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Search for magnetic monopoles with the MoEDAL prototype trapping detector in 8 TeV proton-proton collisions at the LHC

  • The MoEDAL collaboration
  • B. Acharya
  • J. Alexandre
  • K. Bendtz
  • P. Benes
  • J. Bernabéu
  • M. Campbell
  • S. Cecchini
  • J. Chwastowski
  • A. Chatterjee
  • M. de Montigny
  • D. Derendarz
  • A. De Roeck
  • J. R. Ellis
  • M. Fairbairn
  • D. Felea
  • M. Frank
  • D. Frekers
  • C. Garcia
  • G. Giacomelli
  • D. Hasegan
  • M. Kalliokoski
  • A. Katre
  • D.-W. Kim
  • M. G. L. King
  • K. Kinoshita
  • D.H. Lacarrère
  • S. C. Lee
  • C. Leroy
  • A. Lionti
  • A. Margiotta
  • N. Mauri
  • N. E. Mavromatos
  • P. Mermod
  • D. Milstead
  • V. A. Mitsou
  • R. Orava
  • B. Parker
  • L. Pasqualini
  • L. Patrizii
  • G. E. Păvălas
  • J. L. Pinfold
  • M. Platkevič
  • V. Popa
  • M. Pozzato
  • S. Pospisil
  • A. Rajantie
  • Z. Sahnoun
  • M. Sakellariadou
  • S. Sarkar
  • G. Semenoff
  • G. Sirri
  • K. Sliwa
  • R. Soluk
  • M. Spurio
  • Y. N. Srivastava
  • R. Staszewski
  • M. Suk
  • J. Swain
  • M. Tenti
  • V. Togo
  • M. Trzebinski
  • J. A. Tuszynski
  • V. Vento
  • O. Vives
  • Z. Vykydal
  • T. Whyntie
  • A. Widom
  • G. Willems
  • J. H. Yoon
Open Access
Regular Article - Experimental Physics
First Online:
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Accepted:

Abstract

The MoEDAL experiment is designed to search for magnetic monopoles and other highly-ionising particles produced in high-energy collisions at the LHC. The largely passive MoEDAL detector, deployed at Interaction Point 8 on the LHC ring, relies on two dedicated direct detection techniques. The first technique is based on stacks of nucleartrack detectors with surface area ~18m2, sensitive to particle ionisation exceeding a high threshold. These detectors are analysed offline by optical scanning microscopes. The second technique is based on the trapping of charged particles in an array of roughly 800 kg of aluminium samples. These samples are monitored offline for the presence of trapped magnetic charge at a remote superconducting magnetometer facility. We present here the results of a search for magnetic monopoles using a 160 kg prototype MoEDAL trapping detector exposed to 8TeV proton-proton collisions at the LHC, for an integrated luminosity of 0.75 fb–1. No magnetic charge exceeding 0:5gD (where gD is the Dirac magnetic charge) is measured in any of the exposed samples, allowing limits to be placed on monopole production in the mass range 100 GeV≤ m ≤ 3500 GeV. Model-independent cross-section limits are presented in fiducial regions of monopole energy and direction for 1gD ≤ |g| ≤ 6gD, and model-dependent cross-section limits are obtained for Drell-Yan pair production of spin-1/2 and spin-0 monopoles for 1gD ≤ |g| ≤ 4gD. Under the assumption of Drell-Yan cross sections, mass limits are derived for |g| = 2gD and |g| = 3gD for the first time at the LHC, surpassing the results from previous collider experiments.

Keywords

Exotics Hadron-Hadron scattering (experiments) Particle and resonance production 
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Copyright information

