Related papers: Bounding the Photon Mass with Solar Probes
We search for an excess of electrons and positrons in the interplanetary space from the decays of heavy neutrinos produced in nuclear reactions in the Sun. Using measurements of the electron spectra in the MeV range from the Ulysses and…
We posit a second massless photon, uncoupled to known forms of matter but undergoing Lorentz non-invariant velocity mixing with ordinary photons. Our speculation within a speculation suffers from the sin of implausibility but enjoys the…
The recent discovery of an earth-like planet around Proxima Centauri has drawn much attention to this star and its environment. We performed a series of observations of Proxima Centauri using SPHERE, the planet finder instrument installed…
We have studied the science rationale, goals and requirements for a mission aimed at using the gravitational lensing from the Sun as a way of achieving high angular resolution and high signal amplification. We find that such a mission…
A calculation of the expected signal due to Primakov coherent conversion of solar axions into photons via Bragg scattering in several solid--state detectors is presented and compared with present and future experimental sensitivities. The…
The effects of a nonzero photon rest mass can be incorporated into electromagnetism in a simple way using the Proca equations. In this vein, two interesting implications regarding the possible existence of a massive photon in nature, i.e.,…
Neutron stars provide a compelling testing ground for gravity, nuclear dynamics, and physics beyond the Standard Model, and so it will be useful to locate the neutron stars nearest to Earth. To that end, we revisit pulsar distance estimates…
Results are presented for a simulation carried out to test the precision with which a detector design (HERON) based on a superfluid helium target material should be able to measure the solar pp and Be7 fluxes. It is found that precisions of…
We present a novel experiment with the capacity to independently measure both the electron density and the magnetic field of the solar corona. We achieve this through measurement of the excess Faraday rotation due to propagation of the…
Below the knee in the cosmic ray spectrum, balloon and spacecraft experiments offer the capability of direct composition and energy measurements on the primary particles. A major difficulty is obtaining enough exposure to extend the range…
This article reviews the current status of black hole astrophysics, focusing on topics of interest to a physics audience. Astronomers have discovered dozens of compact objects with masses greater than 3 solar masses, the likely maximum mass…
A conservative constraint on the rest mass of the photon can be estimated under the assumption that the frequency dependence of dispersion from astronomical sources is mainly contributed by the nonzero photon mass effect. Photon mass limits…
We present an inverse mapping approach to determining the emission height of the optical photons from pulsars, which is directly constrained by empirical data. The model discussed is for the case of the Crab pulsar. Our method, using the…
We study the effects of a finite mass for the photon on its propagation in a weak gravitational field. In particular, we analyse the gravitational time delay, also known as the Shapiro effect. We work in isotropic coordinates in the…
We provide updates to the limits on solar emission of dark photons, or more generally any light vector particle coupled to the electron vector current. The recent 2019 and 2020 electronic recoil data from XENON1T now provides more stringent…
The CERN SuperProtoSynchrotron (SPS) represents an ideal facility for fixed-target heavy-ion experiments exploring the phase diagram of strongly interacting matter in the region $200\le\mu_{\rm B}\le500$ MeV. It can deliver high-intensity…
We review the case for the photon having a tiny mass compatible with the experimental limits. We go over some possible experimental tests for such a photon mass including the violation of Lorentz symmetry. We point out that such violations…
We significantly constrain the sky position, distance, and mass of a possible additional, distant planet in the solar system by examining its influence on the distance between Earth and the Cassini Spacecraft. Our preferred region is…
Experience in exploring our own solar system has shown that direct investigation of planetary bodies using space probes invariably yields scientific knowledge not otherwise obtainable. In the case of exoplanets, such direct investigation…
Production of dark photons inside the Sun forms the basis for the most sensitive probes of such particles over a wide mass range. A small fraction of dark photons is emitted into gravitationally bound orbits, building up a "Solar basin"…