En-Jui Kuo - May 16, 2023

Dissertation Title:  Quantum Simulation of Bosonic Systems and Applications of Machine Learning
Date and Time: Tuesday, May 16, 11:00 am
Location:   PSC  3150 
Dissertation Committee Chair:   Mohammad Hafezi

Committee:

 Alexey Gorshkov
 Maissam Barkeshli
 Victor Albert
 Amin Gholampour

Abstract:

First, we introduce the notion of "generalized bosons," whose exchange statistics resemble those of bosons, but the local bosonic commutator $[a_i,a_i^{\dagger}]=1$ is replaced by an arbitrary single-mode operator that is diagonal in the generalized Fock basis. Examples of generalized bosons include boson pairs and spins. We consider the analogue of the boson sampling task for these particles and observe that its output probabilities are still given by permanents, so the results regarding the difficulty of sampling carry over directly. Finally, we propose implementations of generalized boson sampling in circuit-QED and ion-trap platforms.

In the rest of the thesis, we move on to different topics. Firstly, we incorporate machine learning techniques in quantum information. We use machine learning to classify rational two-dimensional conformal field theories (CFTs). We first use the energy spectra of these minimal models to train a supervised learning algorithm. In contrast to conventional methods that are typically qualitative and involve system size scaling, our method quantifies the similarity of the spectrum of a system at a fixed size to candidate CFTs. Such an approach allows us to correctly predict the nature and value of critical points of several strongly correlated spin models using only their energy spectra. Our results are also relevant for the ground-state entanglement Hamiltonian of certain topological phases of matter described by CFTs. Remarkably, we achieve high prediction accuracy by only using the lowest few Rényi entropies as the input. Finally, using autoencoders, an unsupervised learning algorithm, we find a hidden variable that has a direct correlation with the central charge and discuss prospects for using machine learning to investigate other conformal field theories, including higher-dimensional ones.

Next, we demonstrate how machine learning techniques, especially unsupervised learning algorithms, can be used to study Symmetry-Protected Topological (SPT) phases of matter. SPT phases are short-range entangled phases of matter with a non-local order parameter that are preserved under a local symmetry group. Here, we use an unsupervised learning algorithm, namely diffusion maps, to differentiate between symmetry-broken phases and topologically ordered phases and between non-trivial topological phases in different classes. Specifically, we show that phase transitions associated with these phases can be detected in various bosonic and fermionic models in one dimension, including the interacting SSH model, the AKLT model and its variants, and weakly interacting fermionic models. Our approach provides a cost-effective computational method for detecting topological phase transitions associated with SPT systems, which can also be applied to experimental data obtained from quantum simulators.

Batoul Banihashemi - May 16, 2023

Dissertation Title: Thermodynamics of quantum gravitational ensembles
Date and Time: Tuesday, May 16, 10:30 am
Location:   PSC 1136
Dissertation Committee Chair: Theodore Jacobson

Committee:

 Alessandra Buonanno
 Christopher Jarzynski, Dean’s Representative
 Raman Sundrum
 Brian Swingle

Abstract:

The discovery of black hole thermodynamics and its extension to cosmological horizons demonstrated a deep connection between thermodynamics and the nature of spacetime as a quantum system. It is then of great importance to properly understand the statistical mechanics of gravitational systems with horizon from first principles. While employing a partition function and the gravitational “Euclidean path integral” produces the expected physical result for entropy, a number of fundamental questions about the underlying analysis persist. This dissertation sharpens and resolves some puzzles regarding statistical mechanics of gravitational ensembles and the gravitational path integral, with a focus on cosmological horizon and de Sitter space.

