Nuclear Theory·nucl-th

Wednesday·March 4, 2026

9 papers—4 primary·5 cross-listed

05
[Submitted on 2 Mar 2026] (cross-list from hep-ph)
One-point energy correlator for deep inelastic scattering at small $x$
Zhong-Bo Kang🇺🇸 · Robert Kao🇺🇸 · Meijian Li🇪🇸 · Jani Penttala🇺🇸
We derive the expressions for the one-point energy correlator (OPEC) in deep inelastic scattering in the high-energy (small- $x$ ) limit within the Color Glass Condensate framework. The OPEC is computed as a function of the angle between the energy flow and the target proton or nucleus, enabling a systematic exploration of different momentum scales in the scattering process. Owing to the momentum sum rule, the dependence on fragmentation functions cancels, leaving the dipole amplitude as the only nonperturbative input. As a result, the OPEC provides a clean and direct probe of gluon saturation dynamics at small $x$ . We present numerical results for representative kinematic configurations relevant to the future Electron--Ion Collider, demonstrating sizable nuclear suppression effects and highlighting the sensitivity of this observable to saturation phenomena.
Subjects:
High Energy Physics — Phenomenology (hep-ph); High Energy Physics — Experiment (hep-ex); Nuclear Experiment (nucl-ex); Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
arXiv:
2603.02300 [pdf]
5 citations
06
[Submitted on 3 Mar 2026] (cross-list from hep-ph)
Weinberg Angle, Neutron Abundance in BBN, and Lifetime
Cheng Tao Yang🇺🇸 · Johann Rafelski🇺🇸
We present state of the art kinetic theory determination of the neutron abundance available for the Big-Bang nucleosynthesis (BBN). Our work is motivated by the study of the neutron lifespan measured in the laboratory and the unknown strength of weak interactions coupling constant $G_{F}$ at finite temperature in the primordial Universe. We draw attention to the relevant dependence of $G_{F}$ on the symmetry breaking Weinberg angle $s_{W}^{2}$ , a free parameter in the standard model of particle physics. We establish how the value of $s_{W}^{2}$ by way of $G_{F}$ modification influences neutron abundance available for BBN and neutron lifetime.
Comments:
23+ MDPI Particles pages, 9 figures, submitted to Particles and Plasmas special volume, ancilliary files contain data fields generated for the figurs shown, MDPI Particles 2026 in press
Subjects:
High Energy Physics — Phenomenology (hep-ph); Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO); Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
arXiv:
2603.02652 [pdf]
Particles(2026)·0 citations
07
[Submitted on 3 Mar 2026] (cross-list from hep-th)
Emergent Gribov horizon kernel from replica symmetry breaking in Yang--Mills theories
Rodrigo Carmo Terin🇪🇸
We show that, in the replica-broken sector of the Serreau--Tissier (ST) gauge fixing, the expansion of the replica determinant in the regulator $ζ$ induces a nonlocal bilinear gluonic kernel with the same color and Lorentz structure as the quadratic part of the BRST-invariant Gribov horizon functional. This establishes an effective leading-order correspondence with the refined Gribov-Zwanziger (RGZ) horizon sector, rather than a reconstruction of the full nonlinear functional $H (A^{h})$ . The induced scale satisfies $γ_{ind}^{4} \propto ζ$ at leading order, up to scheme-dependent normalization and higher-order corrections. Depending on the replica phase, the ST sector yields either a local Curci--Ferrari (CF) screening mass or an induced RGZ-type horizon kernel, avoiding double counting of infrared scales.
Comments:
22 pages, 1 table. Version accepted for publication in The European Physical Journal C
Subjects:
High Energy Physics — Theory (hep-th); High Energy Physics — Lattice (hep-lat); High Energy Physics — Phenomenology (hep-ph); Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
arXiv:
2603.02838 [pdf]
EPJC(2026)·2 citations
08
[Submitted on 3 Mar 2026] (cross-list from hep-ph)
Scattering and Femtoscopic Correlation Functions of the $Σ_{c}^{++} π^{+}$ , $Σ_{c}^{0} π^{-}$ and $Σ_{b}^{+} π^{+}$ Systems
Mikel F. Barbat🇪🇸 · Juan Nieves🇪🇸 · Laura Tolos🇪🇸
