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Physics

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Tuesday 1 September

Astrophysics of Galaxies

The Stellar Populations of Two Quiescent Low Surface Brightness Dwarf Galaxies in Low Density Environments

Duncan A. Forbes, Hannah S. Christie, Arsen Levitskiy et al. (+3 more)

Dwarf galaxies located in low density environments that have quiescent stellar populations are extremely rare and the mechanism for quenching their stars is highly uncertain. Here we present two low surface brightness dwarf galaxies with large (>1.2 kpc) effective radii that were previously identified in the Dragonfly Ultrawide Survey for which we have obtained spectra using the KCWI instrument on the Keck II telescope. We derive their stellar populations and star formation histories in several radial bins out to 1.25 effective radii. Globally both galaxies are old (~9 Gyr) and metal-poor ([M/H] ~ -1) and reveal quenching on a relatively rapid timescale (~1 Gyr). We find flat to rising age and metallicity gradients in both galaxies. This is similar to those seen in ultra diffuse galaxies but is in contrast with typical classical dwarf galaxies and predictions from simulations. One galaxy, DFUWS 68, hosts several globular clusters which we find to share similar ages, metallicities and quenching timescales to that of the host galaxy stars.We briefly discuss possible quenching mechanisms and suggest that neither cosmic web stripping nor internal feedback processes alone can explain our results.
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All authors Duncan A. Forbes, Hannah S. Christie, Arsen Levitskiy, Jonah S. Gannon, Anna Ferre-Mateu Aaron J. Romanowsky, Jean P. Brodie

High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Flavor-Violating Higgs and Top Decays in the Type 1B Flavorful Two-Higgs-Doublet Model with a Twist

Ti-Bin Hou, Zheng Li, Yu-Ju Peng et al. (+3 more)

We study flavor-violating decays of the SM-like Higgs boson and rare top decays in the Type 1B realization of the flavorful two-Higgs-doublet model with a twist, focusing on $h\to sb$, $h\to db$, $h\to uc$, $h\to\mu\tau$, $h\to e\tau$, $h\to e\mu$, $t\to ch$, and $t\to uh$. We present the relevant amplitude and branching-ratio formulae, include one-loop vertex corrections, and impose constraints from Higgs signal-strength measurements, electroweak precision tests, meson mixing, $B\to X_s\gamma$, direct HFV searches and CLFV constraints, including $\mu-e$ conversion. The surviving parameter space favors $\mathrm{BR}(h\to sb)\gg\mathrm{BR}(h\to db)$, $\mathrm{BR}(t\to ch)\gg\mathrm{BR}(t\to uh)$, and $\mathrm{BR}(h\to\mu\tau)\gg\mathrm{BR}(h\to e\tau)\sim\mathrm{BR}(h\to e\mu)$ in the lepton sector. One-loop effects usually preserve these hierarchies, but can modify individual channels through different mechanisms: sizable destructive tree–loop interference can reduce $h\to sb$ enough to yield rare $\mathrm{BR}_{\mathrm{1L}}(h\to db)>\mathrm{BR}_{\mathrm{1L}}(h\to sb)$ points, whereas the large relative corrections found in rare top decays mainly reflect strong SM-like alignment suppressing the tree-level amplitudes.
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All authors Ti-Bin Hou, Zheng Li, Yu-Ju Peng, Jin-Lei Yang, Hao-Ran Ma, Tai-Fu Feng

High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

X-ray Flares in Gamma-Ray Bursts at High and Very-High-Energies

Pawan Tiwari, Biswajit Banerjee, Gor Oganesyan et al. (+5 more)

A significant fraction of GRB early afterglows exhibit fast and bright X-ray flares, discovered by Swift X-ray Telescope. Their rapid temporal variability and spectral evolution have suggested an internal shock origin, analogous to prompt MeV emission. However, their physical origin and radiation mechanism remain debated. High-energy (> 100 MeV) and very-high-energy (> 30 GeV) gamma-ray observations provide a powerful probe of flare dissipation region, constraining its size, magnetic field strength, and particle acceleration under the synchrotron self-Compton scenario in optically thin relativistic jets. We present a systematic multi-wavelength study of 66 X-ray flares from 47 GRBs observed by X-ray Telescope over 17 years, all within field of view of Fermi Large Area Telescope. We investigate their GeV counterparts and find that only five flares exhibit significant high-energy emission (> 3 sigma). Broadband spectral modeling indicates that this GeV emission is consistent with standard forward shock afterglow. We further investigate correlations between flare spectral properties and energy fluxes at 1 keV, 10 keV, and 1 GeV. Using a synchrotron self-Compton model, we constrain the physical conditions of the emitting region, including magnetic field strength, bulk Lorentz factor, and emission radius. For the most stringent GeV upper limits, we find a magnetic-to-electron luminosity ratio greater than or equal to 1, implying a highly magnetized emitting region. We predict very-high-energy gamma-ray emission from X-ray flares at early (~500s) and late (~5000s) times and assess their detectability with Cherenkov Telescopes. We find that later X-ray flares provide the most promising targets for follow-up observations owing to improved observational accessibility, sensitivity, and reduced response-time constraints of facilities such as Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory.
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All authors Pawan Tiwari, Biswajit Banerjee, Gor Oganesyan, Ansh Chopra, Annarita Ierardi, Marica Branchesi, Stefano Ascenzi, Maria Edvige Ravasio

Chemical Physics

Diagnosing Latent Energy Decomposition in Machine-Learning Interatomic Potentials via Interacting Quantum Atoms

Kohei Shimamura and Ken-ichi Nomura

Machine-learning interatomic potentials (MLIPs) can reproduce potential energies and forces accurately, but their internal energy allocation is often difficult to interpret. E3D-IQA is introduced as a diagnostic framework connecting the latent edge-energy representation of an Allegro-type MLIP with Interacting Quantum Atoms (IQA) energy decomposition. The Allegro edge-energy path is retained as a latent pair contribution, while a node-energy path is trained against the IQA intra-atomic energy. IQA interatomic energies are not direct training targets; instead, the learned edge energies are evaluated after training against the IQA pair terms. Tests on H/C/N/O organic reaction structures show that intra-atomic supervision is essential: energy and force training alone does not recover an IQA-like one-body/two-body allocation. With intra-atomic supervision, node energies reproduce IQA intra-atomic terms, and latent edge energies show meaningful correspondence with IQA interatomic terms. Residual errors are concentrated in positive or weak pair interactions, exposing internal allocation failures that remain hidden in total-energy and force metrics. Adding structures labeled only with energies and forces improves transfer to larger molecules and reduces decomposition errors. E3D-IQA therefore provides a route for diagnosing and guiding latent scientific representations using partially labeled quantum-chemical datasets.
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Quantum Physics

