Related papers: Constraining symmetron fields with a levitated opt…
Weak gravitational lensing provides a sensitive probe of cosmology by measuring the mass distribution and the geometry of the low redshift universe. We show how an all-sky weak lensing tomographic survey can jointly constrain different sets…
We study the effect of modified gravity on weak lensing in a class of scalar-tensor theory that includes $f(R)$ gravity as a special case. These models are designed to satisfy local gravity constraints by having a large scalar-field mass in…
Disformally coupled, light scalar fields arise in many of the theories of dark energy and modified gravity that attempt to explain the accelerated expansion of the universe. They have proved difficult to constrain with precision tests of…
We study weak gravitational lensing around a compact object with arbitrary quadrupole moment in the presence of plasma. The studied compact objects are considered to be spherically symmetric. The additional parameter $\epsilon$ regulating…
Ultra-light scalar fields may explain the nature of the dark matter in our universe. If such scalars couple quadratically to particles of the Standard Model the scalar acquires an effective mass which depends on the local matter energy…
We consider the impact of key astrophysical and measurement systematics on constraints on dark energy and modifications to gravity on cosmic scales. We focus on upcoming photometric "Stage III" and "Stage IV" large scale structure surveys…
We report on a search for non-Newtonian forces that couple to mass, with a characteristic scale of ${\sim}10~\mu$m, using an optically levitated microsphere as a precision force sensor. A silica microsphere trapped in an upward-propagating,…
The search for new control methods over light-matter interactions is one of the engines that advances fundamental physics and applied science alike. A specific class of light-matter interaction interfaces are setups coupling photons of…
A simple way to accommodate dark matter is to postulate the existence of a hidden sector. That is, a set of new particles and forces interacting with the known particles predominantly via gravity. In general this leads to a large set of…
We describe a variety of searches for new physics beyond the Standard Model of particle physics which may be enabled in the coming years by the use of optically levitated masses in high vacuum. Such systems are expected to reach force and…
The last few decades have provided abundant evidence for physics beyond the two standard models of particle physics and cosmology. As is now known, the by far largest part of our universe's matter/energy content lies in the `dark' and…
Following the first demonstration of a levitated nanosphere cooled to the quantum ground state in 2020 [1], macroscopic quantum sensors are seemingly on the horizon. The nanosphere's large mass as compared to other quantum systems enhances…
Fourier Ptychographic Microscopy (FPM) is a recent technique to overcome the diffraction limit of a low numerical aperture (NA) objective lens by algorithmic post-processing of several lower resolved images. It can increase the…
The evidence for the observation of the Higgs spin-0-boson as a manifestation of a scalar field provides the missing corner stone for the standard model of particles (SM). However, the SM fails to explain the non-visible but gravitationally…
Nanomechanical resonators are widely operated as force and mass sensors with sensitivities in the zepto-Newton and yocto-gram regime, respectively. Their accuracy, however, is usually undermined by high uncertainties in the effective mass…
We propose a low scale leptogenesis scenario in the framework of composite Higgs models supplemented with singlet heavy neutrinos. One of the neutrinos can also be considered as a dark matter candidate whose stability is guaranteed by a…
When augmenting our cosmological models or gravitational theories with an additional light scalar field, any coupling between matter and this scalar can affect the orbital motion of binary systems. Ordinarily, the new force mediated by the…
When introducing a nanoparticle into an optical trap, its mass and shape are not immediately apparent. We combine a charge-based mass measurement with a shape determination method based on light scattering and an analysis of the damping…
The controllable positioning of a vacuum-levitated object near a material surface is of importance for studying short-range forces, such as Casimir forces, interfacial friction forces, or gravity in yet unexplored parameter regimes. Here we…
We assess the feasibility of probing dark energy with strong gravitational lensing systems. The capability of the method, which depends on the accuracy with which the lensing systems are modeled, is quantitatively investigated using the…