pramanik, Soumyabrata Roy, Douglas S. Galvão, Chandra Sekhar Tiwary, Krishanu Biswas, Pulickel M Ajayana

High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

Outflow Behavior from the Transonic Advective Disks: A Hydrodynamical Simulation Study

Sanjit Debnath, Indranil Chattopadhyay, Raj Kishor Joshi et al. (+3 more)

We investigate the properties of outflows from the transonic advective accretion disk using hydrodynamical numerical simulations. We consider two different disk temperatures with an order-of-magnitude difference. For the hotter disk, we adopt initial conditions for velocity, specific angular momentum, and temperature from analytical solutions. In the colder disk case, the velocity and angular momentum profiles are kept identical, while an order of magnitude reduction in the temperature. The simulations are performed in the presence of viscosity and radiative cooling, considering bremsstrahlung and synchrotron processes. In both disk models, the outflow rate increases with viscosity. We also examine the poloidal velocity structures for both cases. We analyze the influence of viscosity on the mass flux-weighted energy and momentum fluxes of the outflows. Our results show that both energy and momentum fluxes increase with higher viscosity and may play a significant role in accretion feedback mechanisms.
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All authors Sanjit Debnath, Indranil Chattopadhyay, Raj Kishor Joshi, Philippe Laurent, Priyesh Kumar Tripathi, M. Saleem Khan

General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Junction Conditions, Radial Stability, Thermodynamics, Optical Geometry and Appearance of Polymer-Quintessence Thin-Shell Wormholes

Jonathan A. Rebouças, Edson Otoniel, M. C. Araújo et al. (+2 more)

Thin-shell wormholes built from effective black hole geometries are sensitive not only to the lapse function but also to the choice of areal radius. We construct a reflection-symmetric thin-shell wormhole from the positive-lapse sector of a polymer black hole surrounded by Kiselev-type quintessence and keep the nonareal angular function throughout the junction, stability, thermodynamic, and optical analyses. The Israel junction conditions give a negative surface energy density for every static throat on the positive branch, while the tangential null and intrinsic strong energy combinations are controlled by the local lapse slope. The radial dynamics is written as an effective-potential problem in which the nonareal sector produces a momentum-flux term and modifies the local stability criterion for surface equations of state with explicit radius dependence. For the sampled calibrated configurations, the linear barotropic and variable phantomlike closures remain locally unstable, whereas the variable Chaplygin gas admits finite linear radial stability windows. The same geometric correction also modifies the local first-law balance and shell entropy bookkeeping, while the optical analysis shows that cross-throat propagation generates additional inner image branches despite the wormhole and black hole geometries sharing the same exterior critical curve. These results identify how polymer corrections and a quintessence environment jointly reorganize the matter content, radial response, thermodynamic bookkeeping, and optical appearance of the resulting thin-shell wormhole.
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All authors Jonathan A. Rebouças, Edson Otoniel, M. C. Araújo, J. Furtado, Celio R. Muniz

Materials Science

Crystal forming ability of amorphous refractory metals under nanoindentation: a molecular dynamics study

Prashant Dwivedi, Alberto Fraile and Tomas Polcar

Amorphous refractory metal coatings combine high hardness with chemical inertness, yet their metastability makes them prone to mechanically induced crystallisation (devitrification) under contact loading, and how readily such a glass re-orders to its parent body centred cubic (bcc) crystal is unknown across the refractory series. We prepared amorphous V, Nb, Mo, Ta and W by melt quenching to 300 K, benchmarked each interatomic potential against ab initio liquid radial distribution functions and self-diffusion coefficients, and probed them by large scale molecular dynamics nanoindentation. Indentation drives a localised amorphous to bcc transformation by bulk nucleation, growth and coalescence. A crystal forming ability (CFA), the maximum slope of the sigmoidal bcc fraction versus depth curve, spans about a factor of four and decreases as V > Mo > Nb > Ta > W; it falls with indenter velocity as CFA scales as v^(-m), with a mean exponent of 1.08, so CFA.v is nearly constant and the transformation rate is almost velocity independent. Transforming atoms carry excess non affine displacement and local shear strain, not hydrostatic pressure, marking a shear associated displacive pathway; the bulk driving force is largest for the most resistant element, W, so resistance tracks cohesive bond strength rather than the thermodynamic driving force. Early bcc like order correlates with the sharpness and depth of the transition, whereas the mechanical work to half transformation correlates with the peak density of persistent bcc clusters. A cluster population balance links nucleation, growth and coalescence to a terminal microstructure whose completeness does not follow the CFA order.
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Quantum Physics

Calibrated Pressure-Observable Born and Hessian Actions for Quantum-Assisted Waveform Inversion

Guanyu Li, Jiwei Jia, Yu Wang et al. (+1 more)