The main questions addressed in this dissertation are: how is the entropy of de Sitter space derived in absence of any boundary on which the statistical ensemble can be properly defined? What is the correct interpretation of the first law of de Sitter horizon, according to which the horizon area shrinks upon adding matter in de Sitter static patch? And finally, how can entropy of horizon-bounded systems be derived from a Hamiltonian approach and phase space path integral, without the trickery of the gravitational Euclidean path integral? The first two questions are answered by introducing an artificial boundary in the system on which a gravitational ensemble can be properly defined. Once the ensemble is defined, the semiclassical approximation of the statistical partition function yields the entropy, and the interpretation of the de Sitter first law becomes clear by identifying the system energy as the quasilocal energy defined on the boundary. To tackle the last question, the real-time phase space path integral is utilised in the Hamiltonian formulation which maintains connection to the Hilbert space of the system, and it is found that the horizon entropy is derived from a nearly Lorentzian stationary point.

Gong Cheng - May 16, 2023

Dissertation Title:  Quantum information scrambling and protection in many-body systems
Date and Time: Tuesday, May 16, 2:00 pm
Location:   PSC  3150
Dissertation Committee Chair:   Prof. Maissam Barkeshli

Committee:

 Prof. Brian Swingle (Co-Chair)
 Prof. Paulo Bedaque
 Prof. Victor Albert
 Prof. Xiaodi Wu (Dean’s representative)

Abstract:

This work focuses on two topics in quantum information theory: the scrambling of quantum information and the preservation of quantum information in large degrees of freedom. The primary object I  investigate in this topic is the Out-of-time-order correlator (OTOC), which probes the dynamics of quantum information as it spreads from localized degrees of freedom to those that are distributed throughout the system. Meanwhile, the goal of studying quantum information protection is to construct a system that can preserve quantum information for a sufficiently long time when coupled to a finite-temperature environment.

The many-body systems analyzed in this work belong or are related to a class of strongly interacting systems known as holographic quantum models. The standard examples in this class are believed to be equivalent to gravitational theory in spacetime that is one-dimensional higher than that the quantum model lives in. Therefore, the results may also provide insights into topics in quantum gravity.

The first part of the thesis explores the scrambling dynamics close to a critical point where conformal symmetry emerges. The second case deals with the scrambling dynamics with conservation law constraints in holographic quantum field theory. The result also clarifies how conserved charges influence the dynamics in the bulk dual.

The third part of the thesis presents a matrix model with a large matrix rank N that belongs to the class of approximate quantum error correction codes. We investigate its thermal stability by coupling it to a thermal bath and demonstrate that it behaves as a self-correcting quantum memory at finite temperature. The coherent memory time scales polynomially with the system size N.

Troy Sewell - May 15, 2023

Dissertation Title:  Variational Algorithms and Resources for Near-Term Quantum Simulation
Date and Time:  Monday, May 15, 3:00 pm
Location:   PSC  3204
Dissertation Committee Chair:  Jay Sau

Committee:

 Stephen Jordan, Advisor / Co-chair
 Brian Swingle
 Maissam Barkeshli
 Andrew Childs, Dean’s Representative

Abstract:

The difficulty of efficiently simulating quantum many-body systems was one of the first motivations for developing quantum computers and may also be one of the first applications to find practical computational advantage on real quantum hardware. With the relatively recent advent of publicly available quantum technologies, we have now entered the era of noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) computing. The capabilities of these technologies are evolving rapidly, and with them the computational affordances to which we have access. The time is now ripe to test the capabilities of existing quantum hardware and leverage them to the best of our ability toward achieving a practical quantum computational advantage.

In this dissertation, we address these aims by benchmarking a class of variational multi-scale quantum circuits for state preparation which are locally robust against noise. We demonstrate the advantages of these multi-scale circuits compared to a purely local circuit ansatz using the critical transverse-field Ising model to optimize circuit parameters, numerically test the noise resilience of observables and customized error mitigation techniques using a local gate noise model, and demonstrate the robustness of local subregion preparation on an existing ion-trap quantum computer. We then show how the ground state optimized circuit can be simply extended to an ansatz for thermal state preparation using the separation of energy scales afforded by the multi-scale circuit structure.

Additionally, we evaluate the quantum resources needed for some quantum simulation tasks. We estimate the gate complexity of the site-by-site algorithm for fault-tolerant ground state preparation, which we extend to the case of degenerate Hamiltonians. Using matrix product states we evaluate the non-stabilizer quantum resources needed to represent thermalized subregions of a chaotic Potts model, which we use to address the feasibility for classical simulation of quantum hydrodynamics. 