Parametric amplification of continuous-variable entangled state for loss-tolerant quantum distributed sensing

Sijin Li and Wei Wang

Quantum metrology exploits quantum states to achieve an estimation sensitivity beyond classical limits. In the continuous-variable (CV) regime, the squeezed state has been used to implement deterministic quantum sensing, but the quantum metrology sensitivity of this state is significantly affected by losses or detection inefficiencies, which restrict its applications. In this work, quantum distributed sensing is proposed using optical parametric amplified multimode entanglement generated from squeezed states. It is found that the sensitivity is robust to loss or detection inefficiency when large-gain optical parametric amplification (OPA) is introduced, where a two-mode Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen-entangled state and a four-mode cluster state are exploited for analysis. The quantum sensitivity is greatly improved compared to that without OPA in almost all loss scenarios. The quantum Fisher matrix is calculated for both states to obtain the optimal bound in comparison with our scheme, and it is found that even with a small or moderate OPA gain, quantum sensing can be improved compared with the traditional scheme. The states are also compared with corresponding single-mode squeezed states, finding the parameter ranges where entangled states perform better. This study provides a method for realizing large-scale quantum metrology in real-world applications despite losses or detection inefficiencies.
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General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Perturbations and stability of black holes with static scalar hair in general GLPV theories

Petarpa Boonserm, Antonio De Felice, Ratchaphat Nakarachinda et al. (+2 more)

We derive the background equations and complete odd- and even-parity quadratic actions for static, spherically symmetric black holes with radial scalar hair in general quartic-quintic Gleyzes-Langlois-Piazza-Vernizzi (GLPV) theories, including Horndeski. On regular, nondegenerate branches, the formulation applies across Killing horizons and yields local no-ghost conditions and radial and angular eikonal characteristics. Tensor modes in both parity sectors share the same squared radial speed. When the radial coordinate is timelike, generic antisymmetric mixing induces nonstandard large-multipole scaling for both even-parity angular branches. Requiring both branches to have finite, nonzero eikonal phase speeds selects the Horndeski-related compatibility condition between the quartic and quintic beyond-Horndeski functions. This condition aligns the covariant degeneracy directions and permits a local disformal map to Horndeski when regular and invertible. For a finite, nonzero scalar kinetic term at the horizon, every nontrivial branch of the exact quadratic GLPV black hole is locally unstable or has a degenerate tensor cone near a simple outer horizon. Apart from identified exceptions, this obstruction extends to general shift- and reflection-symmetric quadratic GLPV theories and the regular Horndeski-related branch of the quartic-quintic class. Finally, for scalar-Gauss-Bonnet black holes with a vanishing horizon scalar kinetic term, we construct analytic power-law quartic beyond-Horndeski deformations whose associated quintic function is fixed by the same condition. At sufficiently small coupling, all local no-ghost and high-frequency gradient-stability conditions hold throughout the exterior. For a linear Gauss-Bonnet coupling, we estimate an interior scale below which the background and stability expansions lose perturbative control; this does not imply a physical instability.
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All authors Petarpa Boonserm, Antonio De Felice, Ratchaphat Nakarachinda, Shinji Tsujikawa, Pitayuth Wongjun

Materials Science · Cross-listed from cs.CV

Separating perception from reasoning in vision-language models: a model-free render ceiling for crystal structures

Can Polat, Mustafa Kurban, Erchin Serpedin et al. (+1 more)

Multimodal evaluations cannot say whether a vision-language model misread an image or misreasoned about it, because every existing method for separating the two places a second model in the loop. We introduce the render ceiling, a model-free reference for benchmarks built by rendering known objects: inverting the frozen cameras and re-solving cross-view correspondence recovers exactly the answer the images support. We prove the ceiling fails only through an enumerable set of projection coincidences and certify that set empty on 2,160 rendered crystal structures, so every point of a model's deficit belongs to the model. Across fourteen vision-language models, supplying exact geometry as text lifts every model yet closes under half the gap for thirteen, while a supervised vision model with no language component reads the same images at 0.8952, above every vision-language model. The instrument exposes extraction-stage fabrication that downstream accuracy would misattribute to reasoning, yields camera-placement rules for benchmark builders, and transfers to any benchmark with an invertible forward rendering.
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All authors Can Polat, Mustafa Kurban, Erchin Serpedin, Hasan Kurban

High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Mixing-angle sensitivity of inclusive $\Xi_{bc} $ and $\Omega_{bc}$ lifetimes

Hai-Yang Cheng, Chia-Wei Liu and Fanrong Xu

We study the inclusive lifetimes of $\Xi_{bc}^{+}$, $\Xi_{bc}^{0}$, and $\Omega_{bc}^{0}$, with emphasis on the mixing between the spin-zero and spin-one $bc$-diquark configurations. The relevant hadronic matrix elements are evaluated in both the homogeneous bag model (HBM) and the nonrelativistic quark model (NRQM). At the benchmark mixing angles of $-23.0^\circ$ for $\Xi_{bc}$ and $-23.5^\circ$ for $\Omega_{bc}$, the corresponding lifetime triplets are $\left(\tau_{\Xi_{bc}^{+}},\tau_{\Xi_{bc}^{0}},\tau_{\Omega_{bc}^{0}}\right)=\left(0.421^{+0.093}_{-0.093},0.075^{+0.035}_{-0.010},0.223^{+0.074}_{-0.043}\right)\,\mathrm{ps}$ in the HBM and $\left(\tau_{\Xi_{bc}^{+}},\tau_{\Xi_{bc}^{0}},\tau_{\Omega_{bc}^{0}}\right)=\left(0.367^{+0.076}_{-0.070},0.100^{+0.032}_{-0.014},0.229^{+0.066}_{-0.042}\right)\,\mathrm{ps}$ in the NRQM. Relative to the unmixed spin-one reference points, the $\Xi_{bc}^{0}$ and $\Omega_{bc}^{0}$ lifetimes decrease by approximately $17\%$-$19\%$. Neither the minimum nor the maximum of the central lifetime curves occurs at a pure $S_{bc}=0$ or $S_{bc}=1$ configuration; the extrema instead lie at mixed angles with $\left|\phi_{\mathcal{B}}\right|\simeq27^\circ$-$63^\circ$. The two pure-spin limits alone are therefore insufficient to characterize the full mixing-angle dependence.
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High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