We construct a pressure-consistent operator-and-readout interface for Born, adjoint, and Gauss–Newton actions in constant-density acoustic full-waveform inversion (FWI) using Schrödingerised propagation. The energy variables $\pi=c^{-1}\partial_t u$ and $q=\nabla u$ yield an auxiliary-space Hamiltonian, while physical pressure $p=c\pi$ depends explicitly on wavespeed. Its derivative $D(c\pi)[c_0](\delta c)=c_0\delta\pi+\delta c\,\pi_0$ combines propagated wavefield sensitivity with a direct receiver-calibration term. Duhamel and receiver-row differentiation retain both contributions in the Born map, its adjoint, and the Gauss–Newton normal action. We prove a conditional consistency estimate with a periodic second-order finite-difference specialization and give a resource model for state preparation, normalization, quadrature, and selected-output measurement. A compiled nine-qubit instance realizes structured preparation, product-formula propagation, a derivative-LCU block, and calibrated pressure-overlap measurements. Bernoulli samples from ideal-circuit probabilities drive a four-parameter hybrid inversion. A two-qubit VQLS circuit represents the normalized update direction, while normal-system assembly, line search, and model refresh remain classical. Finite differences, tangent and reverse-adjoint recurrences, autodiff JVP/VJP evaluations, and explicit Jacobians verify the discrete Born, adjoint, and normal actions. Smooth periodic refinement confirms second-order convergence, whereas omitting receiver calibration leaves an order-one Born error and substantially changes the regularized Gauss–Newton direction. All ten predeclared finite-shot runs reduce the initial model error. These results specify the physical-pressure derivative and selected-output measurements needed to connect Schrödingerised propagation to a local FWI update.
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All authors Guanyu Li, Jiwei Jia, Yu Wang, Yuping Duan

High Energy Physics (Experiment)

Improved analysis of non-resonant Higgs boson pair production in the $b\bar{b}\tau^+\tau^-$ final state with $196$ fb$^{-1}$ of data collected at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV and 13.6 TeV with the ATLAS detector

ATLAS Collaboration

A search for non-resonant Higgs boson pair production (HH) in the $b\bar{b}\tau^+\tau^-$ final state is performed using 140 $fb^{-1}$ and 56 $fb^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data at centre-of-mass energies of $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV and 13.6 TeV, respectively, recorded by the ATLAS detector during 2015-2023 at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Relative to the previous ATLAS searches in the same final state, the analysis benefits from the additional dataset collected at 13.6 TeV and from improvements in both event reconstruction and analysis techniques. The Higgs boson pair production cross-section divided by the Standard Model (SM) prediction is found to be $\mu_{HH}= 2.6^{+1.4}_{-1.0}$, consistent with the SM expectation. This corresponds to an observed (expected) significance of 2.6 (1.2) standard deviations over the background-only hypothesis of no HH production and 1.65 standard deviations with respect to the SM prediction. Under the assumption that all other Higgs boson couplings take their SM values, the observed (expected) 95% confidence level interval for the Higgs boson self-coupling modifier is found to be $\kappa_{\lambda} \in [-3.4, 1.6] \cup [5.5, 10.1]$ ($\kappa_{\lambda} \in[-1.7, 8.5]$). As a validation of the analysis strategy, measurements of the ZH and ZZ processes are performed in the same final state using the same event selection, yielding observed (expected) significances of 3.5 (2.4) and 1.8 (2.7) standard deviations, respectively, relative to the background-only prediction.
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High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Revising Indirect Dark Matter Constraints with Updated Astrophysical $J$-Factor Priors

Giacomo D'Amico

Indirect searches for particle dark matter with gamma-ray experiments have produced a large number of constraints on the annihilation cross section (or decay lifetime) over a wide range of dark matter masses. These constraints depend critically on the assumed astrophysical $J$ factor and its uncertainty, which encodes the dark matter distribution in the target and represents the dominant source of systematic uncertainty. As improved observational data and dynamical modeling are expected to revise current $J$-factor determinations, many published limits risk becoming obsolete unless the full experimental analyses are repeated. In this work we present a general and statistically consistent framework for updating published dark matter limits when revised $J$-factor estimates become available, without requiring access to the full experimental likelihood. We derive an analytical expression that quantifies the impact of astrophysical uncertainties on dark matter limits, treating both Gaussian and log-normal priors on the $J$ factor. The formalism is validated through toy Monte Carlo simulations, including dedicated studies of its numerical stability under successive reinterpretations, and demonstrate their accuracy by reproducing published limits. Lastly, we further show that the formalism naturally extends to the combination of multiple targets through a simple numerical procedure, allowing limits to be combined and updated using only publicly available information. The proposed method is intended as a complementary reinterpretation tool for situations in which a complete experimental reanalysis is impractical, offering a practical means to preserve and extend the scientific relevance of published dark matter constraints across present and future experiments.
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Soft Condensed Matter

