Related papers: Compact extra-dimensions as solution to the strong…
Axions are hypothetical pseudoscalar particles introduced initially as a solution to the Strong CP problem in Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD), and they also arise naturally in a broad class of low-energy compactifications of string theory.…
One of the major open puzzles in the Standard Model of particle physics is the strong CP problem: although Quantum Chromodynamics allows a CP-violating topological $\theta$-term, experiments constrain its value to be extremely small. The…
We explore a toy model mechanism of geometric cancellation, alleviating the (classical) cosmological constant problem. To do so, we assume at primordial times that vacuum energy fuels an inflationary quadratic hilltop potential nonminimally…
We exploit the non-perturbative result that the $\theta$ angle which defines the vacuum structure is not a $c$-number free parameter, as suggested by the instanton semi-classical approximation, but instead one of the points of the spectrum…
In the first part of this talk, after a brief presentation of the strong CP puzzle, the construction of axion models and their main phenomenological features are described. In the second part, the possibility to mix the Peccei-Quinn…
QCD admits a contribution to the action, the $\theta$ term, which potentially gives rise to nontrivial phases and violates CP. This is essentially a question of how the vacuum reacts to the $\theta$ term. In this talk I will address the…
One class of solutions to the strong CP problem relies on generalized parity symmetries. A minimal model of this type, constructed by Babu and Mohapatra and based on a softly broken parity symmetry, has the remarkable property that…
We address the strong CP problem: why the physical QCD angle theta-bar must be extraordinarily small given the stringent bounds on the neutron electric dipole moment. Peccei-Quinn axion models can relax theta-bar dynamically, but rely on an…
We formulate general conditions under which the strong CP problem is solved by spontaneous CP violation. Quark-mass matrix elements are polynomials in the CP-breaking order parameters, engineered such that their determinant is a real…
We present a model that solves the strong CP problem via an axion parametrically heavier than the standard one. Within this picture the Standard Model quarks are embedded into a larger non-abelian Grand Color group that at high scales…
String theory, if it describes nature, is probably strongly coupled. As a result, one might despair of making any statements about the theory. In the framework of a set of clearly spelled out assumptions, we show that this is not…
We apply the solution for the strong CP-problem in the 4-dimensional superstring theory recently proposed by Ib${\rm\acute{a}\tilde{n}}$ez and L${\rm\ddot{u}}$st to Calabi-Yau type models and study its phenomenological aspects. In…
We propose an alternative to the axion mechanism for addressing the charge parity (CP) problem in quantum chromodynamics (QCD). Our approach involves imposing CP as an inherent symmetry of the Lagrangian, which is then spontaneously broken.…
Solutions to the strong CP problem typically introduce new scales associated with the spontaneous breaking of symmetries. Absent any anthropic argument for small $\bar\theta$, these scales require stabilization against ultraviolet…
Axions provide a solution to the strong CP problem and are excellent dark matter candidates. The presence of additional sources of CP violation, for example to account for the matter/antimatter asymmetry of the universe, can lead to…
We explore whether the axion which solves the strong CP problem can naturally be much lighter than the canonical QCD axion. The $Z_\mathcal{N}$ symmetry proposed by Hook, with $\mathcal{N}$ mirror and degenerate worlds coexisting in Nature…
These TASI lectures where given in 2018 and provide an introduction to the Strong CP problem and the axion. I start by introducing the Strong CP problem from both a classical and a quantum mechanical perspective, calculating the neutron eDM…
The strong CP problem is one of many puzzles in the theoretical description of elementary particle physics that still lacks an explanation. While top-down solutions to that problem usually comprise new symmetries or fields or both, we want…
We introduce the Anarchic Axion, a class of axion models which solves the Strong CP problem within current nEDM constraints with a lighter than usual QCD axion, thus populating new parameter space that ongoing and future experiments target.…
Gravitational effects may interfere with the axion solution to the strong-CP problem. We point out that gravity can potentially provide a protection mechanism against itself, in the form of an additional axion-like field associated with…