Search for Neutrinos from Tidal Disruption Events with IceCube

R. Abbasi, M. Ackermann, J. Adams et al. (+417 more)

Tidal disruption events (TDEs) are theorized to produce high-energy neutrinos through photohadronic interactions between accelerated protons and multi-wavelength photons in the accretion disk and outflows. Detecting these neutrinos would provide insight into the dynamics of TDEs. Taking advantage of the recent increase in observed TDEs from wide field-of-view telescopes, we conduct a dedicated search for neutrinos coincident in optical/UV and X-ray wavelengths. We searched for neutrino emission from 89 TDEs selected based on X-ray and optical/UV observations using time-dependent likelihood analysis methods in two parts. First, we searched for emission from individual sources, where we fit the time window of expected neutrino emission. Second, we performed a study of jetted and non-jetted TDE subpopulations using a stacking search with a fixed one year time window. No significant neutrino excess was observed in either search. We set upper limits to the contribution of jetted and non-jetted TDEs detected in optical/UV and X-ray wavelengths to the diffuse astrophysical neutrino flux assuming TDEs are standard candles.
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All authors R. Abbasi, M. Ackermann, J. Adams, J. A. Aguilar, M. Ahlers, J.M. Alameddine, S. Ali, N. M. Amin, K. Andeen, C. Argüelles, S. Athanasiadou, S. N. Axani, R. Babu, X. Bai, A. Balagopal V., S. W. Barwick, V. Basu, R. Bay, J. J. Beatty, J. Becker Tjus, P. Behrens, J. Beise, C. Bellenghi, S. Benkel, S. BenZvi, D. Berley, E. Bernardini, D. Z. Besson, E. Blaufuss, L. Bloom, S. Blot, F. Bontempo, J. Y. Book Motzkin, C. Boscolo Meneguolo, S. Böser, O. Botner, J. Böttcher, J. Braun, B. Brinson, Z. Brisson-Tsavoussis, L. Brusa, R. T. Burley, D. Butterfield, K. Carloni, J. Carpio, N. Chau, Y. C. Chen, Z. Chen, D. Chirkin, S. Choi, A. Chubarov, B. A. Clark, D. A. Coloma Borja, A. Connolly, J. M. Conrad, D. F. Cowen, C. De Clercq, J. J. DeLaunay, D. Delgado, T. Delmeulle, S. Deng, P. Desiati, K. D. de Vries, G. de Wasseige, T. DeYoung, J. C. Díaz-Vélez, S. DiKerby, T. Ding, M. Dittmer, A. Domi, L. Draper, L. Dueser, D. Durnford, K. Dutta, M. A. DuVernois, T. Ehrhardt, L. Eidenschink, A. Eimer, C. Eldridge, P. Eller, E. Ellinger, D. Elsässer, R. Engel, H. Erpenbeck, W. Esmail, S. Eulig, J. Evans, P. A. Evenson, K. L. Fan, K. Fang, K. Farrag, A. Fattorini, A. R. Fazely, A. Fedynitch, N. Feigl, C. Finley, D. Fox, A. Franckowiak, S. Fukami, P. Fürst, J. Gallagher, E. Ganster, A. Garcia, M. Garcia, E. Genton, L. Gerhardt, A. Ghadimi, C. Glaser, T. Glüsenkamp, J. G. Gonzalez, S. Goswami, A. Granados, D. Grant, S. J. Gray, S. Griffin, S. Griswold, K. M. Groth, D. Guevel, C. Günther, P. Gutjahr, C. Ha, A. Hallgren, L. Halve, F. Halzen, L. Hamacher, M. Handt, K. Hanson, J. Hardin, A. A. Harnisch, P. Hatch, A. Haungs, J. Häußler, K. Helbing, J. Hellrung, B. Henke, L. Hennig, F. Henningsen, L. Heuermann, R. Hewett, N. Heyer, S. Hickford, A. Hidvegi, C. Hill, G. C. Hill, R. Hmaid, K. D. Hoffman, A. Hollnagel, D. Hooper, S. Hori, K. Hoshina, M. Hostert, W. Hou, M. Hrywniak, T. Huber, K. Hultqvist, K. Hymon, A. Ishihara, W. Iwakiri, M. Jacquart, S. Jain, O. Janik, M. Jansson, M. Jin, N. Kamp, D. Kang, W. Kang, A. Kappes, L. Kardum, T. Karg, A. Karle, A. Katil, M. Kauer, J. L. Kelley, M. Khanal, A. Khatee Zathul, A. Kheirandish, T. Kim, H. Kimku, F. Kirchner, J. Kiryluk, C. Klein, S. R. Klein, Y. Kobayashi, S. Koch, A. Kochocki, R. Koirala, H. Kolanoski, T. Kontrimas, L. Köpke, C. Kopper, D. J. Koskinen, P. Koundal, M. Kowalski, T. Kozynets, A. Kravka, N. Krieger, T. Krishnan, K. Kruiswijk, E. Krupczak, E. Kun, N. Kurahashi, C. Lagunas Gualda, L. Lallement Arnaud, M. J. Larson, F. Lauber, J. P. Lazar, K. Leonard DeHolton, A. Leszczyńska, C. Li, J. Liao, C. Lin, Q. R. Liu, Y. T. Liu, M. Liubarska, C. Love, L. Lu, F. Lucarelli, W. Luszczak, Y. Lyu, M. Macdonald, E. Magnus, Y. Makino, E. Manao, S. Mancina, A. Mand, I. C. Mariş, S. Marka, Z. Marka, L. Marten, I. Martinez-Soler, R. Maruyama, J. Mauro, F. Mayhew, F. McNally, K. Meagher, A. Medina, M. Meier, Y. Merckx, L. Merten, J. Mitchell, L. Molchany, S. Mondal, T. Montaruli, R. W. Moore, Y. Morii, A. Mosbrugger, D. Mousadi, E. Moyaux, T. Mukherjee, M. Nakos, U. Naumann, R. Neshat, L. Neste, M. Neumann, M. U. Nisa, K. Noda, A. Noell, A. Novikov, A. Obertacke, V. O'Dell, A. Olivas, R. Orsoe, J. Osborn, E. O'Sullivan, B. Owens, V. Palusova, H. Pandya, A. Parenti, C. Parisel, N. Park, V. Parrish, E. N. Paudel, L. Paul, C. Pérez de los Heros, T. Pernice, T. C. Petersen, J. Peterson, S. Pick, M. Plum, A. Pontén, V. Poojyam, B. Pries, R. Procter-Murphy, G. T. Przybylski, L. Pyras, C. Raab, J. Rack-Helleis, N. Rad, M. Ravn, K. Rawlins, Z. Rechav, A. Rehman, I. Reistroffer, E. Resconi, C. D. Rho, W. Rhode, L. Ricca, B. Riedel, A. Rifaie, E. J. Roberts, S. Rodan, M. Rongen, A. Rosted, C. Rott, T. Ruhe, L. Ruohan, D. Ryckbosch, J. Saffer, D. Salazar-Gallegos, P. Sampathkumar, A. Sandrock, G. Sanger-Johnson, M. Santander, S. Sarkar, M. Scarnera, M. Schaufel, H. Schieler, S. Schindler, L. Schlickmann, B. Schlüter, F. Schlüter, N. Schmeisser, T. Schmidt, F. Schmitt, A. Scholz, F. G. Schröder, S. Schwirn, S. Sclafani, D. Seckel, L. Seen, M. Seikh, S. Seunarine, P. A. Sevle Myhr, R. Shah, S. Shah, A. Sharma, S. Shefali, N. Shimizu, M. Shin, B. Skrzypek, R. Snihur, J. Soedingrekso, D. Soldin, P. Soldin, G. Sommani, D. Song, C. Spannfellner, G. M. Spiczak, C. Spiering, J. Stachurska, M. Stamatikos, T. Stanev, T. Stezelberger, T. Stürwald, T. Stuttard, G. W. Sullivan, I. Taboada, S. Ter-Antonyan, A. Terliuk, A. Thakuri, M. Thiesmeyer, W. G. Thompson, J. Thwaites, W. Tian, S. Tilav, K. Tollefson, J. A. Torres, S. Toscano, D. Tosi, K. Upshaw, A. Vaidyanathan, N. Valtonen-Mattila, J. Valverde, J. Vandenbroucke, T. Van Eeden, N. van Eijndhoven, L. Van Rootselaar, J. van Santen, J. Vara, F. Varsi, M. Velazquez, M. Venugopal, M. Vereecken, S. Vergara Carrasco, S. Verpoest, A. Vijai, J. Villarreal, C. Walck, A. Wang, E. H. S. Warrick, C. Weaver, P. Weigel, A. Weindl, J. Weldert, A. Y. Wen, C. Wendt, J. Werthebach, M. Weyrauch, N. Whitehorn, C. H. Wiebusch, D. R. Williams, L. Witthaus, J. Woodward, G. Wrede, X. W. Xu, J. P. Yanez, Y. Yao, E. Yildizci, S. Yoshida, F. Yu, S. Yu, T. Yuan, S. Yun-Cárcamo, A. Zander Jurowitzki, A. Zegarelli, S. Zhang, Z. Zhang, P. Zhelnin, P. Zilberman, C. Zilleruelo Cañas

