Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Applications of dispersive sum rules: $ε$-expansion and holography

  Dean Carmi, Joao Penedones, Joao A. Silva, Alexander Zhiboedov

  SciPost Phys. 10, 145 (2021) · published 14 June 2021 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We use Mellin space dispersion relations together with Polyakov conditions to derive a family of sum rules for Conformal Field Theories (CFTs). The defining property of these sum rules is suppression of the contribution of the double twist operators. Firstly, we apply these sum rules to the Wilson-Fisher model in $d=4-\epsilon$ dimensions. We re-derive many of the known results to order $\epsilon^4$ and we make new predictions. No assumption of analyticity down to spin $0$ was made. Secondly, we study holographic CFTs. We use dispersive sum rules to obtain tree-level and one-loop anomalous dimensions. Finally, we briefly discuss the contribution of heavy operators to the sum rules in UV complete holographic theories.

  36 citations

• Mass agnostic jet taggers

  Layne Bradshaw, Rashmish K. Mishra, Andrea Mitridate, Bryan Ostdiek

  SciPost Phys. 8, 011 (2020) · published 24 January 2020 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Searching for new physics in large data sets needs a balance between two competing effects---signal identification vs background distortion. In this work, we perform a systematic study of both single variable and multivariate jet tagging methods that aim for this balance. The methods preserve the shape of the background distribution by either augmenting the training procedure or the data itself. Multiple quantitative metrics to compare the methods are considered, for tagging 2-, 3-, or 4-prong jets from the QCD background. This is the first study to show that the data augmentation techniques of Planing and PCA based scaling deliver similar performance as the augmented training techniques of Adversarial NN and uBoost, but are both easier to implement and computationally cheaper.

  36 citations

• Density matrices in quantum gravity

  Tarek Anous, Jorrit Kruthoff, Raghu Mahajan

  SciPost Phys. 9, 045 (2020) · published 5 October 2020 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We study density matrices in quantum gravity, focusing on topology change. We argue that the inclusion of bra-ket wormholes in the gravity path integral is not a free choice, but is dictated by the specification of a global state in the multi-universe Hilbert space. Specifically, the Hartle-Hawking (HH) state does not contain bra-ket wormholes. It has recently been pointed out that bra-ket wormholes are needed to avoid potential bags-of-gold and strong subadditivity paradoxes, suggesting a problem with the HH state. Nevertheless, in regimes with a single large connected universe, approximate bra-ket wormholes can emerge by tracing over the unobserved universes. More drastic possibilities are that the HH state is non-perturbatively gauge equivalent to a state with bra-ket wormholes, or that the third-quantized Hilbert space is one-dimensional. Along the way we draw some helpful lessons from the well-known relation between worldline gravity and Klein-Gordon theory. In particular, the commutativity of boundary-creating operators, which is necessary for constructing the alpha states and having a dual ensemble interpretation, is subtle. For instance, in the worldline gravity example, the Klein-Gordon field operators do not commute at timelike separation.

  36 citations

• Quantum field theory and the Bieberbach conjecture

  Parthiv Haldar, Aninda Sinha, Ahmadullah Zahed

  SciPost Phys. 11, 002 (2021) · published 8 July 2021 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  An intriguing correspondence between ingredients in geometric function theory related to the famous Bieberbach conjecture (de Branges' theorem) and the non-perturbative crossing symmetric representation of 2-2 scattering amplitudes of identical scalars is pointed out. Using the dispersion relation and unitarity, we are able to derive several inequalities, analogous to those which arise in the discussions of the Bieberbach conjecture. We derive new and strong bounds on the ratio of certain Wilson coefficients and demonstrate that these are obeyed in one-loop $\phi^4$ theory, tree level string theory as well as in the S-matrix bootstrap. Further, we find two sided bounds on the magnitude of the scattering amplitude, which are shown to be respected in all the contexts mentioned above. Translated to the usual Mandelstam variables, for large $|s|$, fixed $t$, the upper bound reads $|\mathcal{M}(s,t)|\lesssim |s^2|$. We discuss how Szegö's theorem corresponds to a check of univalence in an EFT expansion, while how the Grunsky inequalities translate into nontrivial, nonlinear inequalities on the Wilson coefficients.

  36 citations

• Navigator function for the conformal bootstrap

  Marten Reehorst, Slava Rychkov, David Simmons-Duffin, Benoit Sirois, Ning Su, Balt van Rees

  SciPost Phys. 11, 072 (2021) · published 28 September 2021 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Current numerical conformal bootstrap techniques carve out islands in theory space by repeatedly checking whether points are allowed or excluded. We propose a new method for searching theory space that replaces the binary information “allowed”/“excluded” with a continuous “navigator” function that is negative in the allowed region and positive in the excluded region. Such a navigator function allows one to efficiently explore high-dimensional parameter spaces and smoothly sail towards any islands they may contain. The specific functions we introduce have several attractive features: they are well-defined in large regions of parameter space, can be computed with standard methods, and evaluation of their gradient is immediate due to an SDP gradient formula that we provide. The latter property allows for the use of efficient quasi-Newton optimization methods, which we illustrate by navigating towards the 3d Ising island.

