XIV NExT PhD Workshop: the shape of new physics to come

15 Jul 2024, 10:30 → 18 Jul 2024, 16:30 Europe/London

Cosener's House

Graham White (Southampton), Ken Mimasu

The 14th NExT PhD workshop will be held at the Cosener's House, Abingdon, 15-18 July 2024. 

The NExT PhD workshop is the Summer School of the NExT Institute, targeting PhD students working in theory, experiment and phenomenology within particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology. Other than to PhD students from the NExT Institute nodes, it is also open to those from all other UK institutions.

The programme includes five lecture series on current topics in high energy physics, with an emphasis on cutting edge developments, networking and panel events discussing careers inside and outside of academia, and dedicated sessions for student talks and poster presentations.

Zoom link: https://ukri.zoom.us/j/98859636291?pwd=2epkahDl6ckdjHo5srePAJ9xdcppOp.1

Passcode: 108398

Please fill in the student survey after the workshop!
https://app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/stfc/2024-student-feedback-form

Lectures:

Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model

Dr. Tevong You, King's College London

Experimental challenges for future colliders

Dr. Sarah Williams, University of Cambridge

Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles

Dr. Francesca Chadha Day, IPPP, Durham

Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics

Dr. Graham White, University of Southampton

Machine learning methods for new physics searches

Dr. Ramon Winterhalder, UCLouvain

PhD participation:

Accommodation, tuition and catering are free of charge for STFC and self-funded PhD students. We also have similar support for a limited number of other PhD students from the NExT Institute nodes. Depending on budget, travel may also be (partially) refunded, so please retain travel receipts.

The total number of PhD participants is limited to 38, with precedence being given to those in year 1, so please try to register promptly to ensure your participation. PhD students are encouraged to discuss their research in dedicated sessions via poster and talk presentations.

Student talks & poster session

Students are encouraged to submit abstracts for a short (15'+5') talk or to present a poster at the poster session on Tuesday evening. Small prizes will be awarded for the best student talk & poster.

If you would like to give a talk, you can submit an abstract via the call for abstracts page. Limited slots are available so these will also be moderated by the organisers.

If you would like to present a poster, please fill in the relevant section in the registration form.

We ask students to have their poster printed in advance and bring it to the workshop. The required format is A1 or A0, portrait

Career development events: 

SEPnet employer panel

This event is aimed at raising awareness of career opportunities outside academia for physics doctorates. Panel representatives, all with physics or PhD backgrounds, will spend a few minutes outlining their role, what their organisation does, what skills/knowledge they are looking for and why they might be interested in physicists. The panel session will be followed by a Q&A session and an opportunity for students to talk to employers in small groups.

Academic careers panel

A selection of academics at various career stages will participate in a Q&A session and round table discussion about the academic career path.

Topics: 

Physics beyond the Standard Model, Phenomenology, Axion-like particles, Astroparticle physics, Machine learning methods, Future colliders

Organisers: 

Ken Mimasu (co-chair, University of Southampton)

Graham White (co-chair, University of Southampton)

Jacob Linacre (Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)

Sponsored by STFC and SEPnet.

Monday, 15 July

10:30 → 11:10 Registration and welcome coffee

11:10 → 11:30 Overview

11:10 Welcome

Speaker: Ken Mimasu

welcome.pdf

11:30 → 12:30 Prospects and challenges for future colliders: Lecture 1

11:30 Experimental challenges for future colliders

Speaker: Sarah Louise Williams (University of Cambridge (GB))

Slido for Q+A

12:30 → 14:00 Lunch

14:00 → 15:00 Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model: Lecture 1

14:00 Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model

Speaker: Tevong You (King's College London)

2024 - 07 - Abingdon NExT summer school - BSM.pdf

15:00 → 16:00 Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model: Lecture 2

15:00 Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model

Speaker: Tevong You (King's College London)

16:00 → 16:30 Coffee

16:30 → 18:30 Student talks

16:30 Listening for ultra-heavy dark matter using underwater acoustic sensors

Dark matter with masses beyond the Planck scale pose a direct detection challenge given their very low flux. There have been attempts to constrain macroscopic scale dark matter using large volume terrestrial mediums such as the atmosphere, and long integration time mediums such as ancient mica. In this talk, I show that searches of macroscopic dark matter using $\mathcal{O}(\text{100 km}^3)$ arrays of hydrophones which have been proposed for UHE neutrino detection could probe new parameter space.