Squirming motion near corrugated surfaces

Sagnik Garai, Thomas G. Fai and Christina Kurzthaler

Swimming microorganisms often operate in complex confinement, where an interplay of long-ranged hydrodynamic interactions and a short-ranged repulsive interaction can give rise to interesting dynamical behaviors. Here, we theoretically investigate the trajectories of microswimmers - modeled as squirmers - in the presence of periodic boundaries. The latter modify their swimming velocity, leading to behaviors that differ qualitatively from swimming near planar walls. Using a perturbative approach based on bispherical coordinates and the Lorentz reciprocal theorem, we characterize the interaction between a squirmer and a periodic surface in the limit of small surface amplitude and systematically explore its dependence on the boundary corrugation wavelength, squirmer type, orientation, and swimmer-surface distance. Most importantly, our results reveal that pullers become trapped in the valley of the surface corrugations, in contrast to their sliding motion near planar walls. Furthermore, the near-surface dynamics of pushers display oscillations, reflecting the periodicity of the surface structure. A tilt of the swimmer orientation with respect to the surface corrugations results in a wave-length dependent drift that sorts pushers from pullers. These findings highlight the impact of hydrodynamic interactions in shaping microswimmer transport near structured boundaries with potential implications for microbiological phenomena, such as biofilm formation, and technological applications.
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General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Advanced Virgo during the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA fourth observing run

Virgo Collaboration: F Acernese, A Agapito, D Agarwal et al. (+545 more)

