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We explore a new class of axion models in which some, but not all, of the left-handed quarks have a Peccei-Quinn symmetry. These models are potentially afflicted by flavour changing neutral currents. We derive the bounds on the Peccei-Quinn…
The QCD axion remains experimentally viable in the mass range of O(10 MeV) if (i) it couples predominantly to the first generation of SM fermions; (ii) it decays to $e^+ e^-$ with a short lifetime $\tau_a\lesssim 10^{-13}\,$s; and (iii) it…
The presence of a topological susceptibility in the electroweak sector of the Standard Model motivates the existence of a good quality weak axion $a_W$, associated with the spontaneous breaking of $B\!+\!L$. Its anomalous couplings and tiny…
We improve the current upper bound on the axion-photon coupling derived from stellar evolution using the $R_2$ parameter, the ratio of stellar populations on the Asymptotic Giant Branch to Horizontal Branch in Globular Clusters. We compare…
We use QCD sum rules to obtain the weak parity-violating pion-nucleon coupling constant $f_{\pi NN}$. We find that $f_{\pi NN}\approx 2\times 10^{-8}$, about an order of magnitude smaller than the ``best estimates'' based on quark models.…
We use QCD sum rules to obtain the weak parity-violating pion-nucleon coupling constant $f_{\pi NN}$. We find that $f_{\pi NN}\approx 3\times 10^{-8}$, up to an order of magnitude smaller than the ``best estimates" based on quark models.…
We analyze rare kaon decays in models in which the dominant new effect is an enhanced sbar d Z vertex Z_{ds}. We point out that in spite of large theoretical uncertainties the CP-violating ratio epsilon'/epsilon provides at present the…
We present updated cosmological constraints on axion-lepton interactions based on state-of-the-art computations of the thermal axion abundance. By combining Planck Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) data with baryon acoustic oscillation…
We argue that demanding a consistent cosmological history, including the absence of domain walls and strongly interacting relics at the Peccei-Quinn scale, singles out two concrete realizations of hadronic QCD axions as viable dark matter…
In order to solve the strong CP problem, we study the possibility that the Peccei--Quinn symmetry is broken {\it below}\/ the QCD scale. We find that a QCD axion can be above GeV, and may be among the observed $\eta$ resonances. It is…
Firstly, we use the recent ALEPH/OPAL data on the V-A spectral functions for fixing the continuum threshold with which the first and second Weinberg sum rules should be satisfied in the chiral limit. Then, we predict the values of the…
The rare kaon decay $K^+ \to \pi^+\ell^+\ell^-$ offers insights into Standard Model (SM) physics and beyond. Driven by vector form factor in the SM, it can also probe non-standard contributions. In this letter we study the scalar…
NA62 is a fixed target kaon experiment at the CERN SPS which aims at measuring the branching ratio of the $K^+\to\pi^+\nu\bar{\nu}$ decay with 10% precision. This ultra-rare kaon decay is theoretically extremely clean and an ideal place to…
The CERN NA62 experiment uses a novel "kaon decay-in-flight" technique to observe $K^+ \to \pi^+ \nu \overline{\nu}$. The preliminary result based on the analysis of the full 2016 dataset will be presented. In agreement with the Standard…
We review and update current limits on possible anomalous couplings of the top quark to gauge bosons. We consider data from top quark decay (as encoded in the $W$-boson helicity fractions) and single-top production (in the $t$-, $s$- and…
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…
The axion is much lighter than all other degrees of freedom introduced by the Peccei-Quinn mechanism to solve the strong CP problem. It is therefore natural to use an effective field theory (EFT) to describe its interactions. Loop processes…
We study the formation and evolution of topological defects in an aligned axion model with multiple Peccei-Quinn scalars, where the QCD axion is realized by a certain combination of the axions with decay constants much smaller than the…
We explore quark interactions mediated by new gauge bosons of masses in the 0.3 - 50 GeV range. A tight upper limit on the gauge coupling of light Z' bosons is imposed by the anomaly cancellation conditions in conjunction with collider…
A new critical survey of all world data on superallowed beta decays provides demanding tests of, and tight constraints on, the weak interaction. In confirmation of the conserved vector current (CVC) hypothesis, the vector coupling coupling…