Spinning Electroweak Sphalerons

Abstract

We present numerical evidence for the existence of stationary spinning generalizations for the static sphaleron in the Weinberg-Salam theory. Our results suggest that, for any value of the mixing angle $\text{thetw}$ and for any Higgs mass, the spinning sphalerons comprise a family labeled by their angular momentum $J$. For $\text{thetw}\ne 0$ they possess an electric charge $Q=eJ$ where $e$ is the electron charge. Inside they contain a monopole-antimonopole pair and a spinning loop of electric current, and for large $J$ they show a Regge-type behavior. It is likely that these sphalerons mediate the topological transitions in sectors with $J\ne 0$, thus enlarging the number of transition channels. Their action {\it decreases} with $J$, which may considerably affect the total transition rate.

Comments: improved and extended as compared to the first version, published