General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Circulation and operational sparsity of analogue Hawking radiation in rotating acoustic horizons

Fernando M. Belchior, Joao A.A.S. Reis and Edilberto O. Silva

Temporal sparsity compares the mean interval between emitted quanta with a characteristic single-quantum timescale. We study this operational quantity for the rotating draining-bathtub acoustic horizon in two spatial dimensions. The Hawking temperature is fixed by the radial drain and does not depend on circulation, while the geometric capture width and the transmission spectrum do. A geometric black-body benchmark therefore predicts reduced temporal separation as circulation increases. We then solve the radial scattering problem and compute converged greybody-corrected number and energy fluxes, including the superradiant sector. At a circulation-to-drain ratio of unity, the thermal-clock sparsity is 0.44 whereas the spectrum-based sparsity is 1.82. The former crosses the temporal-overlap benchmark near a ratio of 0.40, while the latter remains above unity at all sampled circulation ratios. We also show that the binned sparsity definition is logarithmically infrared sensitive in two spatial dimensions. Rotation therefore enhances the number flux while hardening the spectrum, making temporal overlap intrinsically dependent on the operational clock used to resolve the emitted quanta.
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Statistical Mechanics

Strengthened second law for periodic processes

Jake Schaefer, Ben Ansbacher, Jan Korbel et al. (+1 more)

We derive a lower bound on the entropy production of any physical system that evolves as a periodic process. Crucially, this lower bound is completely independent of the physical mechanism implementing the periodic dynamics; it follows purely from the definition of entropy production and the fact that whatever the physical mechanism is, it repeats in each period. In particular, the lower bound holds in both Markovian and non-Markovian systems, in systems that obey or violate (local) detailed balance, and even if the underlying physical mechanism uses currently unknown laws of physics. Moreover, the bound is strictly positive whenever the dynamics is not logically invertible. In this breadth of applicability, our bound is a strict strengthening of the second law. We illustrate our bound for spins coupled to two heat reservoirs and for finite automata.
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All authors Jake Schaefer, Ben Ansbacher, Jan Korbel, David H. Wolpert

High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Reanalysis of exclusive charmonium production at the $B$ factories

Xu-Dong Huang and Jian-Xiong Wang

In this paper, we present a comprehensive analysis of the next-to-next-to-leading-order (NNLO) QCD corrections to the exclusive processes $e^{+}e^{-}\to J/\psi+\eta_{c}$, $e^{+}e^{-}\to J/\psi+\chi_{cJ}$, $e^{+}e^{-}\to \eta_{c}+\gamma$, and $e^{+}e^{-}\to \chi_{cJ}+\gamma$ $(J=0,1,2)$ at the $B$ factories, comparing perturbative expansions truncated at the amplitude level and squared-amplitude level. Our results show that the amplitude-level prescription improves the perturbative convergence, with the NNLO/LO ratios lying closer to the corresponding NLO/LO ratios than those in the squared-amplitude-level prescription. This improvement is particularly pronounced for $e^{+}e^{-}\to\chi_{c2}+\gamma$, where the NNLO prediction is about 27% of the LO result in the amplitude-level prescription, compared with only 12% in the squared-amplitude-level prescription. The amplitude-level prescription also reduces the residual renormalization scale dependence, particularly for the $P$-wave channels. Finally, the NNLO predictions are generally in good agreement with the available Belle and BaBar measurements and have central values closer to the data than those obtained with the squared-amplitude-level prescription. For channels with only upper limits, the predictions from both prescriptions are consistent with the experimental constraints, except for $e^{+}e^{-}\to\eta_c+\gamma$, where both NNLO predictions remain above the current upper limit.
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Soft Condensed Matter