Speaker: Damon Cleaver (King's College London)

NeXT_Workshop_DC.pdf

16:50 Non-decoupling scalars at future detectors

The nature of the electroweak symmetry breaking remains the last theoretical unknown of the Standard Model (SM). In this work, we extend the SM with a set of simplified scalar models which are classified by their electroweak irreducible representations. We present a no-lose theorem for future experiments by showing that any additional particle to the SM that acquires a significant fraction of their mass from the Higgs mechanism is discoverable at the FCC-ee. In addition, these scalar extensions can also induce a strong first-order phase transition which may be detected by future gravitational wave interferometers such as LISA.

Speaker: Graeme Crawford

non_decoupling_GC.pdf

17:10 The Double Copy: A Duality for Particles and Gravity

An open problem in theoretical physics is to combine all four of the fundamental forces of nature into one single theory. Problematically, gravity has proven difficult to reconcile with the other forces. Recently, relationships between scattering amplitudes (the quantity related to the probability for an interaction to occur between two or more particles) in non-abelian gauge theories (such as the theory of quarks and gluons) and theories of quantum gravity have led to the discovery of a relation known as the double copy. The double copy relates scattering amplitudes in quantum gravity as the square for those in non-abelian gauge theories. This property has been extended to relate solutions in classical electromagnetism with those in general relativity, via a theory known as the classical double copy.

Speaker: Kymani Armstrong-Williams (Queen Mary University of London)

Armstrong_Williams_Kymani.pdf

18:30 → 19:00 Reception

19:00 → 21:00 Dinner

Tuesday, 16 July

09:00 → 10:00 Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles: Lecture 1

09:00 Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles

Speaker: Dr Francesca Chadha-Day (IPPP, Durham)

10:00 → 11:00 Prospects and challenges for future colliders: Lecture 2

10:00 Experimental challenges for future colliders

Speaker: Sarah Louise Williams (University of Cambridge (GB))

11:00 → 11:30 Coffee

11:30 → 12:30 Prospects and challenges for future colliders: Lecture 3

11:30 Experimental challenges for future colliders

Speaker: Sarah Louise Williams (University of Cambridge (GB))

12:30 → 14:00 Lunch

14:00 → 15:00 Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model: Lecture 3

14:00 Motivations for physics beyond the Standard Model

Speaker: Tevong You (King's College London)

15:00 → 16:00 Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles: Lecture 2

15:00 Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles

Speaker: Dr Francesca Chadha-Day (IPPP, Durham)

16:00 → 16:30 Coffee

16:30 → 17:30 Acedemic careers panel session

17:30 → 20:00 Poster session: wine, cheese & dinner

Wednesday, 17 July

09:00 → 10:00 Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles: Lecture 3

09:00 Theoretical and experimental probes of Axion-like particles

Speaker: Dr Francesca Chadha-Day (IPPP, Durham)

10:00 → 11:00 Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics: Lecture 1

10:00 Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics

Speaker: Dr Graham White (University of Southampton)

Lectures_next.pdf

11:00 → 11:40 SEPnet careers round table

Career Panel Atendees.pdf

11:40 → 11:55 Coffee

11:55 → 12:30 SEPnet careers round table

Career Panel Atendees.pdf

12:30 → 14:00 Lunch

14:00 → 15:00 Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics: Lecture 2

14:00 Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics

Speaker: Dr Graham White (University of Southampton)

15:00 → 16:00 Machine learning methods for new physics searches: Lecture 1

15:00 Machine learning methods for new physics searches

Speaker: Ramon Winterhalder (UCLouvain)

hepml_01.pdf

16:00 → 16:30 Coffee

16:30 → 17:30 Machine learning methods for new physics searches: Lecture 2

16:30 Machine learning methods for new physics searches

Speaker: Ramon Winterhalder (UCLouvain)

hepml_02.pdf

17:30 → 19:00 Student talks

17:30 Search For Boosted Light Higgs Bosons From Supersymmetric Cascade Decays

Although there is no concrete evidence of physics beyond the Standard Model at the LHC, there is still a great deal of potential to be explored. Taking advantage of the upgraded detectors and the higher integrated luminosity expected in future runs is critical for uncovering novel phenomena at the LHC.

Our research is looking for pairs of light Higgs bosons ($H_1$) through SUSY cascade decays of pair-produced squarks ($\tilde{q}$) and gluinos ($\tilde{g}$). These events have small missing transverse momentum ($p_T$) in the final state, as a result of the mass spectrum between the singlino-like particle in the Next-to-Minimal-Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM) and the Higgs. This leads to cascade decays via the next-to- Lightest SUSY Particle (LSP), $\tilde{\chi}^0_2$, to a singlino-like LSP, $\tilde{\chi}^0_1$, and a CP-even singlet-like Higgs boson $H_1$. This research is based on previously published analysis for Run 2 data.

In the published analysis, $H_T$ binning was used. However, for Run 3, we are planning to use Squark mass binning to make the analysis more precise. I will discuss in detail, why Squark mass reconstruction is important and outline the best methods to achieve it.