Stefano Antonini - May 15, 2023

Dissertation Title: Holographic Cosmological Models and the AdS/CFT Correspondence
Date and Time:  Monday, May 15, 10:00 AM
Location:   PSC 3150
Dissertation Committee Chair:  Theodore Jacobson 

Committee:

 Zackaria Chacko
 Christopher Jarzynski (Dean’s Representative)
 Raman Sundrum
 Brian Swingle (Academic Advisor)

Abstract:

The formulation of a quantum theory of gravity is a central open problem in theoretical physics. In recent years, the development of holography---and in particular the Anti-de Sitter/Conformal Field Theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence---provided a new framework to investigate quantum gravity and led to consistent advancement. However, how to describe cosmology within holography remains an unanswered question whose solution could determine whether holography is able to capture physics in our universe.

This dissertation describes a new proposal for embedding cosmological physics in the holographic paradigm. This is articulated in two different but related approaches, both involving time-symmetric Big Bang-Big Crunch cosmologies with negative cosmological constant Λ .

In the first approach, the cosmological universe is given by a four-dimensional end-of-the-world brane moving in a five-dimensional AdS black hole spacetime. The proposed holographic dual description is given by a boundary conformal field theory. Under specific conditions, gravity is localized on the brane and effectively four-dimensional: an observer living on the brane is unaware of the existence of the extra dimension. In this dissertation, I show how these conditions can be met in an AdS-Reissner-Nordström background while retaining a holographic dual description.

The second approach focuses on spatially flat Λ<0 cosmologies which analytically continue to Euclidean wormholes connecting two asymptotic AdS boundaries. The proposed dual theory is given by two holographic 3D CFTs coupled by non-holographic 4D degrees of freedom on a strip. A different analytic continuation of the Euclidean wormhole leads to a Lorentzian traversable wormhole. After discussing the general features of these holographic cosmologies, I describe how the traversable wormhole can be reconstructed from the dual theory and how the existence of the former constrains the latter. Finally, I show that these Λ<0 cosmologies can undergo phases of accelerated expansion and match observational data for the scale factor evolution.

Sanket Doshi - May 10, 2023

Dissertation Title:  Dark Matter and Neutrino Masses from a Composite Hidden Sector
Date and Time:  Wednesday, May 10, 1:30pm
Location:   PSC  2204
Dissertation Committee Chair: Dr. Zackaria Chacko 

Committee:

Dr. Raman Sundrum
Dr. Kaustubh Agashe
Dr. Massimo Ricotti (Dean’s Representative)
Dr. Christopher Palmer

Abstract:

Despite the remarkable success of the Standard Model in explaining the interactions of the elementary particles, there is now indisputable evidence that it is incomplete. Although the Standard Model predicts that neutrinos are massless, over the last few decades experiments have established that the masses of the neutrinos, although very small, are nonvanishing. Furthermore, cosmological and astrophysical observations have established that about 80% of the matter in the universe is composed of some form of non-luminous dark matter, but there is no particle in the Standard Model that can play this role. Any explanation of the origin of neutrino masses and the nature of dark matter therefore requires physics beyond the SM. In this thesis, we present a novel class of models that can explain both the origin of neutrino masses and the observed abundance of dark matter.

In these models, the particle that constitutes dark matter arises as the composite state of a strongly coupled hidden sector that couples to the Standard Model through the neutrino portal. A discrete symmetry ensures that the dark matter particle is stable and does not decay. The hidden sector is in thermal equilibrium with the Standard Model in the early universe. The abundance of dark matter is set by its annihilation into final states containing neutrinos. The neutrino portal coupling also gives rise to small Majorana masses for the neutrinos through the inverse seesaw mechanism, with the role of the singlet neutrinos being played by composite states. The Standard Model neutrinos mix with the singlet neutrinos, and so the Standard Model neutrinos are partially composite in this framework. The dynamics of the hidden sector is taken to be approximately conformal in the ultraviolet, and a relevant deformation leads to breaking of the conformal symmetry in the infrared. Since the hidden sector is uncharged under the Standard Model gauge groups, the compositeness scale can lie below the weak scale, leading to striking experimental signals.