A deviatoric-stress closure for constitutive modeling of viscoelastic dynamics

Souta Miyamoto, Shotaro Moro, Takeshi Sato et al. (+4 more)

Standard rheological measurements yield only selected stress components; thus, inferring tensorial constitutive equations from experimentally accessible observables is complicated. We propose a constitutive formulation written in terms of a deviatoric stress tensor, whose trace is zero, rather than the extra stress tensor. From rheometric data including shear stress, first and second normal stress differences under shear, and elongational stress under uniaxial elongation, we can construct a deviatoric stress state without the indeterminate isotropic stress. The deviatoric-stress dynamics is represented by a closure inferred through symbolic regression, constrained to satisfy material objectivity and a given linear Maxwell response. To demonstrate the proposed formulation, two closures inferred from stress responses of the Giesekus and Larson models successfully captured untrained transient-flow responses under planar elongation and mixed shear/uniaxial elongations at deformation rates around an inverse relaxation time. Steady rheological functions of the closures agreed with the original models in the linear-response regime and over a deformation-rate range connected to the training data, whereas deviations and divergent responses appeared at larger deformation rates outside the training regime. These results demonstrate that the proposed deviatoric-stress formulation provides a practical route for constitutive modeling of observable linear and nonlinear viscoelastic dynamics, while clarifying its range of validity under strong deformation.
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All authors Souta Miyamoto, Shotaro Moro, Takeshi Sato, Shota Kato, Katsuaki Tanabe, John J. Molina, Takashi Taniguchi

Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics

Floquet scattering and Fano resonances in nodal-ring and multi-Weyl semimetals: Role of propagating and evanescent modes

Sandip Bera and Ipsita Mandal

We develop a comprehensive Floquet scattering theory for quantum transport in periodically driven nodal-ring semimetals (NRSs) and multi-Weyl semimetals (mWSMs), extending our earlier study reported in Annalen der Physik 535, 2200460 (2023), in which evanescent modes were neglected, to a complete formalism that includes both propagating and evanescent channels. By solving the full boundary-value problem, we obtain the complete set of scattering states and show that, although evanescent modes are indispensable for satisfying the matching conditions at the potential interfaces, they carry zero net probability current and do not contribute to any observable transport quantity. We identify a previously unexplored transport regime in NRSs in which two propagating channels coexist and participate in coherent scattering, producing multi-channel quantum interference and Floquet-induced Fano resonances. The transmission, reflection, pumped shot noise, and the associated Fano resonance features are determined entirely by the propagating channels, and the resonance energies coincide with those of the corresponding quasi-bound states of the static potential well. Our results establish a unified framework for Floquet transport in anisotropic topological semimetals, and confirm that the approximation of neglecting evanescent modes in our earlier work is justified for all measurable transport properties.
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Solar and Stellar Astrophysics

Discovery of the First-Ever Recorded Fading Event of the Wolf-Rayet Star WR 59

Rod Stubbings

This paper presents the visual discovery of the first-ever recorded fading event of the Wolf-Rayet star WR 59. Historically documented as a stable star with an approximate magnitude of 13.9, the star underwent a sudden major decline during high-cadence visual monitoring in May 2021. On 11 May 2021 (JD 2459346), I observed the star plunge 1.3 magnitudes to a deep minimum of magnitude 15.2. It remained in this faded state for roughly 1 day before undergoing a structured 14-day recovery back to its baseline. This episode was independently verified by NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) during Sector 38. The satellite's calibrated data stream confirms that the timing, structure, and recovery of the fade matched the ground-based observations. While a close 11.7 V companion star masked the true depth of the drop for automated large-pixel survey pipelines, this event firmly establishes WR 59 as an active dust-producing system. It demonstrates how high-magnification visual monitoring can successfully resolve crowded stellar fields.
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Materials Science

Overcoming the Efficiency-Stability Trade-off in Spin-Orbit Torque Devices with Thermally Robust BCC NiW Alloys

Yu-Ming Pan, Chen-Yi Wei, Yi-Cheng Tsou et al. (+3 more)

The development of high-performance spin-orbit torque (SOT) magnetic memories is fundamentally constrained by a persistent trade-off between spin Hall efficiency, thermal structural stability, and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in conventional heavy metals. Here, we overcome this limitation by engineering body-centered-cubic (BCC) Ni-doped W alloys as highly efficient and thermally robust spin-current sources. Ni$_{30}$W$_{70}$/CoFeB heterostructures achieve deterministic out-of-plane magnetization switching at an ultra-low critical current density of 1.78 MA/cm$^2$, nearly threefold lower than that of $\beta$-W, while maintaining a high anisotropy field of 8,500 Oe and a thermal stability factor of 57.9. The BCC Ni$_{30}$W$_{70}$ alloy preserves its structural integrity and the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of the adjacent CoFeB layer after annealing at 450 $^\circ$C, demonstrating robustness under the stringent thermal processing conditions relevant to back-end-of-line integration. Harmonic Hall and ferromagnetic resonance measurements reveal a large spin Hall angle of -0.39 and a high interfacial spin transparency of 0.75, demonstrating efficient spin-current generation and interfacial transmission. First-principles calculations further reveal enhanced intrinsic spin Hall conductivity in W-rich BCC NiW alloys, associated with the Fermi level lying within a spin-orbit-coupling-induced band gap. These findings establish BCC NiW alloys as a scalable and thermally resilient material platform for energy-efficient SOT-MRAM.
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All authors Yu-Ming Pan, Chen-Yi Wei, Yi-Cheng Tsou, Tsung-Yu Pan, Guang-Yu Guo, Chih-Huang Lai

Statistical Mechanics

Feedback-Enhanced Quantum Metrology and Clock Precision under Thermodynamic Uncertainty

Jincheng Lu and Chen Wang

Feedback can convert continuously monitored quantum jumps into a thermodynamic resource. We formulate full counting statistics for open quantum systems under unital jump feedback by incorporating the feedback maps into the tilted generator. The resulting trajectory ensemble determines both current fluctuations and the Fisher information of the measurement record. We show that feedback can enhance reservoir-parameter estimation and clock precision without necessarily changing average thermodynamic currents. This enhanced precision is not bounded by reservoir entropy production alone. By embedding the reduced dynamics in an enlarged measurement-feedback process, we derive a feedback-modified thermodynamic uncertainty relation in which the information entropy production of the feedback apparatus supplies the missing cost. A charge-monitored double quantum dot illustrates the framework: jump-conditioned feedback improves thermometry and chemical-potential sensing, and stabilizes a quantum clock defined by output-current ticks.
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High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Status of the strong $CP$ problem