© The Author(s) 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  • The MoEDAL collaboration
  • B. Acharya
    • 1
    • 2
  • J. Alexandre
    • 1
  • K. Bendtz
    • 25
  • P. Benes
    • 14
  • J. Bernabéu
    • 3
  • M. Campbell
    • 4
  • S. Cecchini
    • 26
  • J. Chwastowski
    • 8
  • A. Chatterjee
    • 15
  • M. de Montigny
    • 9
  • D. Derendarz
    • 8
  • A. De Roeck
    • 4
  • J. R. Ellis
    • 1
    • 5
  • M. Fairbairn
    • 1
  • D. Felea
    • 10
  • M. Frank
    • 11
  • D. Frekers
    • 13
  • C. Garcia
    • 3
  • G. Giacomelli
    • 7
  • D. Hasegan
    • 11
  • M. Kalliokoski
    • 6
  • A. Katre
    • 15
  • D.-W. Kim
    • 16
  • M. G. L. King
    • 3
  • K. Kinoshita
    • 17
  • D.H. Lacarrère
    • 4
  • S. C. Lee
    • 16
  • C. Leroy
    • 12
  • A. Lionti
    • 15
  • A. Margiotta
    • 7
  • N. Mauri
    • 26
  • N. E. Mavromatos
    • 1
  • P. Mermod
    • 15
  • D. Milstead
    • 25
  • V. A. Mitsou
    • 3
  • R. Orava
    • 18
  • B. Parker
    • 28
  • L. Pasqualini
    • 7
  • L. Patrizii
    • 26
  • G. E. Păvălas
    • 10
  • J. L. Pinfold
    • 9
  • M. Platkevič
    • 14
  • V. Popa
    • 10
  • M. Pozzato
    • 26
  • S. Pospisil
    • 14
  • A. Rajantie
    • 19
  • Z. Sahnoun
    • 26
    • 20
  • M. Sakellariadou
    • 1
  • S. Sarkar
    • 1
  • G. Semenoff
    • 21
  • G. Sirri
    • 26
  • K. Sliwa
    • 22
  • R. Soluk
    • 9
  • M. Spurio
    • 7
  • Y. N. Srivastava
    • 23
  • R. Staszewski
    • 8
  • M. Suk
    • 14
  • J. Swain
    • 23
  • M. Tenti
    • 27
  • V. Togo
    • 26
  • M. Trzebinski
    • 8
  • J. A. Tuszynski
    • 9
  • V. Vento
    • 3
  • O. Vives
    • 3
  • Z. Vykydal
    • 14
  • T. Whyntie
    • 28
    • 29
  • A. Widom
    • 23
  • G. Willems
    • 13
  • J. H. Yoon
    • 24
  1. 1.Theoretical Particle Physics & Cosmology Group, Physics Dept.King’s College LondonLondonUK
  2. 2.International Centre for Theoretical PhysicsTriesteItaly
  3. 3.IFIC, Universitat de València — CSICValenciaSpain
  4. 4.Experimental Physics Department, CERNGenevaSwitzerland
  5. 5.Theoretical Physics Department, CERNGenevaSwitzerland
  6. 6.Beams Department, CERNGenevaSwitzerland
  7. 7.INFN, section of Bologna & Department of Physics & AstronomyUniversity of BolognaBolognaItaly
  8. 8.Institute of Nuclear Physics Polish Academy of SciencesCracowPoland
  9. 9.Physics DepartmentUniversity of AlbertaEdmontonCanada
  10. 10.Institute of Space ScienceBucharest — MăgureleRomania
  11. 11.Department of PhysicsConcordia UniversityMontréalCanada
  12. 12.Département de physiqueUniversité de MontréalQuébecCanada
  13. 13.Physics DepartmentUniversity of MuensterMuensterGermany
  14. 14.IEAP, Czech Technical University in PraguePragueCzech Republic
  15. 15.Section de PhysiqueUniversité de GenèveGenevaSwitzerland
  16. 16.Physics DepartmentGangneung-Wonju National UniversityGangneungSouth Korea
  17. 17.Physics DepartmentUniversity of CincinnatiCincinnatiUSA
  18. 18.Physics DepartmentUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
  19. 19.Department of PhysicsImperial College LondonLondonUK
  20. 20.Centre for Astronomy, Astrophysics and GeophysicsAlgiersAlgeria
  21. 21.Department of PhysicsUniversity of British ColumbiaVancouverCanada
  22. 22.Department of Physics and AstronomyTufts UniversityMedfordUSA
  23. 23.Physics DepartmentNortheastern UniversityBostonUSA
  24. 24.Physics DepartmentKonkuk UniversitySeoulSouth Korea
  25. 25.Physics DepartmentStockholm UniversityStockholmSweden
  26. 26.INFN, section of BolognaBolognaItaly
  27. 27.INFN, CNAFBolognaItaly
  28. 28.The Institute for Research in SchoolsCanterburyEngland
  29. 29.Queen Mary University of LondonLondonEngland

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