  36 citations

• New sensitivity of current LHC measurements to vector-like quarks

  Andy Buckley, Jonathan M. Butterworth, Louie Corpe, Danping Huang, Puwen Sun

  SciPost Phys. 9, 069 (2020) · published 11 November 2020 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Quark partners with non-chiral couplings appear in several extensions of the Standard Model. They may have non-trivial generational structure to their couplings, and may be produced either in pairs via the strong and EM interactions, or singly via the new couplings of the model. Their decays often produce heavy quarks and gauge bosons, which will contribute to a variety of already-measured "Standard Model" cross-sections at the LHC. We present a study of the sensitivity of such published LHC measurements to vector-like quarks, first comparing to limits already obtained from dedicated searches, and then broadening to some so-far unstudied parameter regions.

  36 citations

• Gapped phases with non-invertible symmetries: (1+1)d

  Lakshya Bhardwaj, Lea E. Bottini, Daniel Pajer, Sakura Schäfer-Nameki

  SciPost Phys. 18, 032 (2025) · published 24 January 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We propose a general framework to characterize gapped infra-red (IR) phases of theories with non-invertible (or categorical) symmetries. In this paper we focus on (1+1)d gapped phases with fusion category symmetries. The approach that we propose uses the Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT) as a key input: associated to a field theory in $d$ spacetime dimensions, the SymTFT lives in one dimension higher and admits a gapped boundary, which realizes the categorical symmetries. It also admits a second, physical, boundary, which is generically not gapped. Upon interval compactification of the SymTFT by colliding the gapped and physical boundaries, we regain the original theory. In this paper, we realize gapped symmetric phases by choosing the physical boundary to be a gapped boundary condition as well. This set-up provides computational power to determine the number of vacua, the symmetry breaking pattern, and the action of the symmetry on the vacua. The SymTFT also manifestly encodes the order parameters for these gapped phases, thus providing a generalized, categorical Landau paradigm for (1+1)d gapped phases. We find that for non-invertible symmetries the order parameters involve multiplets containing both untwisted and twisted sector local operators, and hence can be interpreted as mixtures of conventional and string order parameters. We also observe that spontaneous breaking of non-invertible symmetries can lead to vacua that are physically distinguishable: unlike the standard symmetries described by groups, non-invertible symmetries can have different actions on different vacua of an irreducible gapped phase. This leads to the presence of relative Euler terms between physically distinct vacua. Along with the physical description of symmetric gapped phases, we also provide a mathematical one as pivotal 2-functors whose source 2-category is the delooping of the fusion category characterizing the symmetry and the target 2-category is the Euler completion of 2-vector spaces.

  36 citations

• Measuring QCD Splittings with Invertible Networks

  Sebastian Bieringer, Anja Butter, Theo Heimel, Stefan Höche, Ullrich Köthe, Tilman Plehn, Stefan T. Radev

  SciPost Phys. 10, 126 (2021) · published 2 June 2021 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  QCD splittings are among the most fundamental theory concepts at the LHC. We show how they can be studied systematically with the help of invertible neural networks. These networks work with sub-jet information to extract fundamental parameters from jet samples. Our approach expands the LEP measurements of QCD Casimirs to a systematic test of QCD properties based on low-level jet observables. Starting with an toy example we study the effect of the full shower, hadronization, and detector effects in detail.

  36 citations

• Accelerating Monte Carlo event generation -- rejection sampling using neural network event-weight estimates

  Katharina Danziger, Timo Janßen, Steffen Schumann, Frank Siegert

  SciPost Phys. 12, 164 (2022) · published 18 May 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The generation of unit-weight events for complex scattering processes presents a severe challenge to modern Monte Carlo event generators. Even when using sophisticated phase-space sampling techniques adapted to the underlying transition matrix elements, the efficiency for generating unit-weight events from weighted samples can become a limiting factor in practical applications. Here we present a novel two-staged unweighting procedure that makes use of a neural-network surrogate for the full event weight. The algorithm can significantly accelerate the unweighting process, while it still guarantees unbiased sampling from the correct target distribution. We apply, validate and benchmark the new approach in high-multiplicity LHC production processes, including $Z/W$+4 jets and $t\bar{t}$+3 jets, where we find speed-up factors up to ten.

  36 citations

• A classical density functional from machine learning and a convolutional neural network

  Shang-Chun Lin, Martin Oettel

  SciPost Phys. 6, 025 (2019) · published 26 February 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We use machine learning methods to approximate a classical density functional. As a study case, we choose the model problem of a Lennard Jones fluid in one dimension where there is no exact solution available and training data sets must be obtained from simulations. After separating the excess free energy functional into a "repulsive" and an "attractive" part, machine learning finds a functional in weighted density form for the attractive part. The density profile at a hard wall shows good agreement for thermodynamic conditions beyond the training set conditions. This also holds for the equation of state if it is evaluated near the training temperature. We discuss the applicability to problems in higher dimensions.

  36 citations