We present predictions for scattering observables and femtoscopic correlation functions (CFs) of the $I = 2$ $Σ_{c}^{++} π^{+}$ , $Σ_{c}^{0} π^{-}$ systems and its heavy-flavor counterpart $Σ_{b}^{+} π^{+}$ . In both heavy-quark sectors, the strong interaction is formulated within two distinct theoretical frameworks, each constrained to reproduce the lowest-lying odd-parity isoscalar spin- $1/2$ resonances, $Λ_{c} (2595)$ and $Λ_{b} (5912)$ , respectively. While the $Σ_{c}^{0} π^{-}$ pair is governed solely by the strong interaction, electrostatic contributions are included in the other two channels involving charged particles through relativistic Coulomb wave functions. We show that the differences observed in the scattering observables between the two strong-interaction models arise mainly from the specific ultraviolet regularization schemes employed. The inclusion of Coulomb effects induces only a very small increase in both the scattering length and the effective range. The resulting CFs in the charm and bottom sectors display analogous global features, in agreement with expectations from heavy-quark flavor symmetry. Both, the $Σ_{c}^{++} π^{+}$ and $Σ_{b}^{+} π^{+}$ CFs, when computed including only the strong interaction, exhibits substantial discriminating power among the different models. However, once Coulomb effects are incorporated, the CFs become largely affected by the repulsive electrostatic interaction, which diminishes their sensitivity to the details of the underlying strong dynamics, thereby reducing the capability to differentiate between theoretical descriptions. Thus, the $Σ_{c}^{0} π^{-}$ CF-being free from Coulomb effects-provides the most suitable observable for constraining the strong dynamics of the isotensor $Σ_{c} π$ system.
Comments:
13 pages, 9 figures, 1 table, discussion extended including the $Σ_{c}^{0} π^{-}$ channel, accepted version for publication in Physics Letters B
Subjects:
High Energy Physics — Phenomenology (hep-ph); Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
arXiv:
2603.02979 [pdf]
PLB(2026)·1 citation
09
[Submitted on 3 Mar 2026] (cross-list from hep-ph)
Momentum-projected hadron entanglement from lattice-QCD replica correlators
Kiminad A. Mamo🇺🇸
We define a finite-volume lattice-QCD density-matrix observable for the vacuum-subtracted spatial R'enyi response of a source-sink-prepared, momentum-projected hadron. At fixed regulator, integer R'enyi index $n > 1$ , spatial region $B_{R}$ , spin projection, gauge-theory cut prescription $C$ , and after the usual double-sided source-sink projection, the central result is an exact source-sink replica identity: the response is obtained from the logarithm of a replicated hadron correlator on the cut geometry normalized by the corresponding power of the ordinary one-sheet correlator. This identity makes the natural first numerical target the two-sheet $n = 2$ measurement of the replicated source-sink correlator ratio, together with a finite-volume test of whether the response scales as $L^{- 3}$ at fixed physical $R$ . The exponent is a lattice output to be tested, not an input theorem for the nonlinear R'enyi functional. The construction is prescription-defined in gauge theory, and full QCD requires the replicated sea-quark determinant and valence contractions on the replicated cut graph; quenched and partially quenched calculations are therefore pilots. Large- $N_{c}$ two-dimensional QCD provides an interacting benchmark in which the matched one-meson response is suppressed by the inverse spatial volume, with the short-interval coefficient controlled by light-front PDF moments.
Comments:
v4: 14 pages, 2 figures. Title changed. Manuscript reorganized around the finite-volume lattice-QCD replica-correlator observable for momentum-projected hadrons. The previous soft-wall/GFF analysis has been replaced by a large-(N_c) two-dimensional QCD benchmark for the inverse-volume scaling. Soft-wall and GFF connections are deferred to separate work
Subjects:
High Energy Physics — Phenomenology (hep-ph); High Energy Physics — Lattice (hep-lat); High Energy Physics — Theory (hep-th); Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
arXiv:
2603.03064 [pdf]
2 citations

Affiliations

first authorsco-authorsvia INSPIRE

One-point energy correlator for deep inelastic scattering at small x

Weinberg Angle, Neutron Abundance in BBN, and Lifetime

Emergent Gribov horizon kernel from replica symmetry breaking in Yang--Mills theories

Scattering and Femtoscopic Correlation Functions of the Σc++​π+, Σc0​π− and Σb+​π+ Systems

Momentum-projected hadron entanglement from lattice-QCD replica correlators

Affiliations

One-point energy correlator for deep inelastic scattering at small $x$

Scattering and Femtoscopic Correlation Functions of the $Σ_{c}^{++} π^{+}$ , $Σ_{c}^{0} π^{-}$ and $Σ_{b}^{+} π^{+}$ Systems