Search arXivSearch

arXiv · 1906.05341

Dynamical Friction in Interacting Relativistic Systems

Abstract

We study dynamical friction in interacting relativistic systems with arbitrary mean free paths and medium constituent masses. Our novel framework recovers the known limits of ideal gas and ideal fluid when the mean free path goes to infinity or zero, respectively, and allows for a smooth interpolation between these limits. We find that in an infinite system the drag force can be expressed as a sum of ideal-gas-like and ideal-fluid-like contributions leading to a finite friction even at subsonic velocities. This simple picture receives corrections in any finite system and the corrections become especially significant for a projectile moving at a velocity $v$ close to the speed of sound $v\approx c_s$. These corrections smoothen the ideal fluid discontinuity around the speed of sound and render the drag force a continuous function of velocity. We show that these corrections can be computed to a good approximation within effective theory of viscous fluid dynamics.

Explore related subjects

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Andrey Katz, Aleksi Kurkela, Alexander Soloviev. 2019-06-12. Dynamical Friction in Interacting Relativistic Systems. https://doi.org/10.1088/1475-7516%2F2019%2F08%2F017

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

Sensitivity Analysis of Singlet Vector-Like B Quarks via Photon-Induced and Z-Initiated Processes at FCC-$μp$

This study presents a systematic sensitivity analysis of singlet-type vector-like $B$ quark production at an FCC--$μp$ collider with a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=24.5~\mathrm{TeV}$ through photon- and $Z$-initiated production mechanisms. The analysis focuses on the $B\to Zb$ decay channel, considering the leptonic decay of the $Z$ boson and the hadronic decay of the accompanying $W$ boson, leading to the final state $\ell^+\ell^-bjj$. Detector-resolution effects are incorporated through a simplified Gaussian smearing procedure, and the discovery and exclusion sensitivities are evaluated using an Asimov-based statistical framework. For the photon-induced channel, the most favourable sensitivity is obtained for $R_L=0.05$ and $\mathcal{L}=1000~\mathrm{fb^{-1}}$. Over the mass range $M_B=2$--$3~\mathrm{TeV}$, the expected $5σ$ discovery reach is approximately $g^\ast\simeq0.263$--$0.328$, while the $95\%$ C.L. exclusion sensitivity extends to $g^\ast\simeq0.162$--$0.197$. On the other hand, the $Z$-initiated channel provides a substantially stronger sensitivity and extends the investigated mass range up to $M_B=4.5~\mathrm{TeV}$. For $R_L=0.05$ and $\mathcal{L}=500~\mathrm{fb^{-1}}$, the $5σ$ discovery reach is approximately $g^\ast\simeq0.038$--$0.056$, while the corresponding $95\%$ C.L. exclusion sensitivity reaches $g^\ast\simeq0.021$--$0.032$. These results demonstrate that photon- and $Z$-initiated single production at an FCC--$μp$ collider provide complementary probes of heavy vector-like $B$ quarks. Moreover, the $Z$-initiated channel offers particularly strong sensitivity to small effective couplings in the multi-TeV mass region beyond the present direct LHC reach.

hep-ph

Flavon assisted low scale leptogenesis

Low-scale leptogenesis scenarios, such as the resonant leptogenesis, typically require a highly degenerate mass spectrum of right-handed neutrinos (RHNs). This requirement can be circumvented by extending the seesaw framework with a scalar singlet $S$ that couples to RHNs via the $S N^{}_I N^{}_J$ terms (with $I \neq J$), which opens up new decay channels $N^{}_I \to N^{}_J S$ and provides additional sources of CP violation, thereby enabling successful leptogenesis at the TeV scale without the need for mass degeneracy. In this work, for the first time, we point out that the flavon fields, which are introduced in many flavor-symmetry neutrino mass models to be responsible for the generation of RHN masses through the acquisition of non-zero vacuum expectation values, serve as ideal candidates for the $S$ field. Taking as an example a flavor-symmetry neutrino mass model that naturally realizes the experimentally allowed TM1 mixing pattern and has the attractive features that only one flavon field plays the role of $S$ and that it couples to only two RHNs, we demonstrate that the observed neutrino masses and mixing angles can be consistently reproduced, while the observed baryon asymmetry can be achieved within a parameter space compatible with current experimental constraints.

hep-ph

EasyScan_HEP 2: LLM-Agent Parameter-Scan Workflows in High Energy Physics

Large-language-model (LLM) agents are beginning to reshape the preparation and steering of computational workflows in high-energy physics phenomenology. To accommodate this change, we upgrade EasyScan_HEP to make the construction of parameter-scan configuration files more accessible to LLM-agent assistance. EasyScan_HEP 2 exposes command-line and machine-readable interfaces for LLM-agent workflows, allowing an assistant to translate natural language requests into an explicit .ini configuration that defines the scan method, external-program workflow, constraints, and outputs. The resulting configuration can be inspected through a local Web interface. The framework also supports LLM-agent-guided extension to new scan methods, as illustrated by the integration of BESTFIT, EMCEE, and DYNESTY. In this way, EasyScan_HEP 2 adapts parameter-scan workflows to LLM-agent use while preserving reproducibility, transparency, and user control.

hep-ph