Speaker: Mehrnoosh Moallemi (Science and Technology Facilities Council STFC (GB))

17:50 Primordial Black hole relics as Dark matter candidate

During the talk, I will delve into the unique candidate of Planck mass Primordial Black Hole (PBH) relics as dark matter. These relics, arising from the evaporation of light PBHs with initial masses ranging from 1g to approximately 10^6g, possess the potential to account for the entirety of dark matter in our universe. My presentation will encompass a thorough review of existing constraints on PBH abundance, incorporating the consideration of Planck mass relics. Additionally, I will provide visual representations, such as plots, illustrating the new perspective on dark matter as PBH relics.

Speaker: Amirah Saeed M. Aljazaeri (University of Sussex)

PBH relics as DM - NExT.pdf

18:10 Spherically symmetric Einstein-aether gravity

In this talk, I will address the Einstein-aether theory (EAE). This theory is an ancestor to the aether-scalar-tensor theory (AEST), which is currently considered the most promising relativistic completion of Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND). By studying EAE, we can gain valuable insights into the more complicated AEST. First, I will present a new a gauge freedom within the spherically symmetric solutions to EAE theory, which simplifies the analysis of a toy model of stars. Next, I will derive the EAE version of Buchdahl’s theorem, revealing an unexpected trend for a larger coupling constant. Following this, I will discuss galaxy rotation curves and galaxy clusters, where we discovered a scaling relation between EAE and Newtonian profiles. This relation could provide new perspectives on the missing baryon problem of MOND. These findings pave the way for future investigations of AEST.

Speaker: Mr Arthur Yi-Hsiung Hsu (University of Cambridge)

18:30 Using Machine Learning to Identify Carbon-rich and Oxygen-rich AGB Stars in Our Galaxy

Speaker: Tanya Kushwahaa (Cardiff Hub for Astrophysics Research and Technology- School of Physics and Astronomy, Cardiff University)

19:00 → 21:00 Dinner

Thursday, 18 July

09:00 → 10:00 Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics: Lecture 3

09:00 Gravitational wave cosmology/astronomy for fundamental physics

Speaker: Dr Graham White (University of Southampton)

10:00 → 11:00 Machine learning methods for new physics searches: Lecture 3

10:00 Machine learning methods for new physics searches

Speaker: Ramon Winterhalder (UCLouvain)

hepml_03.pdf

11:00 → 11:30 Coffee

11:30 → 12:30 Student talks

11:30 Underlying Event Tuning for VINCIA

Underlying event (UE) modelling is crucial at the LHC, for both precision Standard Model measurements and understanding of soft QCD phenomenology. In recent years, an emergence of newer, improved parton shower models in Monte Carlo generators were seen. One such model is VINCIA, an antenna-based parton shower model that was developed as a plug-in to Pythia. Incorporating both soft and collinear limits of QCD via the antenna functions, VINCIA is expected to handle colour coherence better. This study is the first attempt to develop an ATLAS dedicated tune for VINCIA, with the specific aim of improving the modelling of UE.
This talk will present the state of the tuning study at the time of the NExT PhD Workshop. At the time of submitting this abstract, an initial tune involving multiple parton interactions and colour reconnection parameters has been done and an improvement in the modelling of UE-sensitive observables has been obtained. The tune will be extended to include more parameters and distributions, while the usage of MiNNLO will be investigated so that QCD calculations at NNLO can be matched to parton showers.

Speaker: Baris Tuncay (University of Oxford (GB))

Baris Tuncay_NExTPhDWorkshop24.pdf

11:50 Low energy electron recoil searches within LZ and using FlameNEST for future work

LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) is a direct dark matter (DM) detection experiment utilising a 7-tonne active target of liquid xenon, searching primarily for WIMP candidates that produce nuclear recoils (NR) of xenon
nuclei. LZ recently published results from the 60 live-day science run one (SR1), producing new world-leading limits for the upper bound of the spin-independent and neutron spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon cross-sections. In 2023, LZ published results in a search for new physics in low-energy
electron recoils from the first LZ exposure, which looked for signals from exotic physics models that produce electron recoils, such as DM candidates that couple to electrons. The search included solar
axions, axion-like particles, hidden photons, and solar neutrino magnetic moment and millicharge. This talk will discuss the results featured in this paper, the work done to calculate projected limits by
combining SR1 with planned exposures from SR3 to estimate future sensitivity and discuss using FlameNEST, a statistical framework being developed within LZ, to produce improved sensitivity
results for these models compared to previous statistical methods used by LZ.

Speaker: Harkirat Riyat (University of Edinburg)

12:30 → 14:00 Lunch

14:00 → 15:00 Final remarks and summary