Wen-Yuan Ai

The strong $CP$ problem remains one of the major open questions in the Standard Model of particle physics. Its best-known solution is the Peccei–Quinn mechanism, which predicts a new pseudoscalar boson, the QCD axion. In recent years, alternative solutions and new perspectives on the foundations of the strong $CP$ problem have also received renewed attention. In this review, we provide a pedagogical account of the underlying physics and summarise the current theoretical and phenomenological status of the problem.
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High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

Nanohertz Gravitational-Wave Constraints on Supermassive Binary Black Holes at Cosmic Dawn

Yiqin Chen, Shi-Yi Zhao, Xingjiang Zhu et al. (+16 more)

Standard continuous gravitational-wave searches with pulsar timing arrays (PTAs) neglect cosmological redshift, restricting their applicability to the local Universe. We introduce a redshift-aware PTA framework and apply it to the Parkes PTA Data Release 3, deriving the first direct constraints on supermassive binary black holes (SMBBHs) at the cosmic dawn. Evaluating our limits across a broad redshift range, we observationally establish the non-monotonic mass-redshift exclusion boundary driven by the theoretical “redshift bias", demonstrating how PTAs can effectively probe sources at extreme distances. Redshift-aware targeted searches toward high-redshift systems, including the ultraluminous quasar J0100+2802 ($z=6.327$) and the JWST-discovered galaxy JADES-GS-z14-0 ($z=14.32$), rigorously exclude SMBBHs with chirp masses $\mathcal{M}_c \gtrsim 10^{10} M_\odot$ across the nanohertz frequency band. Finally, we demonstrate that high-redshift binaries can be robustly detected and localized, allowing for the accurate measurement of their intrinsic properties. Our results provide the tightest constraints to date on SMBBHs at $z > 6$ and establish a practical framework for probing early-Universe black hole assembly.
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All authors Yiqin Chen, Shi-Yi Zhao, Xingjiang Zhu, N. D. Ramesh Bhat, Jacob Cardinal Tremblay, Małgorzata Curyło, Valentina Di Marco, George Hobbs, Wenhua Ling, Rami F. Mandow, Richard N. Manchester, Saurav Mishra, Daniel J. Reardon, Sparrow Roch, Christopher J. Russell, Ryan M. Shannon, Jingbo Wang, Shuangqiang Wang, Andrew Zic

High Energy Physics (Experiment)

Panda Diplomacy: Foundation Model Pre-training across Particle Imaging Detectors for High Energy and Nuclear Physics

Samuel Young, César Jesús-Valls and Kazuhiro Terao

Foundation models are increasingly being pursued in particle and nuclear physics, but existing approaches remain strongly tied to individual experiments through detector-specific architectures or pre-training objectives, limiting their reuse across sensing modalities. We show that a point cloud self-distillation framework yields a substantially more general sensor-level pre-training recipe. We show that the same refined architecture and objective can be independently pre-trained with minimal changes on three qualitatively different detector modalities: liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC), collider TPC, and water Cherenkov. Using 1,000 labeled images for downstream task adaptation, Panda V2 matches or exceeds specialized foundation-model baselines trained with orders of magnitude more supervision, matching state-of-the-art particle-clustering performance with 70x fewer labeled events on sPHENIX while substantially improving particle identification, and on LArTPC data matching Panda (arXiv:2512.01324) particle reconstruction with up to 1,000x fewer labels. Beyond reconstruction, simple linear probes reveal physically meaningful latent structure associated with particle causality and track curvature.
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Optics

Dual-polarized, mid-infrared nonreciprocal absorption

Simo Pajovic, Yiting Zhao, Yae-Chan Lim et al. (+2 more)

The emission and absorption of thermal radiation are usually coupled via Kirchhoff's law or reciprocity, stated as the equality of spectral directional emissivity and absorptivity. Magneto-optical materials have recently been identified as a promising route to lifting the constraint of reciprocity, with multiple experimental demonstrations using doped InAs. However, these demonstrations have been limited to p-polarized light in the Voigt configuration, whereas thermal radiation from a blackbody is unpolarized. Therefore, to break reciprocity in both polarization channels, we design a nanophotonic, dual-polarized nonreciprocal absorber operating in the mid-infrared spectral range (11-20 $\unicode{x03BC}$m), consisting of an a-Si photonic crystal slab on top of a doped InAs substrate described by an antisymmetric, nonreciprocal dielectric tensor under an applied magnetic field. The photonic crystal slab supports eigenmodes that couple to both s- and p-polarized light, resulting in absorption peaks that frequency shift in opposite directions for forward- and backward-propagating light$\unicode{x2014}$a signature of nonreciprocity in planar, subwavelength systems. We fabricate our design, then measure its room-temperature absorptance using magnetic-field-integrated absorptance spectroscopy, experimentally demonstrating nonreciprocal absorption for both polarizations. Our design is a step toward the complete control of light as heat, which could improve photonic energy conversion, thermal management, and mid-infrared optical isolation and circulation.
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All authors Simo Pajovic, Yiting Zhao, Yae-Chan Lim, Ruzan Sokhoyan, Harry A. Atwater

High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Photon Gas Thermodynamics with $\kappa$-generalized statistics at Planck-Scale

Xinyi Yang, Qi Xiong, Guifeng Su et al. (+1 more)

Kaniadakis, or $\kappa$-generalized, statistical mechanics provides a flexible framework for describing complex systems in the relativistic regime and predicts a richer phenomenology compared to its standard Maxwell-Boltzmann counterpart. In the present work, we extend the investigation of photon gas thermodynamics at the Planck scale within doubly special relativity to the framework of $\kappa$-generalized statistical mechanics. By adopting the $\kappa$-generalized statistical approach, we derive the principal thermodynamic quantities of a photon gas at the Planck scale, including the internal energy $U$, Helmholtz free energy $F$, pressure $P$, entropy $S$, and heat capacity $C_{\rm V}$. We find that these $\kappa$-deformed thermodynamic quantities exhibit nontrivial dependence on the deformation parameter $\kappa$. We then numerically evaluate these quantities as functions of temperature $T$, and reveal that, as $T$ approaches the Planck scale, the $\kappa$-deformed thermodynamic quantities are significantly suppressed relative to those in special relativity, while in the low-temperature regime they are enhanced and exceed their counterparts in special relativity, as a consequence of the $\kappa$-generalized statistics.
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All authors Xinyi Yang, Qi Xiong, Guifeng Su, Yi Zhang

Plasma Physics

Dynamic Alignment or Angular Persistence?

