Quantum Chromodynamics Resolution of the ATOMKI Anomaly in ${\rm {^4He}}$ Nuclear Transitions

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Hauptverfasser: Kubarovsky, Valery, West, Jennifer Rittenhouse, Brodsky, Stanley J.
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2022
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author Kubarovsky, Valery
West, Jennifer Rittenhouse
Brodsky, Stanley J.
author_facet Kubarovsky, Valery
West, Jennifer Rittenhouse
Brodsky, Stanley J.
contents Observations of anomalous angular correlations in electron-positron pairs produced from excited states of $^{4}$He, $^{8}$Be and $^{12}$C nuclei have been suggested as due to the creation and subsequent decay of a new light particle of mass $\sim$17 MeV. In this work, we investigate the possibility that the source of the observed signals is a set of new excitation channels created by the 12-quark hidden-color Fock state within the ${\rm {^4He}}$ nuclear wavefunction dubbed the ``hexadiquark.'' We calculate the invariant $e^+e^-$ mass spectrum for the electromagnetic transition from a new excitation of $^{4}$He, estimating its differential and total decay width. We find that we can fit the shape of the anomalous signal with the QCD Fock state at excitation energy $\rm E^{*} = 17.9 \pm 1$ MeV and a Gaussian form factor for the electromagnetic decay. We address the physical issues with the fit parameters using properties of the hexadiquark state, in particular the three weakly repulsive $\rm 6_C$ interactions of $\rm SU(3)_C$ between diquark pairs. Experimental tests of our model are described in detail. In light of this work, we emphasize the need for independent experimental confirmation or refutation of the ATOMKI results as well as dedicated experiments to search for the proposed new excitations of ${\rm ^4He}$ and other $α$-cluster nuclei.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2206_14441
institution arXiv
publishDate 2022
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Quantum Chromodynamics Resolution of the ATOMKI Anomaly in ${\rm {^4He}}$ Nuclear Transitions
Kubarovsky, Valery
West, Jennifer Rittenhouse
Brodsky, Stanley J.
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
Nuclear Experiment
Nuclear Theory
Observations of anomalous angular correlations in electron-positron pairs produced from excited states of $^{4}$He, $^{8}$Be and $^{12}$C nuclei have been suggested as due to the creation and subsequent decay of a new light particle of mass $\sim$17 MeV. In this work, we investigate the possibility that the source of the observed signals is a set of new excitation channels created by the 12-quark hidden-color Fock state within the ${\rm {^4He}}$ nuclear wavefunction dubbed the ``hexadiquark.'' We calculate the invariant $e^+e^-$ mass spectrum for the electromagnetic transition from a new excitation of $^{4}$He, estimating its differential and total decay width. We find that we can fit the shape of the anomalous signal with the QCD Fock state at excitation energy $\rm E^{*} = 17.9 \pm 1$ MeV and a Gaussian form factor for the electromagnetic decay. We address the physical issues with the fit parameters using properties of the hexadiquark state, in particular the three weakly repulsive $\rm 6_C$ interactions of $\rm SU(3)_C$ between diquark pairs. Experimental tests of our model are described in detail. In light of this work, we emphasize the need for independent experimental confirmation or refutation of the ATOMKI results as well as dedicated experiments to search for the proposed new excitations of ${\rm ^4He}$ and other $α$-cluster nuclei.
title Quantum Chromodynamics Resolution of the ATOMKI Anomaly in ${\rm {^4He}}$ Nuclear Transitions
topic High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
Nuclear Experiment
Nuclear Theory
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2206.14441