Strongly Coupled Chameleons and the Neutronic Quantum Bouncer

Brax, Philippe; Pignol, G.

doi:10.1103/physrevlett.107.111301

Cited by 99 publications

(145 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

139

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…As mentioned above, gravitational-strength fifth forces are most strongly constrained by torsion pendulum experiments in the laboratory. In more strongly coupled models, where screening is more powerful, it is possible to use cold neutron systems as a probe: the presence of the chameleon field both alters the energy levels of neutrons bouncing in the Earth's gravitational field [861][862][863] and can alter the phase of neutrons in interferometry [864]. Intermediate between these two regimes, Casimir force experiments cant be used to probe chameleons of moderate coupling [865].…”

Section: Laboratory and Solar System Tests Of Chameleon Theoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the cosmological standard model

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

After a decade and a half of research motivated by the accelerating universe, theory and experiment have a reached a certain level of maturity. The development of theoretical models beyond Λ or smooth dark energy, often called modified gravity, has led to broader insights into a path forward, and a host of observational and experimental tests have been developed. In this review we present the current state of the field and describe a framework for anticipating developments in the next decade. We identify the guiding principles for rigorous and consistent modifications of the standard model, and discuss the prospects for empirical tests.We begin by reviewing recent attempts to consistently modify Einstein gravity in the infrared, focusing on the notion that additional degrees of freedom introduced by the modification must "screen" themselves from local tests of gravity. We categorize screening mechanisms into three broad classes: mechanisms which become active in regions of high Newtonian potential, those in which first derivatives of the field become important, and those for which second derivatives of the field are important. Examples of the first class, such as f (R) gravity, employ the familiar chameleon or symmetron mechanisms, whereas examples of the last class are galileon and massive gravity theories, employing the Vainshtein mechanism. In each case, we describe the theories as effective theories and discuss prospects for completion in a more fundamental theory. We describe experimental tests of each class of theories, summarizing laboratory and solar system tests and describing in some detail astrophysical and cosmological tests. Finally, we discuss prospects for future tests which will be sensitive to different signatures of new physics in the gravitational sector.The review is structured so that those parts that are more relevant to theorists vs. observers/experimentalists are clearly indicated, in the hope that this will serve as a useful reference for both audiences, as well as helping those interested in bridging the gap between them.

show abstract

Section: Laboratory and Solar System Tests Of Chameleon Theoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the cosmological standard model

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The present limit is 5 orders of magnitude lower than the upper bound from precision tests of atomic spectra [27]. The parameter space is restricted from both sides, as other experiments provide a lower bound of β < 10 at n < 2 [27,28].…”

Section: Prl 112 151105 (2014) P H Y S I C a L R E V I E W L E T T Ementioning

confidence: 63%

“…Exclusion plot for chameleon fields (95% confidence level). Our newly derived limits (solid line) are 5 orders of magnitude lower than the upper bound from precision tests of atomic spectra (dot-dashed line) [27]. Pendulum experiments [28] provide a lower bound (dashed line).…”

Section: Prl 112 151105 (2014) P H Y S I C a L R E V I E W L E T T Ementioning

confidence: 72%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Neutrons Knock at the Cosmic Door

Schleich¹,

Rasel²

2014

Physics

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We report on precision resonance spectroscopy measurements of quantum states of ultracold neutrons confined above the surface of a horizontal mirror by the gravity potential of Earth. Resonant transitions between several of the lowest quantum states are observed for the first time. These measurements demonstrate that Newton's inverse square law of gravity is understood at micron distances on an energy scale of 10 −14 eV. At this level of precision, we are able to provide constraints on any possible gravitylike interaction. In particular, a dark energy chameleon field is excluded for values of the coupling constant β > 5.8 × 10 8 at 95% confidence level (C.L.), and an attractive (repulsive) dark matter axionlike spin-mass coupling is excluded for the coupling strength g s g p > 3.7 × 10 −16 (5.3 × 10 −16 ) at a Yukawa length of λ ¼ 20 μm (95% C.L.). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.112.151105 PACS numbers: 04.80.Cc, 14.80.Va, 29.30.Hs, 95.36.+x Experiments that rely on frequency measurements can be performed with incredibly high precision. One example is Rabi spectroscopy, a resonance spectroscopy technique to measure the energy eigenstates of quantum systems. It was originally developed by Rabi to measure the magnetic moment of molecules [1]. Today, resonance spectroscopy techniques are applied in various fields of science and medicine including nuclear magnetic resonance, masers, and atomic clocks. These methods have opened up the field of low-energy particle physics with studies of particle properties and their fundamental interactions and symmetries. In an attempt to investigate gravity at short distances, we applied the concept of resonance spectroscopy to quantum states of very slow neutrons in Earth's gravity potential [2]. Here, we present the first precision measurements of gravitational quantum states with this method that we refer to as gravity resonance spectroscopy (GRS). The strength of GRS is that it does not rely on electromagnetic interactions. The use of neutrons as test particles bypasses the electromagnetic background induced by van der Waals and Casimir forces and other polarizability effects.Within this work, we link these new measurements to dark matter and dark energy searches. Observational cosmology has determined the dark matter and dark energy density parameters to an accuracy of 2 significant figures [3]. While dark energy explains the accelerated expansion of the universe, dark matter is needed in order to describe the rotation curves of galaxies and the large-scale structure of the universe. The true nature of dark energy and the content of dark matter remain a mystery, however. The two most obvious candidates for dark energy are either Einstein's cosmological constant [4] or quintessence theories [5,6], where the dynamic vacuum energy changes over time. The resonant frequencies of our quantum states are intimately related to these models. If some as yet undiscovered dark matter or dark energy particles interact with neutrons, this should result in a measurable energy shift of the obser...

show abstract

“…In a recent work [8], the potential detection of chameleons with the neutronic quantum bouncer has been explored. Chameleons are scalar fields of the quintessence type and are among the few serious candidates to explain the accelerated expansion of the Universe.…”

Section: Constraint On Chameleon Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The GRANIT project: status and perspectives

Rebreyend¹

2012

Proceedings of XXIst International Europhysics Conference on High Energy Physics — PoS(EPS-HEP2011)

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The GRANIT project is the follow-up of the pioneering experiments that first observed the quantum states of neutrons trapped in the earth's gravitational field at the Institute Laue Langevin (ILL). Due to the weakness of the gravitational force, these quantum states exhibit most unusual properties: peV energies and spatial extensions of order 10 µm. Whereas the first series of observations aimed at measuring the properties of the wave functions, the GRANIT experiment will induce resonant transitions between states thus accessing to spectroscopic measurements. After a brief reminder of achieved results, the principle and the status of the experiment, presently under commissioning at the ILL, will be given. In the second part, we will discuss the potential of GRANIT to search for new physics, in particular to a modified Newton law in the micrometer range.

show abstract

Strongly Coupled Chameleons and the Neutronic Quantum Bouncer

Cited by 99 publications

References 21 publications

Beyond the cosmological standard model

Beyond the cosmological standard model

Neutrons Knock at the Cosmic Door

The GRANIT project: status and perspectives

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About