Related papers: The Axion Mass from 5D Small Instantons
The strong CP problem and its resolution through the existence of an axion are briefly reviewed. The constraints on the axion from accelerator searches, from the evolution of red giants and from supernova SN1987a combine to require $m_a < 3…
We show how the properties of the QCD axion change in systems at finite baryonic density, such as neutron stars. At nuclear saturation densities, where corrections can be reliably computed, we find a mild reduction of the axion mass and up…
Axions are hypothetical particles, proposed to account for the invariance of CP symmetry in quantum chromodynamics. While axions and axion-like-particles are well-motivated by string theory and beyond-Standard-Model extensions, they have…
We study instanton effects in theories with compact extra dimensions. We perform an instanton calculation in a 5d theory on a circle of radius R, with gauge, scalar, and fermion fields in the bulk of the extra dimension. We show that,…
Axions are one of the most attractive dark matter candidates. The evolution of their number density in the early universe can be determined by calculating the topological susceptibility $\chi(T)$ of QCD as a function of the temperature.…
We present a connection between two known solutions to the strong-CP problem: the standard introduction of axions and the extra-dimensional one, relying on topological arguments. Using an equivalent lower-dimensional set-up with a warped…
The QCD axion stands as one of the most promising candidates for resolving the strong CP problem. However, the value of the axion's decay constant $f_a$ and, by extension, its mass $m_a$, remain uncertain within the framework of effective…
We investigate the distribution of instanton sizes in the framework of a simplified model for ensembles of instantons. This model takes into account the non-diluteness of instantons. The infrared problem for the integration over instanton…
We propose a grand unified model in five dimensions that addresses the strong CP problem. In this framework, the boundary conditions that break the unified gauge group into the Standard Model gauge group simultaneously explain the mass…
We present a new mechanism to relax the initial misalignment angle of the QCD axion and raise the cosmological bound on the axion decay constant. The QCD axion receives a contribution from small UV instantons during inflation, which raises…
We study the physics potential of heavy QCD axions at high-energy muon colliders. Unlike typical axion-like particles, heavy QCD axions solve the strong CP problem with phenomenology driven by the anomalous gluon ($aG\widetilde G$)…
We show that instanton calculations in QCD become theoretically well defined in the gluon saturation environment which suppresses large size instantons. The effective cutoff scale is determined by the inverse of the saturation scale. We…
We propose two novel solutions to the domain wall problem of the QCD axion by introducing a massless or light axion that also couples to gluons. The first solution applies when the new axion forms strings after inflation. Due to its mixing…
Heavy QCD axions are well-motivated extensions of the QCD axion that address the quality problem while still solving the strong CP problem. Owing to the gluon coupling, critical for solving the strong CP problem, these axions can be…
A central object in any axionic theory is its periodic potential, which is typically generated by instantons. The goal of this paper is to understand what physically happens to the theory when we lose control of the potential's instanton…
We are considering the modifications of gluon properties in Instanton Liquid Model (ILM) for the QCD vacuum. Re-scattering of a gluons on an instantons leads to the dynamical momentum-dependent gluon mass $M_g(q).$ First, we considered…
Considerable theoretical efforts have gone into expanding the reach of the QCD axion beyond its canonical mass--decay-constant relation. The $Z_\mathcal{N}$ QCD axion model reduces the QCD axion mass naturally, by invoking a discrete…
Axion dark matter coupled via QCD induces a non-zero differential acceleration between test masses of different composition. Tests of the equivalence principle, like the recent MICROSCOPE space mission, are sensitive to such a signal. We…
We point out that a QCD axion solving the strong CP problem can arise naturally from parity-odd gauge field C_M in 5-dimensional (5D) orbifold field theory. The required axion coupling to the QCD anomaly comes from the 5D Chern-Simons…
Instanton effects and three-loop perturbative contributions are incorporated into QCD sum-rule analyses of pseudoscalar ($J^{PC}=0^{-+}$) gluonium. Gaussian sum-rules are shown to be superior to Laplace sum-rules in optimized predictions…