From April 10, 2024 to November 18, 2025 Advanced Virgo participated in the fourth observing run of the network of gravitational-wave detectors, together with Advanced LIGO and KAGRA. For this observing run Advanced Virgo has completed its design optical configuration with the installation of a signal recycling mirror. In this paper we describe the challenges encountered in commissioning this optical configuration, alongside the other upgrades performed between the third and fourth observing run. The Virgo detector operated with a 68.9% duty cycle and with an angle-averaged median range to binary neutron star mergers of 53 Mpc.
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All authors Virgo Collaboration: F Acernese, A Agapito, D Agarwal, I-L Ahrend, L Aiello, A Ain, W Ali, A Allocca, W Amar, A Amato, F Amicucci, C Amra, M Andia, T Andri, S Antier, F Arciprete, F Armato, N Arnaud, L Asprea, M Assiduo, S Assis de Souza Melo, P Astone, F Attadio, F Aubin, G Avallone, N Avdeev, S Babak, S Bagnasco, S Baimukhametova, T Baka, G Balbi, G Baldi, N Baldicchi, G Ballardin, M Ballelli, B Banerjee, M Baratti, F Barone, M Barsuglia, D Barta, A Basti, M Bawaj, M Bazzan, F Beirnaert, M Bejger, C Bellani, D Beltran-Martinez, E Benedetti, I Bentara, S Bera, D Bersanetti, T Bertheas, A Bertolini, J Bezerra-Sobrinho, V Biancalana, F Bianchi, M Bilicki, A Binetti, S Biot, M Bitossi, M-A Bizouard, M Bloch, G Boileau, M Boldrini, R Bonnand, N Borghi, V Boschi, Y Bothra, A Boudon, A Bozzi, C Bradaschia, M Branchesi, T Briant, A Brillet, M L Brozzetti, G Bruno, F Bucci, A Buchicchio, A Buggiani, O Bulashenko, T Bulik, H J Bulten, R Buscicchio, N Busdon, D Buskulic, R Cabrita, G Cagnoli, E Calloni, E Capocasa, G Capoccia, G Capurri, F Carbognani, M Carpinelli, A Casallas-Lagos, J Casanueva Diaz, C Casentini, R Cavalieri, G Cella, P Cerd, E Cesarini, W Chaibi, E Chassande-Mottin, S Chaty, P Chessa, F Chiadini, A Chincarini, A Chiummo, A Chopra, N Christensen, G Ciani, M Cie, P Ciecielag, M Cifaldi, S Clesse, F Cleva, E Coccia, E Codazzo, P-F Cohadon, A Colombo, G Comp, L Conti, I Cordero-Carri, S Corezzi, S Cortese, L A Corubolo, A Cozzumbo, K Csuk, E Cuoco, M Cusinato, R R Cuzinatto, B D'Angelo, S D'Antonio, L D'Onofrio, D D'Urso, G D, S Dall'Osso, T Dal Canton, S Dal Pra, S Danilishin, V Dattilo, A Daumas, P Davis, J Degallaix, C J Delgado Mendez, S Della Torre, W Del Pozzo, A Demagny, G Demasi, A Depasse, J De Bolle, M De Laurentis, F De Lillo, F De Marco, F De Matteis, C de Melo, R De Pietri, R De Rosa, C De Rossi, R De Simone, S Dhage, C Diaz, F Diaz Guerra, M A Dicorato, D Diksha, J Ding, M Di Cesare, M Di Giovanni, S Di Pace, I Di Palma, D Di Piero, F Di Renzo, A Domiciano De Souza, O Dorosh, M Drago, M Dubois, U Dupletsa, H Duval, H Einsle, V Ernst, L Errico, M Esposito, F Fabrizi, V Fafone, M Fays, E Fenyvesi, A Feo, G Fern, T Fernandes, S Ferraiuolo, F Fidecaro, P Figura, I Fiori, V Fiumara, R Flaminio, F Flocco, J A Font, A Fragkos, N Franchini, F Frappez, F Frasconi, A Freise, O Freitas, S Galaudage, M Galimberti, B Garaventa, J Garc, P Garc, J Gargiulo, X Garrido, F Garufi, C Gasbarra, F Gautier, G Gemme, A Gennai, V Gennari, A Ghinassi, Archisman Ghosh, F Gittins, F Glotin, E Glowacki, S Gomez Lopez, A Goodwin-Jones, M Gosselin, C Gostiaux, R Gouaty, D Goupilliere, A Grado, M Granata, V Granata, G Greco, A C Green, C Grimaud, G M Guidi, F Gulminelli, Y Guo, M Haney, S Harikumar, J Harms, M T Hartman, B Haskell, D Hegde, H Heitmann, G Hemming, J Heynen, S Hild, D Hofman, L Honet, W-F Hsu, L Iampieri, G A Iandolo, M Ianni, A Ierardi, P Iosif, J Irwin, C Jacquet, T Jacquot, J Janquart, S Jaraba, P Jaranowski, G Joubert, B Kacskovics, A Karia, W Kiendrebeogo, S Koley, A E Koloniari, A Kr, E Kraja, S L Kranzhoff, J Kubisz, S Kuroyanagi, N Lajili, A Lakhal, M Lalleman, J A Lange, A Lartaux-Vollard, L Lavezzi, C Lazzaro, P Leaci, F Legger, A Lema, R Lemrani Alaoui, M Lenti, M Leonardi, M Lequime, N Letendre, M Lethuillier, S Lexmond, M Le Jean, T G F Li, F Liu, J-P Locquet, A Longo, M Lopez Portilla, M Lorenzini, V Loriette, M Lorusso, G Losurdo, D Lumaca, L Lunghini, A Macquet, S S Madekar, S Maenaut, E Maggio, M Magnozzi, E Majorana, N Man, M Mancarella, V Mangano, M Mantovani, M Mapelli, S Marchetti, F Marion, S Marsat, F Martelli, M Martinez, V Martinez, A Martini, J C Martins, L Massaro, A Masserot, S Mastrogiovanni, G Mastropasqua, L Maurin, L G Medeiros, L Mereni, C Michel, E Milotti, V Milotti, E Minakaki, Y Minenkov, Ll. M Mir, L Mirasola, C-A Miritescu, L Mobilia, M Montani, G Montefusco, A Moreso Serra, G Morras, A Moscatello, B Mours, C M Mow-Lowry, L Muccillo, F Muciaccia, D Nabari, S Nadji, A Nagar, D Nanadoumgar-Lacroze, V Napolano, A Nardecchia, I Nardecchia, H Narola, L Naticchioni, L Negri, A Nemmani, T C K Ng, S Nissanke, F Nocera, J Novak, M Oertel, G Oganesyan, R Oliveira, A Ouzriat, M A Palaia, C Palomba, P T H Pang, F Pannarale, M Panzeri, F Paoletti, A Paoli, A Paolone, L Papalini, G Papigkiotis, A Paquis, A Parisi, D Pascucci, A Pasqualetti, D Passuello, B Patricelli, K Paul, A Perreca, J Perret, D Pesios, C Petrillo, L Piccari, M Pichot, M Piendibene, F Piergiovanni, L Pierini, G Pierra, V Pierro, M Pillas, L Pinard, I M Pinto, M Pinto, A Pisarski, E Placidi, R Poggiani, E Polini, M Polo, J Pomper, E Porcelli, E K Porter, M Pracchia, G Principe, G A Prodi, P Prosperi, P Prosposito, M Punturo, P Puppo, G Qu, I Rainho, P Rapagnani, M Razzano, T Regimbau, A I Renzini, B Revenu, A Revilla-Pe, F Ricci, M Ricci, A Ricciardone, A Riminucci, F Robinet, A Rocchi, L Rolland, R Romano, A Romero-Rodr, S Ronchini, D Rosi, S Roy, D Rozza, P Ruggi, E Ruiz Morales, F Safai Tehrani, P Saffarieh, T Sainrat, S Sajith Menon, L Salconi, F Salemi, M Sall, M Salom, S Salvador, A Samajdar, N Sanchis-Gual, F Santoliquido, F Sarandrea, P Sassi, B Sassolas, M Schoor, K Schouteden, M Schulz, M Scialpi, M Seglar-Arroyo, J W Seo, V Sequino, M Serra, A Sevrin, L Silenzi, P J S Silva, L Silvestri, L Smith, S Soares de Albuquerque Filho, V Sordini, F Sorrentino, F Spada, V Spagnuolo, M Spera, P Spinicelli, D A Steer, J Steinlechner, S Steinlechner, N Stergioulas, M Suchenek, S Sudhagar, J Sun, J Suresh, A Svizzeretto, B L Swinkels, A Syx, M J Szczepa, M Tacca, M Tagliazucchi, I Takimoto Schmiegelow, N Tamanini, L Tao, E N Tapia San Mart, A Theodoropoulos, J Tissino, P Tiwari, E Tofani, M Toffano, I Tosta e Melo, E Tournefier, A Trapananti, R Travaglini, F Travasso, M C Tringali, G Troian, A Trovato, L Trozzo, M Turconi, C Turski, H Ubach, M Vacatello, M Valentini, E Vallejo-Pag, S Vallero, M van Dael, E Van den Bossche, J F J van den Brand, C Van Den Broeck, M van der Kolk, M van der Sluys, A Van de Walle, J van Dongen, H van Haevermaet, J V van Heijningen, P Van Hove, N van Remortel, M Vardaro, G Vedovato, S Venikoudis, P Verdier, M Vereecken, D Verkindt, S Verma, F Vetrano, A Veutro, A Vicer, N Villanueva Espinosa, J-Y Vinet, S Viret, H Vocca, M Was, M Wils, I C F Wong, T Wouters, M Wright, Z Wu, N Yadav, M Zanatta, T Zelenova, J-P Zendri, M Zeoli, M Zerrad, J Zhang, Y Zhao, L Zhizhong, L Zimmermann