We employ the AdS/CFT correspondence to construct a holographic dual of this scenario. This takes the form of a Randall Sundrum model with two branes. Within this framework we explore the signals of these models at various current and future experiments. These include searches for lepton flavor violation in  and  conversion experiments, direct and indirect detection of dark matter and searches at colliders and beam dumps. We determine the current bounds on this scenario and show that future experiments can significantly expand the reach.

John Collini - April 28, 2023

Dissertation Title:  HIGH PRESSURE DRIVEN EVOLUTION OF CHARGE AND
STRUCTURAL ORDER IN NEMATIC SUPERCONDUCTOR, Ba1−xSrxNi2As2
Date and Time: Friday, April 28, 1:30 pm
Location:  Toll 0360. QMC Conference Room
Dissertation Committee Chair:  Johnpierre Paglione  

Committee:

 Richard Green
 Nicholas Butch
 Ichiro Takeuchi
 Jeffrey Lynn

Abstract:

The desire for a complete understanding of high temperature unconventional superconductivity
has illustrated a necessity for the study of non-magnetic sources of superconducting
enchantment, such as nematically driven fluctuations and charge order fluctuations. BaNi2As2,
a non-magnetic counterpart to high Tc superconductor BaFe2As2, shows a six-fold superconducting
enhancement neighboring charge and nematic orders, positioning it as an excellent candidate
for studying the interactions between charge order, nematic order, and enhanced superconductivity.
In this thesis, I will present X-ray diffraction and electrical transport evidence for the
development of complex charge order within the system as functions of isovalent chemical
substitution via Ba1−xSrxNi2As2 and applied hydrostatic pressure. The discovery of three
separate charge order will be detailed: an incommensurate charge order at Q = 0.28
and two commensurate charge orders at Q = 0.33 and Q = 0.5. X-ray diffraction
measurements of the Q = 0.28 charge order will be used to show a strong correlation
between it and a previously established nematic order for Ba1−xSrxNi2As2. Applied
pressure of BaNi2As2 up to 10.4 GPa will detail the development of all three charge orders and be used to show a correlation between pressure and isovalvent substitution in BaNi2As2. The critical substitution of 71% Sr and the critical pressure of 9 ± 0.5 GPa will be directly compared by X-ray measurements of their lattice parameters, revealing a collapsed tetragonal phase. This phase is shown to be analogous to the collapsed
tetragonal phase of the Fe-pnictide superconductors, likely playing a key role seen at
the critical substitution and pressure of BaNi2As2

Rahul Gaur - April 14, 2023

Dissertation Title: Optimization of high-beta fusion devices against linear instabilities
Date and Time:  Friday, April 14, 9:45 AM 
Location:  ERF 1207 Large conference room, Energy Research Facility
Dissertation Committee Chair:  Prof. William Dorland 

Committee:

 Dr. Ian Abel
 Dr. Matt Landreman
 Prof. Alexander Philippov
 Prof. Thomas Antonsen (Dean’s representative)

Abstract:

Magnetic confinement fusion is a technique in which a strong magnetic field is used to contain a hot plasma, which enables nuclear fusion. Regarding overall energy efficiency, the two most promising magnetic confinement concepts are tokamaks (axisymmetric devices) and stellarators (nonaxisymmetric devices). The power P produced by a magnetically confined nuclear fusion device is proportional to , where V is the device's volume, β is the plasma pressure - magnetic pressure ratio, and B is the magnetic field strength. Most tokamaks and stellarators currently in operation are low-β devices. Broadly speaking, there are three ways to increase P, one may increase the operating β (as in Spherical Tokamaks), the magnetic field (as in the SPARC and EAST), or the volume of the device (as in ITER and W7X). The cost of these devices is proportional to V, making large devices extremely expensive. Similarly, a large magnetic field (>10T) requires superconducting magnets that, even after the recent innovations in HTS (High-Temperature Superconductors), are expensive to operate.

