Related papers: Ultrahigh energy cosmic rays and supersymmetry
Decaying superheavy particles can be produced by Topological Defects or, in case they are quasi-stable, as relics from the early Universe. The decays of these particles can be the sources of observed Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays ($E \sim…
We present a new and complete numerical analysis of the decay of super-heavy X particles, assumed to be the origin of cosmic rays with energy beyond the GZK cut-off. The decay of X initiates a ``parton shower'', where we include all degrees…
The current status of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECR) is reviewed, with emphasis given to theoretical interpretation of the observed events. The galactic and extragalactic origin, in case of astrophysical sources of UHE particles,…
The origin of the highest-energy cosmic rays remains a mystery. The lack of a high energy cutoff in the cosmic ray spectrum together with an apparently isotropic distribution of arrival directions have strongly constrained most models…
The origin of cosmic rays is one of the major unresolved questions in astrophysics. In particular, the highest energy cosmic rays observed possess macroscopic energies and their origin is likely associated with the most energetic processes…
Decays of superheavy X particles with mass M_X ~ 10^12 - 10^16 GeV have been proposed as origin of the observed ultra high energy cosmic rays (UHECR). We describe in detail the physics involved in the different steps of the decay of such a…
Stable Superstring Relics (SSR) provide some of the candidates for the possible origin of the Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECR). After a brief overview of the motivations for introducing such relics, we address the question whether…
The current status of the ultrahigh energy cosmic ray (UHE CR) enigma and several proposed solutions involving particle physics beyond the standard model are discussed. Emphasis is given to top--down models, and as a main example,…
We will discuss the main relevant aspects of the physics of ultra high energy cosmic rays. After a short recap of the experimental evidences, we will review theoretical models aiming at describing the sources of these extremely energetic…
While several arguments can be proposed against the existence of particles with energy in excess of $(3-5)\times 10^{19}$ eV in the cosmic ray spectrum, these particles are actually observed and their origin seeks for an explanation. After…
We study the decays of ultraheavy (m_X \geq 10^{13}GeV) and quasistable (lifetime \tau_X much larger than the age of the Universe t_0) particles as the source of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHE CR). These particles are assumed to…
The origin of cosmic rays is one of the major unresolved astrophysical questions. In particular, the highest energy cosmic rays observed possess macroscopic energies and their origin is likely to be associated with the most energetic…
A re-examination of the atmospheric cascade profile of the highest energy cosmic ray is presented. The study includes air-shower simulations considering different cross sections, particle multiplicity and variation of the…
It has been speculated that the recently detected ultra-high energy cosmic rays may originate from the decays of relic particles with mass of order $10^{12}$ GeV clustered in the halo of our Galaxy. This hypothesis can be tested through…
Origin of ultra high energy cosmic rays is an unsolved problem. Several proposals such as Z-burst, decay of super massive matter, susy particles as a primary, neutrino as a primary in extra dimension models exist in the literature which try…
In this talk, I present the last and more precise results obtained in the computation of the final spectra of stable particles issued from the decay of super-heavy X particles (M_X ~ 10^21 to 10^25 eV). Such very energetic decay products,…
In this paper we briefly discuss the problem of the origin of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays in the framework of Top-Down models. We show that, for high energy of decays and in a wide range of spectra of injected protons, their extragalactic…
The highest energy cosmic rays, above the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cut-off of cosmic ray spectrum, may be produced in decays of superheavy long-living X-particles. We conjecture that these particles may be produced naturally in the early…
A fundamental question that can be answered in the next decade is: WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE HIGHEST ENERGY COSMIC PARTICLES? The discovery of the sources of the highest energy cosmic rays will reveal the workings of the most energetic…
One of the models recently proposed to explain the origin of the ultra high energy cosmic rays assumes that these particles may be accelerated by the electromotive force around presently inactive quasar remnants. We study predictions for…