Strongly Correlated Electrons

Microscopic Emergence of Ancilla Lattice Physics in the Emery Model

Mikołaj Walicki, Johannes Knolle and Krzysztof Wohlfeld

We derive a controlled low-energy effective theory for the three-band Emery model on the Lieb lattice near (n=2) filling. Starting from the positive charge-transfer regime, a sequence of Schrieffer–Wolff transformations rigorously establishes a direct microscopic mapping onto an ancillary lattice structure. For realistic cuprate-like parameters, this framework naturally reproduces the conventional Fermi-liquid (FL) phase at a filling shifted by one electron per site. Our analysis identifies the precise microscopic conditions required to access the exotic fractionalized Fermi-liquid (FL$^*$) phase. We show that realizing FL$^*$ requires nonstandard cuprate parameter regimes together with additional interactions that stabilize a quantum spin liquid in the background ancilla layer. These results establish a microscopic foundation for ancilla physics in multiorbital materials and clarify the conditions for realizing FL$^*$. We discuss the possibility to replicate ancilla model physics in Lieb lattice cold atom simulations.
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High Energy Physics (Theory)

World-Line Actions in Weyl Geometry

Cezar Condeescu and Andrei Micu

In this note we construct, from a gauge theory perspective, the world-line action for a particle moving on a time-like curve in Weyl geometry. The action we find is dimensionless, Weyl invariant, additive and, in general, non-local due to an open Wilson line which we have to add in order to account for a general Weyl field. In special cases, this Wilson line can be local, but the geometry becomes integrable. The action can not be used to measure the proper time as it is dimensionless and no mass parameter is allowed in the symmetric phase of the theory. We show that the usual conditions for defining proper time: affine parametrization, dimension of time and additivity supplemented by the requirement of Weyl invariance can not be fulfilled simultaneously and therefore no satisfactory notion of proper time exists in the symmetric phase. Under spontaneous symmetry breaking the particle acquires a mass, the action becomes Riemannian and the proper time can be again defined. We also construct a classically equivalent quadratic action by using an einbein on the world-line and show that the non-locality can be seen to arise from integrating out a constrained field.
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Quantum Physics

Analytical Series Expansion for Efficient Gradient Evaluation in Multi-Qubit Optimal Control

Ashutosh Mishra, Elena Lupo, Frank K. Wilhelm et al. (+1 more)

Gradient-based quantum optimal control and the theory of operator evolution are rarely discussed together. In this Letter, we bridge this gap by showing that the gradient of the time-evolved propagator involves the Heisenberg evolution of local operators. We present a unifying framework by deriving from first principles the formal solution for the gradient under an arbitrary pulse parameterization, and show that the same construction extends to derivatives of any order. We obtain a series of nested, time-independent commutators weighted by time-dependent scalar coefficients. The commutators are thus computed once, and each optimization step only updates the scalars. The method is particularly suited for simulating optimal control tasks in quantum systems with local interactions, which is a common situation in large multi-qubit platforms. In this setting, light-cone arguments and sparse-Pauli truncation heuristics may be used to keep the number of relevant terms in the series small. We compare the computational cost required for the series with the Gradient Optimization of Analytic conTrols (GOAT) method, and, focusing on the problem of preparation of a GHZ state, demonstrate more than an order of magnitude speedup for a qubit ladder and a chain geometry.
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All authors Ashutosh Mishra, Elena Lupo, Frank K. Wilhelm, Alessandro Ciani

Strongly Correlated Electrons

Electronic and magnetic properties of small one-dimensional Wigner crystals from an ab initio approach