Amir Jafari

Dynamic alignment in magnetohydrodynamic turbulence is commonly inferred from the decrease of an amplitude-weighted average of the mutual angle between Elsässer increments toward smaller separations. That decrease, however, need not imply that the increments themselves rotate toward alignment: large-angle fluctuations can simply lose more amplitude than small-angle ones. We therefore study the joint evolution of increment amplitude and mutual angle using finite-step conditional transition probabilities. In forced incompressible full MHD and in balanced strong-guide-field reduced MHD, we find that, at fixed initial angle, large-amplitude Elsässer-increment pairs undergo smaller angular changes than small-amplitude pairs, including when they begin at large angles. We call this amplitude-dependent angular persistence. Normalized amplitude moments increase toward smaller separation, while stronger amplitude weighting produces progressively smaller angular averages and stronger scale dependence, linking apparent alignment to the intermittent large-amplitude tail. In RMHD, a source-state decomposition of the Politano-Pouquet third-order moment shows that initially large-angle, high-amplitude populations contribute with the sign associated with transfer toward smaller perpendicular scales despite their comparatively small angular changes. Time-resolved full-MHD data reproduce the same amplitude ordering, and the local Elsässer advective term closely tracks the conditional dependence of both angular and amplitude changes on the initial state. These results show that the conventional dynamic-alignment diagnostic reflects the joint statistical evolution of amplitude and angle and, by itself, is not evidence for a cascade-wide dynamical rotation toward alignment.
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Materials Science

GW and Bethe-Salpeter Theory for Molecular Polaritons, Quasiparticles, and Excitons

Soohaeng Yoo Willow, Gi Beom Sim, Tae Hyeon Park et al. (+6 more)

The electron self-energy is central to quasiparticle theory, yet how an optical cavity enters it remains unclear. We address this question for a molecule in a single-mode cavity using the dipole-gauge Pauli-Fierz Hamiltonian and a coherent-state QED Hartree-Fock reference. The cavity enters through three channels: the static dipole self-energy (DSE) shift of reference orbital energies, direct DSE augmentation of the screened interaction, and the polariton pole carrying the bilinear electron-photon coupling. We benchmark QED-$GW$ ionization potentials (IPs) and electron affinities (EAs) against a cavity $\Delta$-method ladder from QED-HF to correlated wave-function methods, whose cavity-induced shifts agree within 1 meV where directly comparable. For closed-shell molecules with unbound anions, $GW$ systematically overestimates cavity-induced IP redshifts, whereas EA shifts are reproduced nearly quantitatively, although this does not imply comparable accuracy for absolute EAs. For ionic molecules with bound anions, this ordering reverses, consistent with published QED coupled-cluster results. Coupling and detuning scans show that the error is predominantly quadratic in $\lambda$ and DSE-driven rather than resonant. The spectral function develops a polariton-replica photoemission sideband with weight scaling as $\lambda^2$. In the static screened interaction used in the Bethe-Salpeter equation, bare-photon exchange cancels the matching DSE contribution to the direct interaction, while exchange and polariton-screening corrections remain. Their net effect on the lowest excitation is appreciable only for ammonia in the molecules studied. Exciton-binding energies involving unbound anions are strongly basis-dependent and should therefore be viewed as diagnostics of electron-hole interactions rather than basis-converged molecular quantities.
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All authors Soohaeng Yoo Willow, Gi Beom Sim, Tae Hyeon Park, Tae In Kim, D. ChangMo Yang, Mikuláš Matoušek, Jiří Brabec, Libor Veis, Chang Woo Myung

General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology

Directional Response Optimization through Linear Recombination of Time-Delay Interferometry Channels in Space-based Gravitational Wave Detection

Heng-Sen Jiao, Jing-Rui Zhang, Hong-Bo Jin et al. (+1 more)

Space-based gravitational-wave detectors such as LISA, Taiji, and TianQin employ time-delay interferometry (TDI) to cancel laser-frequency noise for unequal-arm constellations. Since different TDI observables exhibit distinct sky responses, a linear combination of candidate channels can enhance the average response over one sky region while suppressing that of another. We construct a frequency-domain response matrix for TDI combinations, average it across target and suppressed sky regions, and derive the optimal weights via a generalized eigenvalue problem that maximizes the ratio between these two regional responses. At millihertz frequencies, examples with the $A$, $E$, and $T$ channels, the Sagnac combinations $\alpha$, $\beta$, and $\gamma$, and 16-links TDI show that a sky-region null and a large regional contrast are possible near the chosen frequency, with eigenvalues $\rho$ ranging from $\mathcal{O}(10)$ for small bases to $\mathcal{O}(10^2)$ for the larger set. The method is therefore expected to be well suited to nearly monochromatic sources such as the resolved Galactic double white dwarf binaries in the millihertz band. The Target-to-Suppression Ratio (TSR) peaks near the design frequency and falls quickly away from it, so the optimized weight vector is inherently narrowband and suited to targeted searches around a chosen frequency and sky direction.
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All authors Heng-Sen Jiao, Jing-Rui Zhang, Hong-Bo Jin, Yun-Long Zhang

Soft Condensed Matter

Bond-number-controlled durability of cohesive granular materials under repeated vibration

Hikari Yokota and Rei Kurita

Cohesive granular materials derive their mechanical stability not only from the strength of individual interparticle bonds but also from the number of bonds forming the load-bearing network. However, these two effects are difficult to separate experimentally because conventional control parameters, such as liquid content, generally alter both simultaneously. Here, we use a mixed granular system composed of cohesive and noncohesive grains to control the cohesive bond number while keeping the bond strength approximately unchanged. We investigate the failure lifetime under repeated vibration and find that the number of cycles to failure, $N_f$, depends strongly on the mixing ratio $\alpha$. In a mean-field picture of random mixing, the fraction of cohesive contacts scales as $\alpha^2$, and $N_f$ increases approximately exponentially with $\alpha^2$. By contrast, although the lifetime tends to decrease with increasing vibration intensity $G$, its dependence on $G$ is comparatively weak over the present experimental range. Remarkably, although the Young's modulus is nearly independent of $\alpha$ above the rigidity threshold, the lifetime continues to increase strongly with $\alpha$. This demonstrates that mechanical rigidity and durability against repeated perturbations exhibit distinct dependences on the cohesive network. These results identify bond number as a key control parameter for the durability of cohesive granular materials.
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2609.00587 · 1 Sep · preprint, 4 figures. Revised Figs. 3 and 4 and the corresponding analysis. The revised manuscript emphasizes the strong nonlinear dependence of the failure lifetime on the cohesive-contact fraction, while the dependence on vibration intensity is found to be comparatively weak over the present experimental range

