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Autori principali: Fiorillo, Damiano F. G., Lella, Alessandro, O'Hare, Ciaran A. J., Vitagliano, Edoardo
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2025
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Accesso online:https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.19906
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author Fiorillo, Damiano F. G.
Lella, Alessandro
O'Hare, Ciaran A. J.
Vitagliano, Edoardo
author_facet Fiorillo, Damiano F. G.
Lella, Alessandro
O'Hare, Ciaran A. J.
Vitagliano, Edoardo
contents The equivalence principle and the inverse-square law of gravity could be violated at short distances ($10^{-6}$ to $10^{-12}$ meters) by scalars sporting a coupling $g_N$ to nucleons and mass $\mathrm{eV}\lesssim m_ϕ\lesssim\rm MeV$. We show for the first time that stringent bounds on the existence of these scalars can be derived from the observed cooling of nearby isolated neutron stars (NSs). Although NSs can only be used to set limits comparable to the classic SN 1987A cooling bound in the case of pseudoscalars such as the QCD axion, the shallow temperature dependence of the scalar emissivity results in a huge enhancement in the effect of $ϕ$ on the cooling of cold NSs. As we do not find evidence of exotic energy losses, we can exclude couplings down to $g_N\lesssim 5 \times 10^{-14}$. Our new bound supersedes all existing limits on scalars across six orders of magnitude in $m_ϕ$. These conclusions also extend to Higgs-portal models, for which the bound on the scalar-Higgs mixing angle is $\sinθ\lesssim 6\times 10^{-11}$.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_19906
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Leading bounds on micro- to picometer fifth forces from neutron star cooling
Fiorillo, Damiano F. G.
Lella, Alessandro
O'Hare, Ciaran A. J.
Vitagliano, Edoardo
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
High Energy Physics - Theory
The equivalence principle and the inverse-square law of gravity could be violated at short distances ($10^{-6}$ to $10^{-12}$ meters) by scalars sporting a coupling $g_N$ to nucleons and mass $\mathrm{eV}\lesssim m_ϕ\lesssim\rm MeV$. We show for the first time that stringent bounds on the existence of these scalars can be derived from the observed cooling of nearby isolated neutron stars (NSs). Although NSs can only be used to set limits comparable to the classic SN 1987A cooling bound in the case of pseudoscalars such as the QCD axion, the shallow temperature dependence of the scalar emissivity results in a huge enhancement in the effect of $ϕ$ on the cooling of cold NSs. As we do not find evidence of exotic energy losses, we can exclude couplings down to $g_N\lesssim 5 \times 10^{-14}$. Our new bound supersedes all existing limits on scalars across six orders of magnitude in $m_ϕ$. These conclusions also extend to Higgs-portal models, for which the bound on the scalar-Higgs mixing angle is $\sinθ\lesssim 6\times 10^{-11}$.
title Leading bounds on micro- to picometer fifth forces from neutron star cooling
topic High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
High Energy Physics - Theory
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.19906