Daniele Lagasco and Jan Arjan Berger

We present an ab initio method to study the electronic and magnetic properties of small one-dimensional Wigner crystals. In particular, we focus on the calculation of the electronic charge distribution and the exchange coupling constant. Our theoretical studies are motivated by the experimental observation of few-electron Wigner crystals in a carbon nanotube [Science 364, 870 (2019)]. We model the experimental setup by confining electrons in a one-dimensional potential well with infinite side barriers. We represent the Hamiltonian of the system in a basis of Slater determinants and perform full configuration interaction to ensure we capture all the electron correlation for a given basis set. As the one-particle basis set we use particle-in-a-box wave functions which by construction satisfy the boundary conditions. With our approach, we obtain accurate electronic density profiles of small one-dimensional Wigner crystals. These profiles clearly show the localisation of the electrons. Finally, we present a simple approach to obtain the exchange coupling constant by mapping our ab initio method on a Heisenberg Hamiltonian. We illustrate our approach on a Wigner dimer. We obtain excellent agreement with a result in the literature.
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Quantum Physics

Enhancing the security of coherent one-way quantum key distribution using CHSH correlations

Mahdi Shaban, Farnaz Farman and Alireza Bahrampour

The coherent one-way (COW) protocol is a quantum key distribution scheme that has attracted significant attention, leading to the development and commercialization of practical implementations. Despite this progress, the security of the COW protocol has remained a fundamental challenge since its introduction. Numerous studies have investigated its security, and several security proofs have been proposed over the years. More recently, a number of works have questioned the security of this protocol. In particular, one of the latest studies introduced an attack that severely limits the security of COW-QKD and reported a maximum secure distance of less than 20km. In this work, we introduce minimal alteration to the COW protocol that can enhance its security. Specifically, instead of monitoring the coherence between successive pulses, we propose to monitor quantum correlations through the violation of Bell inequalities. This approach enables the detection of a broader class of potential attacks. Our simulation results indicate that, by employing this method, the maximum secure distance of the protocol can be extended to approximately 259km.
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Solar and Stellar Astrophysics

eROSITA all-sky survey - stars and optical loading

J. Robrade, K. Dennerl, M.J. Freyberg et al. (+1 more)

eROSITA (extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) on board the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) spacecraft has performed the eROSITA All-Sky Survey (eRASS) at X-ray energies. We study the brighter stars to assess the impact of optical loading in the eROSITA all-sky survey, here specifically the eRASS:3. Further we use thermal plasma models to investigate the general properties of stellar eRASS sources and compare optical loading affected stars to coronal sources. We compare data from Gaia DR3, Tycho-2, 2MASS and the SIMBAD database with the eRASS count rates of brighter stars. We analyze X-ray images, light curves and spectra for sources suspected to be affected by optical loading and determine their properties. eROSITA source properties are checked in comparison to genuine coronal sources with generated sets of APEC model spectra, where we determine rate conversion factors and hardness ratios for stellar X-ray emitter. Regarding optical loading we find a clear correlation between optical brightness and observed minimum count rate in the range of about 2\,–\,5 mag (V/G band), which then saturates for very bright sources. While magnitude and color are the main determinants, exposure depth and specific scanning paths also matter. For intrinsic X-ray emitters, optical contamination is likewise observed. We characterize the fake X-ray sources, address pseudo variability and spectral properties. To interpret stellar eRASS data, hardness ratios and count rate conversions for thermal plasma models are provided. The eROSITA data is prone to optical loading, which was studied in greater detail. The optical loading flag for the DR2 is set, if sources are brighter than 5.0~mag (B, V, G) or 3.5~mag (J). It is somewhat dependent on exposure depth, but we expect only minor changes for future data releases.
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All authors J. Robrade, K. Dennerl, M.J. Freyberg, J.H.M.M. Schmitt

High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Imaging non-hydrodynamic modes with jet wakes

Aleksi Kurkela, Ian Moult, Alexander Soloviev et al. (+1 more)

While studies of ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions have established that the quark–gluon plasma exhibits hydrodynamic behavior, direct signatures of non-hydrodynamic modes have remained elusive, and no observable is known to be exclusively sensitive to them. Here, we show that the angular structure of the jet wake provides such a probe. In the long-wavelength limit, hydrodynamics contributes only to the lowest angular moments of the detector image of the jet wake, while higher moments directly encode microscopic non-equilibrium dynamics. The jet wake thus serves as a spectroscopic probe of the medium's non-hydrodynamic sector. We develop a general kinetic-theory framework relating the angular moments of the late-time energy flux generated by a jet to the relaxation spectrum of the collision operator. In all models considered, non-hydrodynamic modes leave distinct imprints on the higher angular moments. Our results motivate precision measurements of the higher angular moments of the negative jet wake.
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All authors Aleksi Kurkela, Ian Moult, Alexander Soloviev, Urs Achim Wiedemann

Fluid Dynamics

Rotational equivariance and locality in data-driven subgrid-scale closures

Ryley McConkey, Julia Balla, Elyssa Hofgard et al. (+2 more)

