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Acharya B, Alexandre J, Benes P, Bergmann B, Bertolucci S, Bevan A, Branzas H, Burian P, Campbell M, Cho YM, de Montigny M, De Roeck A, Ellis JR, Sawy ME, Fairbairn M, Felea D, Frank M, Gould O, Hays J, Hirt AM, Ho DLJ, Hung PQ, Janecek J, Kalliokoski M, Korzenev A, Lacarrère DH, Leroy C, Levi G, Lionti A, Maulik A, Margiotta A, Mauri N, Mavromatos NE, Mermod P, Millward L, Mitsou VA, Ostrovskiy I, Ouimet PP, Papavassiliou J, Parker B, Patrizii L, Păvălaş GE, Pinfold JL, Popa LA, Popa V, Pozzato M, Pospisil S, Rajantie A, de Austri RR, Sahnoun Z, Sakellariadou M, Santra A, Sarkar S, Semenoff G, Shaa A, Sirri G, Sliwa K, Soluk R, Spurio M, Staelens M, Suk M, Tenti M, Togo V, Tuszyn'ski JA, Upreti A, Vento V, Vives O. Search for magnetic monopoles produced via the Schwinger mechanism. Nature 2022; 602:63-67. [PMID: 35110756 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-04298-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Accepted: 12/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Electrically charged particles can be created by the decay of strong enough electric fields, a phenomenon known as the Schwinger mechanism1. By electromagnetic duality, a sufficiently strong magnetic field would similarly produce magnetic monopoles, if they exist2. Magnetic monopoles are hypothetical fundamental particles that are predicted by several theories beyond the standard model3-7 but have never been experimentally detected. Searching for the existence of magnetic monopoles via the Schwinger mechanism has not yet been attempted, but it is advantageous, owing to the possibility of calculating its rate through semi-classical techniques without perturbation theory, as well as that the production of the magnetic monopoles should be enhanced by their finite size8,9 and strong coupling to photons2,10. Here we present a search for magnetic monopole production by the Schwinger mechanism in Pb-Pb heavy ion collisions at the Large Hadron Collider, producing the strongest known magnetic fields in the current Universe11. It was conducted by the MoEDAL experiment, whose trapping detectors were exposed to 0.235 per nanobarn, or approximately 1.8 × 109, of Pb-Pb collisions with 5.02-teraelectronvolt center-of-mass energy per collision in November 2018. A superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer scanned the trapping detectors of MoEDAL for the presence of magnetic charge, which would induce a persistent current in the SQUID. Magnetic monopoles with integer Dirac charges of 1, 2 and 3 and masses up to 75 gigaelectronvolts per speed of light squared were excluded by the analysis at the 95% confidence level. This provides a lower mass limit for finite-size magnetic monopoles from a collider search and greatly extends previous mass bounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Acharya
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - J Alexandre
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - P Benes
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - B Bergmann
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | - A Bevan
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - H Branzas
- Institute of Space Science, Măgurele, Romania
| | - P Burian
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - M Campbell
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Y M Cho
- Center for Quantum Spacetime, Sogang University, Seoul, Korea
| | - M de Montigny
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - A De Roeck
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - J R Ellis
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK.,Theoretical Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - M El Sawy
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - M Fairbairn
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - D Felea
- Institute of Space Science, Măgurele, Romania
| | - M Frank
- Department of Physics, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - O Gould
- University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.,Helsinki Institute of Physics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - J Hays
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - A M Hirt
- Department of Earth Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - D L-J Ho
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - P Q Hung
- Department of Physics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - J Janecek
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - M Kalliokoski
- Helsinki Institute of Physics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - A Korzenev
- Département de Physique Nucléaire et Corpusculaire, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - D H Lacarrère
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - C Leroy
- Département de Physique, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - G Levi
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - A Lionti
- Département de Physique Nucléaire et Corpusculaire, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - A Maulik
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.,Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - A Margiotta
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - N Mauri
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - N E Mavromatos
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - P Mermod
- Département de Physique Nucléaire et Corpusculaire, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - L Millward
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - V A Mitsou
- IFIC, Universitat de València, CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - I Ostrovskiy
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA.
