Related papers: Neutrino Zero Modes and Stability of Electroweak S…
We examine neutrino zeromode solutions on the electroweak $Z$-string and their effect on the stability of the string in the standard model and its extensions. We propose using topological invariants constructed from the momentum (and real)…
We analyze zero energy solutions of the Dirac equation in the background of a string-like configuration in an extension of the standard model which accommodates the most general fermionic mass matrix for neutrinos. If either the left- or…
Zero modes of massive standard model fermions have been found on electroweak Z-strings. A zero mode solution for a massless left-handed neutrino is also known, but was thought to be non-normalizable. Here we show that although this mode is…
We study the spectrum of fermionic modes on cosmic string loops. We find no fermionic zero modes nor massive bound states - this implies that vortons stabilized by fermionic currents do not exist. We have also studied kink-(anti)kink and…
Cosmic strings in realistic particle physics models have fermion zero modes in the string core. Such zero modes change the underlying cosmology; for example, the string can carry a current. We consider the stability of fermion zero modes to…
The effect of perturbations of electroweak strings on quark zero modes is studied in 2+1 and 3+1 dimensions. As first discovered by Naculich, it is found that the bosonic perturbations that destabilize the string give a mass to the zero…
We uncover a rich microphysical structure for SO(10) cosmic strings. For the abelian string the electroweak symmetry is restored around it in a region depending on the electroweak scale. A rich structure of nonabelian strings is found. Some…
I examine the existence of zero energy fermion solutions (zero modes) on cosmic strings in an SO(10) grand unified theory. The current carrying capability of a cosmic string formed at one phase transition can be modified at subsequent phase…
We argue that the fermionic zero mode in non-trivial gauge field backgrounds must have a zero. We demonstrate this explicitly for calorons where its location is related to a constituent monopole. Furthermore a topological reasoning for the…
The stability of fermionic charge carriers on cosmic strings is considered. We show that neutral fermion currents in cosmic strings are always chiral or time-like, in contrast to the case of bosonic currents. The spectrum of bound states on…
We derive the zero mode solutions for a Majorana fermion in the background of a cosmic string and contrast it with the zero mode solution for a (neutral) Dirac fermion. A Majorana zero mode carries no vector or axial charge, and it cannot…
A solution of the standard electroweak theory with a single lepton family is constructed, consisting of a cosmic string and a fermion condensate within its core. The stability of this system to small perturbations is examined, and it is…
We construct a simple class of exact solutions of the electroweak theory including the naked $Z$--string and fermion fields. It consists in the $Z$--string configuration ($\phi,Z_\theta$), the {\it time} and $z$ components of the neutral…
We consider a toroidal configuration of cosmic string in 3+1 dimensions in an abelian Higgs model, a compactification of the Nielsen-Olesen string. This object is classically unstable. We explicitly compute the number of permitted zero…
The MiniBooNE collaboration recently reported further evidence for the existence of sterile neutrinos, implying substantial mixing with the left-handed active neutrinos and at a comparable mass scale. I argue that while sterile neutrinos…
Massless chiral excitations can arise from the interactions between a fermion and an axion string, propagating along the string and allowing it to superconduct. The properties of these excitations, or zero modes, dictate how the string…
In the minimal standard model we discuss stability of the Z-string configuration, which includes the zero mode connected with the broken gauge symmetry. The zero mode induces charge and current on the string and gives backreaction to the…
We investigate the standard model in a cosmic string background and show that the electroweak symmetry is partially restored. For a range of parameters the electroweak Higgs field can wind in this region, producing an electroweak string…
We review a class of non-topological defects in the standard electroweak model, and their implications. Starting with the semilocal string, which provides a counterexample to many well known properties of topological vortices, we discuss…
We investigate the stability of superconducting strings as bound states of strings and fermion zero modes at both the classical and quantum levels. The dynamics of these superconducting strings can result in a stable configuration, known as…