Data-driven subgrid-scale closures for large eddy simulation are of significant interest in many engineering and geoscience applications. In this context, several important questions remain about the role of rotational equivariance as an inductive bias for learned tensorial mappings. We investigate whether equivariance improves accuracy, parameter efficiency, and generalization for subgrid-scale modelling at realistic filter ratios. For turbulent channel flow, we compare data-augmented non-equivariant architectures to those with equivariance as an inductive bias. We compare both pointwise and nonlocal versions of these two model classes. All models are evaluated at matched parameter counts across spatiotemporal, anisotropy, and Reynolds number generalization. We show that non-augmented models learn a small degree of equivariance directly from turbulence data, especially when that data is more isotropic. The equivariant nonlocal architecture attains the highest correlation coefficient on every generalization test at approximately half the parameter count of its non-equivariant counterpart, while the pointwise architectures do not improve on the analytical Clark baseline. Additionally, the equivariant model is more data-efficient than a non-equivariant model. The benefit of equivariance grows with the receptive field of the model, indicating that equivariance and nonlocality are both useful for the subgrid-scale closure task at realistic dataset size, parameter counts, and filter size.
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All authors Ryley McConkey, Julia Balla, Elyssa Hofgard, Tess Smidt, Abigail Bodner

General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Bridging Superfluid and Nonminimally Coupled BEC Dark Matter through RAQUAL

Stefano Liberati, Valentin Pomakov and Samuele Silveravalle

Motivated by their common condensed-matter inspiration and their shared aim of reconciling MOND-like phenomenology on galactic scales with particle dark matter on larger scales, we investigate the relation between Superfluid Dark Matter (SFDM) and Bose–Einstein Condensate Dark Matter (BECDM). Since SFDM is formulated in the Newtonian regime whereas BECDM is fully relativistic, we first show that the MONDian formulation of SFDM arises as the Newtonian, low-acceleration limit of a Relativistic AQUAdratic Lagrangian (RAQUAL) theory in the Einstein frame. We then transform its covariant interaction sector to the Jordan frame and compare it with BECDM. The phonon–baryon interaction of SFDM maps onto the BECDM derivative coupling to the Einstein tensor, supplemented by a small non-minimal coupling to the Ricci scalar. The interaction sectors are therefore equivalent up to a linear perturbation of the Einstein–Hilbert term. Their kinetic sectors, however, remain inequivalent: the standard quadratic kinetic term of BECDM cannot be mapped onto the non-analytic kinetic term required by SFDM. The two models are consequently related but not dynamically equivalent. This mapping provides a covariant interpretation of the SFDM interaction and clarifies which theoretical properties can be transferred between the two frameworks.
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Materials Science

Magnetic hopfions at room temperature

Kaixin Zhu, Wenli Gao, Zhan Wang et al. (+12 more)

Hopfions are three-dimensional (3D) topological solitons predicted to exist in diverse magnetic systems, yet their practical utility has been largely restricted to cryogenic environments. Here, we overcome this temperature constraint by demonstrating stable magnetic hopfions in the chiral magnet Co8Zn8Mn4 at and above room temperature. Using a transmission electron microscope equipped for in situ optical excitation, we generate magnetic hopfions with femtosecond laser pulses. Long-term observations further reveal Brownian-like motion at room temperature and thermally activated collapse upon approaching the high-temperature regime. Together with micromagnetic simulations and homotopy group analysis, our experimental observations uncover the hopfion formation mechanism through the fusion of bimeron pairs. These findings establish room-temperature magnetic hopfions and provide a framework for their further studies under technologically relevant conditions.
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All authors Kaixin Zhu, Wenli Gao, Zhan Wang, Shuaishuai Sun, Siyuan Huang, Junxi Tong, Jun Li, Huanfang Tian, Zian Li, Huaixin Yang, Ying Zhang, Olle Eriksson, Filipp N. Rybakov, Nikolai S. Kiselev, Jianqi Li

Materials Science

Inferring Magnetic Material Parameters from Statistical Measures in Strongly Fluctuating Magnetization Dynamics

Kübra Kalkan, Atreya Majumdar, Ross Knapman et al. (+5 more)

Magnetic material parameters such as the exchange stiffness and magnetic anisotropy govern the behavior and functionality of magnetic systems, yet their local inference from magnetization data remains challenging, particularly in strongly fluctuating regimes with polycrystalline or multiphase microstructure, where conventional texture-based methods become unreliable. We introduce a magnetization-only framework for inferring material parameters from thermally driven magnetization dynamics. Using micromagnetic simulations, we extract statistical quantities such as temporal mean and latent entropy from the magnetization dynamics, fit models to these descriptors, and invert the models to infer material parameters. We show that this framework enables material-parameter inference as well as grain-boundary detection in a heterogeneous sample. Among the descriptors considered, latent entropy yields more accurate parameter estimates than the temporal mean. Our results establish latent entropy as an efficient descriptor for inferring magnetic material parameters from dynamical magnetization data and point toward its use for experimental parameter extraction at high temperatures and, more broadly, under strongly fluctuating conditions.
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All authors Kübra Kalkan, Atreya Majumdar, Ross Knapman, Omer Fetai, Franziska Scheibel, Sabrina Disch, Illia Horenko, Karin Everschor-Sitte

