Looking for a massive KeV pseudo‐scalar in gamma ray bursts

Abstract

Looking for repetitive signals within a y burst may provide evidence for a massive KeV pseudo-scalar coupled to electromagnetism. We study the possible signatures that may occur for pseudo-scalar electromagnetic propagation and outline possible probes to the pseudo-scalar mass as well as its coupling to electromagnetism.Key words: 7 ray sources -7 ray bursts -massive pseudo-scalar particles A A A subject classification: 143; 144 IntroductionScalar and pseudo-scalar fields occur for varied reasons in our present theories of elementary particle physics and gravitation. The generation of both quark masses and gauge boson masses as well as spontaneous breaking of SU(2) x U ( l ) down to U ( l ) is implemented by a scalar doublet that may have a more fundamental structure stemming from either a technicolor mechanism or supergravity theory (Weinberg 1976, Witten 1985. Scalar partners to the usual quarks and leptons are necessary components within a supersymmetric standard model, which was invented to solve the gauge hierarchy problem stabilizing the electro-weak and the G.U.T. scale (Ibanez 1988). In a previous paper we have outlined the need for scalars and pseudo-scalars in physics (Wolf 1990b), which include the pseudo-scalar axion (Sikivie 1982), majoron (Gelmini and Roncadelli 1981) and familon (Wilczek 1982) as well as the pseudo-scalar torsion potential in gravitational theory (Wolf 1986). We also pointed out (Wolf 1990b) that scalar partners to the t would follow from a composite picture of gauge bosons and additional scalars and pseudo-scalars particles also arise in generalizations of the standard model (Grosser 1987). Also in gravitational theory, the Brans-Dicke scalar (Brans and Dicke 1961), Barber's creation field (Barber 1982) and the scalar used in spontaneous genefation of gravity (Zee 1981) all would produce cosmological effects such as the variation of G, the rate of development of density perturbations and the modifications of light propagation through a gravitational field. Supergravity theory generates both the scalar dilaton (Cremmer and Julia 1979) as well as the gravi-scalar and gravi-photon (Sherk 1979), the dilaton effecting early universe evolution, while the gravi-scalar and gravi-photon can be searched for in experiments involving matter-matter and matter-antimatter coupling, since they produce asymmetric results in these two cases (Goldman et al. 1986). Both the dilaton and the gravi-scalar can couple to electromagnetism and produce measureable dispersive effects as well as birefringence of electromagnetic waves (Wolf 1988). Scalars also emerge from compactified Kaluza-Klein theory with scalar electromagnetic couplings appearing in the compactified lagrangian (Emelyanov et al. 1986). The axion, the majoron and the familon couple to the electromagnetic field through quark loops, the torsion potential couples to electromagnetism via the production of virtual fermions by the electromagnetic field whose spin couples to the torsion. Scalar and pseudo-scalar Higgs bosons couple to the electroma...