Abstract PDF $RIGID ×2$LIQD ×1

Superconductivity

Microscopic Origin of Pressure-Enhanced and Robust Superconductivity in Infinite-Layer La$_{0.8}$Sr$_{0.2}$NiO$_2$

Jian-Feng Zhang, Zhong-Yi Lu and Tao Xiang

Recent transport measurements on freestanding La$_{0.8}$Sr$_{0.2}$NiO$_2$ membranes revealed a broad superconducting dome extending from ambient pressure to 210 GPa, with an onset transition temperature reaching 74.5 K near 146 GPa. Using first-principles calculations, a pressure-dependent two-orbital model, and self-consistent FLEX calculations combined with the linearized Eliashberg equation, we determine how compression modifies the pairing tendency. Pressure increases the kinetic-energy scale, reduces $U_x/t_1$, strengthens interlayer hybridization, and transfers holes from the La/Sr-derived charge reservoir to the correlated Ni sector. Within the present low-energy description, the increasing kinetic scale and the approach to optimal intermediate coupling account for the initial enhancement of pairing, whereas pressure-induced self-doping into the overdoped regime is primarily responsible for its high-pressure suppression. Despite a pronounced three-dimensionalization of the Fermi surface, the pairing-relevant spin susceptibility remains weakly dependent on $q_z$ and peaked near $(\pi,\pi)$. Consequently, the Ni-$d_{x^2-y^2}$-dominated $d$-wave pairing state remains stable over the calculated pressure range. These results provide a unified microscopic interpretation of both the superconducting dome and its unusual robustness under megabar compression.
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High Energy Physics (Phenomenology)

Spin density matrix for high-spin particles

Shaogang Peng, Xin Chen, Yuxuan Zhang et al. (+3 more)

The spin density matrix (SDM) characterizes the spin state of a particle, which provides important information for understanding its production mechanism. A general discussion of the SDM under parity conservation, and specific SDM parameterizations for spin-1 and spin-2 particles are provided, which respect all the expected constraints. The imaginary (real) part of SDM is related to the degree of odd-rank (even-rank) polarization, with specific expressions given for spin-1 and spin-2 cases. Examples of applications of the SDM to angular analyses of several decay processes with different spin-parity hypotheses are also provided, which could be helpful in experimental data analyses.
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All authors Shaogang Peng, Xin Chen, Yuxuan Zhang, Qi Cai, Naiwen Xing, Yue Xuy

Materials Science

Lead-free piezoelectric perovskites for arterial-pulse e-skin: from configurational complexity to equivariant machine-learning potentials

Sanaa Ismail and Hassan M. E. Azzazy

Continuous, non-invasive monitoring of the arterial pulse is a clinical priority for cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of global mortality. Flexible piezoelectric electronic skins can transduce the 1-10 kPa pressure wave into a self-powered voltage, but the best-performing piezoceramics are lead-based, and their toxicity is incompatible with skin contact and with tightening RoHS/REACH regulation. Among lead-free alternatives, the BaTiO$3$-based solid solution BZT-BCT reaches $d{33} \approx 620$ pC/N near its tricritical morphotropic phase boundary, rivalling soft PZT while remaining biocompatible. Exploiting this in a wearable confronts a sensitivity-flexibility paradox and three computational walls: the combinatorial explosion of atomic configurations in a disordered solid solution, the band-gap error of affordable density-functional approximations, which corrupts leakage and insulation estimates, and the 0 K nature of standard calculations against a 310 K operating temperature. We review lead-free piezoelectrics, morphotropic-boundary physics and fabricated flexible devices, then argue that equivariant machine-learning interatomic potentials — coupled to a tiered functional hierarchy and finite-temperature lattice dynamics — can survey the full configurational ensemble at body temperature and close the gap to a clinically viable lead-free pulse sensor.
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Superconductivity

Expanding the trilayer Ruddlesden-Popper nickelate family: Synthesis and characterization of Sm$_4$Ni$_3$O$_{10-\delta}$ single crystals

Yuhang Zhang, Tian-Yi Li, Xiyu Zhu et al. (+4 more)

The discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) nickelates has attracted significant attention. Bulk superconductivity emerges under pressure in trilayer nickelates La$_4$Ni$_3$O$_{10-\delta}$ (T$_c$ $\approx$ 30 K) and Pr$_4$Ni$_3$O$_{10-\delta}$ (T$_c$ $\approx$ 40.5 K), where the reduced ionic radius of Pr$^{3+}$ may generate internal chemical pressure and enhance T$_c$. However, synthesizing trilayer RP phases with smaller rare-earth elements (Ln) is extremely challenging. So far, only the La, Pr, and Nd analogues have been synthesized with stable phases in the single rare-earth form. Here we report the first successful high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) synthesis of samarium-based compound Sm$_4$Ni$_3$O$_{10-\delta}$. Magnetization and transport measurements consistently confirm a density wave (DW) transition at ~180 K at ambient pressure. Through a careful fitting to the structural data of Sm$_4$Ni$_3$O$_{10-{\delta}}$, it is found that the bond angle of (Ni-O-Ni) associating with the interlayer apical oxygen is much smaller than 180$^{\circ}$, which was assumed to be the key factor for the occurrence of superconductivity. By applying pressures up to 80 GPa, despite partial suppression of insulating behavior and the DW order, but superconductivity is not observed in our present study. Density functional theory calculations suggest that the 3d$_{z^2}$ and 3d$_{x^2-y^2}$ are separated from other t$_{2g}$ orbitals and make a primary contribution to the Fermi surface. The newly synthesized trilayer nickelate Sm$_4$Ni$_3$O$_{10-\delta}$ offers a unique platform for probing the fundamental physics of RP nickelates.
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All authors Yuhang Zhang, Tian-Yi Li, Xiyu Zhu, Ying-Jie Zhang, Shengtai Fan, Qing Li, Hai-Hu Wen