High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

Paleodetectors for neutrino signals from diverse Galactic stellar collapses

Mahiro Yamasaki and Ken'ichiro Nakazato

The detectability of neutrinos from past Galactic core collapse supernovae (SNe) is investigated in terms of nuclear recoil tracks in ancient minerals, known as paleodetectors. To account for the diversity of core-collapse outcomes, variations in neutron star (NS) masses as well as failed SNe leading to black hole (BH) formation are taken into account. The role of the nuclear equation of state (EOS) is also considered, as it determines NS radii and maximum masses. The enhancement of sensitivity is quantified for models with larger neutrino emission. This emission reflects the gravitational energy released during core collapse and is larger for more compact remnants in the NS-forming case and for EOS with larger maximum masses in the BH-forming case. Furthermore, motivated by the hypothesis that nearby SN activity may have contributed to the snowball Earth events, the sensitivity to SNe occuring in a burst-like manner is also investigated. The results indicate that burst-like SN activity involving several tens of events at a distance of 10 pc would be within the reach of paleodetectors.
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Statistical Mechanics

The Role of Odd Diffusivity in Multipoint Statistics of State-Dependent Observables

Jong-Min Park

Odd diffusivity is a transverse transport coefficient that appears when time-reversal and parity symmetries are broken. Its most distinctive signature is a probability flux perpendicular to a density gradient, generated by the antisymmetric part of the diffusion tensor. Here we show that for an arbitrary number of state-dependent observables measured at arbitrary times, their joint statistics are independent of the antisymmetric part of the diffusion tensor. Thus, the Lorentz flux does not contribute to any multipoint state-observable measurements. The result clarifies the separate roles of two effects that are often linked together by fluctuation–dissipation relations, i.e., odd mobility and odd diffusivity. This observation demonstrates that the anomalous correlations in odd-diffusive systems originate solely from odd mobility. It also allows the statistics of state-dependent observables in odd-diffusive systems to be computed using conventional Langevin dynamics without the antisymmetric diffusion part while preserving the antisymmetric mobility tensor. It implies that universal relations associated with state-dependent observables alone, such as nonlinear fluctuation–dissipation relations and generalized Green–Kubo relations, remain valid in odd-diffusive systems without modification. We verify our findings through mean back relaxation, the diffusion coefficient, the nonlinear fluctuation–dissipation relation, and a generalized Green–Kubo relation in diverse systems.
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Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics

Optimizing the extraction of information from redshift probability distribution functions

Rodrigo Duarte and Valerio Marra

Photometric redshifts are essential for large-scale structure analyses, yet extracting optimal point estimates and reliability measures from the probability distribution functions (PDZs) delivered by modern photo-$z$ pipelines remains challenging. We introduce turboPDZ, a machine-learning framework using PDZ features and associated observables to optimize redshift point estimates and derive a data-driven reliability score. We apply it to the three independent HSC-SSP PDR3 pipelines (DEmP, DNNz, Mizuki) across Wide and Deep/UltraDeep layers. Each PDZ is compressed via PCA and combined with summary descriptors. A multilayer perceptron, optimized with Optuna under a composite objective ($\sigma_{\rm NMAD}$ and $\eta_{0.15}$), predicts $z_{\rm ml}$. A second network, trained in log-space with MAE and calibrated post hoc, yields an empirical error scale $\sigma_{\rm ml}$, from which the reliability score $r_{\rm ml}$ is derived via percentile ranking. Relative to catalog point estimates, $z_{\rm ml}$ improves both metrics in all six pipeline-layer combinations. Absolute median bias is smaller in four configurations and tied in two. The reliability score achieves the lowest retained-fraction AUC in 10 of 12 native pipeline-layer/metric comparisons. For the Mizuki template-fitting pipeline, catalog reliability indicators have AUC values up to about 13 times larger than those of $r_{\rm ml}$. Feature importance shows that point estimation is dominated by PCA and location statistics, whereas reliability estimation gives greatest weight to peak, PCA, and shape information. The framework is survey-agnostic, but each PDZ dataset requires its own fitted preprocessing, PCA basis, and trained models. The code will be released as a reusable Python library at \href{https://github.com/valerio-marra/turboPDZ}{github.com/valerio-marra/turboPDZ}.
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Materials Science

End-to-End Modeling of a Volatile TiO2 Memristor for Neuromorphic Circuit Simulation

Lukas Endres, Hannes Töpfer, Michaela Blum et al. (+2 more)

Memristors are promising devices for applications such as non-volatile memory, neuromorphic computing, logic circuits, and analog signal processing. The development of such systems requires accurate simulations based on models that reproduce the electrical behavior of real devices under both continuous and pulsed excitation. This work presents the development of a simulation environment for a volatile TiO2-based memristor. Experimental measurement data are analyzed to verify the memristive behavior of the device and to identify a suitable model. The model parameters are then optimized to match the measured characteristics. The resulting model is implemented in SPICE and validated by comparing simulation results with measurement data. The comparison shows a good agreement between simulation and experiment, demonstrating that the developed model is suitable for reproducing the electrical behavior of the investigated memristor and can be applied in circuit-level simulations, as demonstrated by a leaky integrate-and-fire neuron.
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All authors Lukas Endres, Hannes Töpfer, Michaela Blum, Hauke Honig, Peter Schaaf