The Higgs particle was predicted in 1964 and discovered at CERN on July 2012, earning Higgs and Englert the 2013 Physics Nobel Prize. This is a spin zero particle (scalar), necessary to give masses to the all other massive particles in the Standard Model of Electroweak interactions. But, there is no fundamental reason why there should be only one such scalar. Thus, as one achieves a more...
The discovery of neutrino oscillations, awarded a Physics Nobel prize in 2015, imply massive neutrinos and lepton mixing, which are not accounted for within the framework of the Standard Model (SM). Therefore, from the theory viewpoint addressing this question requires going beyond the scope of the SM. In the last decades, numerous models have been put forward to explain the origin and...
The main goal of the thesis will be to obtain a semiclassical description for the evolution of physical systems under non-hermitian Hamiltonian dynamics. Non-hermitian Hamiltonians (NHH) often arise in the effective description of decay processes in open quantum systems. Most notably, in optics, they appear naturally in the study of absorbing or optical active materials that can be modeled by...
The Portuguese agricultural sector has undergone substantial changes in the last half century as a consequence of increased industrialization and the entry into the European single market. In the near future, new challenges will emerge such as the need to compete with new and emerging markets and to adapt to environmental issues such as climate change and resource shortages, achieving...
Empirical evidence highlights the importance of different forms of institutions for Human cooperation and collective action to thrive. It remains, however, disputed which types of incentives are more likely to prevail and evolve in nature and societies. In this thesis the stochastic evolution of different classes of institutions based on distinct types of incentives will be investigated. This...
