: This Letter presents a search for highly ionizing magnetic monopoles in 262 μb^{-1} of ultraperipheral Pb+Pb collision data at sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.36 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. A new methodology that exploits the properties of clusters of hits reconstructed in the innermost silicon detector layers is introduced to study highly ionizing particles in heavy-ion data. No significant excess above the background, which is estimated using a data-driven technique, is observed. Using a nonperturbative semiclassical model, upper limits at 95% confidence level are set on the cross section for pair production of monopoles with a single Dirac magnetic charge in the mass range of 20-150 GeV. Depending on the model, monopoles with a single Dirac magnetic charge and mass below 80-120 GeV are excluded.
Aad, G., Aakvaag, E., Abbott, B., Abdelhameed, S., Abeling, K., Abicht, N. J., et al. (2025). Search for Magnetic Monopole Pair Production in Ultraperipheral Pb+Pb Collisions at sqrt(SNN)=5.36 TeV with the ATLAS Detector at the LHC. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, 134(6) [10.1103/physrevlett.134.061803].
Search for Magnetic Monopole Pair Production in Ultraperipheral Pb+Pb Collisions at sqrt(SNN)=5.36 TeV with the ATLAS Detector at the LHC
Di Micco, B.Membro del Collaboration Group
;Di Nardo, R.Membro del Collaboration Group
;Montereali, F.Membro del Collaboration Group
;Orestano, D.Membro del Collaboration Group
;
2025-01-01
Abstract
: This Letter presents a search for highly ionizing magnetic monopoles in 262 μb^{-1} of ultraperipheral Pb+Pb collision data at sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.36 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. A new methodology that exploits the properties of clusters of hits reconstructed in the innermost silicon detector layers is introduced to study highly ionizing particles in heavy-ion data. No significant excess above the background, which is estimated using a data-driven technique, is observed. Using a nonperturbative semiclassical model, upper limits at 95% confidence level are set on the cross section for pair production of monopoles with a single Dirac magnetic charge in the mass range of 20-150 GeV. Depending on the model, monopoles with a single Dirac magnetic charge and mass below 80-120 GeV are excluded.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