| | - P-P Ouimet
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | | | - B Parker
- Institute for Research in Schools, Canterbury, UK
| | - L Patrizii
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - G E Păvălaş
- Institute of Space Science, Măgurele, Romania
| | - J L Pinfold
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - L A Popa
- Institute of Space Science, Măgurele, Romania
| | - V Popa
- Institute of Space Science, Măgurele, Romania
| | - M Pozzato
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - S Pospisil
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - A Rajantie
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | | | - Z Sahnoun
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Sakellariadou
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - A Santra
- IFIC, Universitat de València, CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - S Sarkar
- Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - G Semenoff
- Department of Physics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - A Shaa
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - G Sirri
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - K Sliwa
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
| | - R Soluk
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - M Spurio
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Staelens
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - M Suk
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | - V Togo
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - J A Tuszyn'ski
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - A Upreti
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA
| | - V Vento
- IFIC, Universitat de València, CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - O Vives
- IFIC, Universitat de València, CSIC, Valencia, Spain
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Acharya B, Alexandre J, Benes P, Bergmann B, Bernabéu J, Bevan A, Branzas H, Burian P, Campbell M, Cecchini S, Cho YM, de Montigny M, De Roeck A, Ellis JR, El Sawy M, Fairbairn M, Felea D, Frank M, Hays J, Hirt AM, Janecek J, Kalliokoski M, Korzenev A, Lacarrère DH, Leroy C, Levi G, Lionti A, Mamuzic J, Maulik A, Margiotta A, Mauri N, Mavromatos NE, Mermod P, Mieskolainen M, Millward L, Mitsou VA, Orava R, Ostrovskiy I, Ouimet PP, Papavassiliou J, Parker B, Patrizii L, Păvălaş GE, Pinfold JL, Popa LA, Popa V, Pozzato M, Pospisil S, Rajantie A, Ruiz de Austri R, Sahnoun Z, Sakellariadou M, Santra A, Sarkar S, Semenoff G, Shaa A, Sirri G, Sliwa K, Soluk R, Spurio M, Staelens M, Suk M, Tenti M, Togo V, Tuszyński JA, Upreti A, Vento V, Vives O, Wall A. First Search for Dyons with the Full MoEDAL Trapping Detector in 13 TeV pp Collisions. Phys Rev Lett 2021; 126:071801. [PMID: 33666471 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.126.071801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2020] [Revised: 10/10/2020] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The MoEDAL trapping detector consists of approximately 800 kg of aluminum volumes. It was exposed during run 2 of the LHC program to 6.46 fb^{-1} of 13 TeV proton-proton collisions at the LHCb interaction point. Evidence for dyons (particles with electric and magnetic charge) captured in the trapping detector was sought by passing the aluminum volumes comprising the detector through a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer. The presence of a trapped dyon would be signaled by a persistent current induced in the SQUID magnetometer. On the basis of a Drell-Yan production model, we exclude dyons with a magnetic charge ranging up to five Dirac charges (5g_{D}) and an electric charge up to 200 times the fundamental electric charge for mass limits in the range 870-3120 GeV and also monopoles with magnetic charge up to and including 5g_{D} with mass limits in the range 870-2040 GeV.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Acharya
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
| | - J Alexandre
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
| | - P Benes
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - B Bergmann
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - J Bernabéu
- IFIC, Universitat de València-CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - A Bevan
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - H Branzas
- Institute of Space Science, Bucharest, Măgurele, Romania
| | - P Burian
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - M Campbell
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - S Cecchini
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Y M Cho
- Center for Quantum Spacetime, Sogang University, Seoul, Korea
| | - M de Montigny
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - A De Roeck
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - J R Ellis
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
- Theoretical Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - M El Sawy
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - M Fairbairn
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
| | - D Felea
- Institute of Space Science, Bucharest, Măgurele, Romania
| | - M Frank
- Department of Physics, Concordia University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - J Hays
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - A M Hirt
- Department of Earth Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - J Janecek
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - M Kalliokoski
- Physics Department, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - A Korzenev
- Département de Physique Nucléaire et Corpusculaire, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - D H Lacarrère
- Experimental Physics Department, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - C Leroy
- Département de Physique, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - G Levi
- INFN, Section of Bologna and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - A Lionti
- Département de Physique Nucléaire et Corpusculaire, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - J Mamuzic
- IFIC, Universitat de València-CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - A Maulik
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - A Margiotta
- INFN, Section of Bologna and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - N Mauri
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - N E Mavromatos
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
| | - P Mermod
- Département de Physique Nucléaire et Corpusculaire, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - M Mieskolainen
- Physics Department, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - L Millward
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - V A Mitsou
- IFIC, Universitat de València-CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - R Orava
- Physics Department, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - I Ostrovskiy
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA
| | - P-P Ouimet
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | | | - B Parker
- Institute for Research in Schools, Canterbury, United Kingdom
| | - L Patrizii
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - G E Păvălaş
- Institute of Space Science, Bucharest, Măgurele, Romania
| | - J L Pinfold
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - L A Popa
- Institute of Space Science, Bucharest, Măgurele, Romania
| | - V Popa
- Institute of Space Science, Bucharest, Măgurele, Romania
| | - M Pozzato
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - S Pospisil
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - A Rajantie
- Department of Physics, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
| | | | - Z Sahnoun
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Sakellariadou
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
| | - A Santra
- IFIC, Universitat de València-CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - S Sarkar
- Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology Group, Physics Department, King's College, London, United Kingdom
| | - G Semenoff
- Department of Physics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - A Shaa
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - G Sirri
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - K Sliwa
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
| | - R Soluk
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - M Spurio
- INFN, Section of Bologna and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Staelens
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - M Suk
- IEAP, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | | | - V Togo
- INFN, Section of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - J A Tuszyński
- Physics Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - A Upreti
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA
| | - V Vento
- IFIC, Universitat de València-CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - O Vives
- IFIC, Universitat de València-CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - A Wall
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA
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