In addition, more research needs to be done on the effect of neutron flux on the lifecycle of HTS magnets. High-β devices are an attractive idea for producing fusion energy efficiently. However, a high β generally also implies a large gradient in plasma pressure that can be a source of numerous magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) and kinetic instabilities. If fusion devices could be optimized against such instabilities, high-β operation would become attractive compared to high-field or large-volume reactors. Therefore, this thesis examines the stability of the high-β tokamak and stellarator equilibrium equilibria.

We will start by investigating the stability of high-β tokamaks and stellarator equilibria

against the infinite-n, ideal ballooning mode, an important pressure-driven magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instability. We optimize these equilibria for stability against the ideal-ballooning mode. To achieve this, we formulate a gradient-based adjoint technique and demonstrate its speed and effectiveness by stabilizing these equilibria. We also formulate how this technique can be easily extended to low-n ideal-MHD modes in both tokamaks and stellarators.

After demonstrating the process of stabilizing against ideal MHD unstable modes, we analyze the kinetic stability of high-β tokamak and stellarator equilibria by numerically solving the δf gyrokinetic model – a simplified version of the Vlasov-Maxwell model. These kinetic instabilities are driven by temperature and density gradients. To better understand these instabilities, we scan multiple values of the plasma β, temperature and density gradients, and plasma boundary shapes, discovering useful relationships between equilibrium-dependent quantities and growth rates of these instabilities.

From the microstability study, we find that electromagnetic effects are important for high-β devices. Hence, we use the numerical tools and knowledge derived from the previous chapters to write an optimization framework that searches for axisymmetric equilibria that are stable to electromagnetic kinetic instabilities. Due to the similarity between axisymmetry and quasisymmetry – a hidden symmetry in stellarators – we extend the microstability optimizer to search for high-β quasisymmetric stellarator equilibria.

Rui Zhang - April 11, 2023

Dissertation Title:  Lattice Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) Calculations of Parton Physics with Leading Power Accuracy in Large Momentum Expansion
Date and Time: Tuesday, April 11, 2:00 pm
Location:   PSC 3150
Dissertation Committee Chair: Xiangdong Ji

Committee:

 Thomas Cohen
 Drew Baden
 Zohreh Davoudi
 Alice Migenery

Abstract:

 Parton distributions describing how momenta of quarks and gluons are distributed inside a hadron moving at the speed of light, are important inputs to the standard model prediction of collider physics. Their non-perturbative nature does not allow traditional perturbative calculations from quantum field theory. Besides a global fitting to experimental data, it is also possible to calculate parton physics from lattice-QCD, a first principle non-perturbative Monte Carlo simulation of the strong interaction on super computers. Among the different strategies to extract information for parton physics, the large momentum effective theory, based on a large momentum expansion of non-local Euclidean correlation functions, allows us to directly calculate the momentum fraction x-dependence. When matching the lattice-QCD calculations to the physical parton physics in the large momentum expansion, there are unavoidable power corrections in the expansion parameter Lambda/Pz, which is determined by the QCD characteristic non-perturbative scale Lambda~300 MeV and the hadron momentum Pz, and the leading term appears as order Lambda/2xPz due to the linear divergent self-energy of Wilson line in the Euclidean lattice correlators. For current lattice calculations of  Pz~2 to 3 GeV, this correction can be as large as  30% at small x, dominating the uncertainties in the calculation. Achieving power accuracy in linear order of Lambda/Pz is thus crucial for a high precision calculation of the parton physics from lattice.

In this dissertation, I summarize our work to eliminate this linear correction by consistently define the renormalization for the linear divergence in lattice data and the resummation scheme of the factorially growing infrared-renormalon series in the perturbative matching. We show that the method significantly reduces the linear uncertainty by a factor of 3 to 5 and improves the convergence of the perturbation theory. We then apply the strategy to the calculation of pion distribution amplitude, which describes the pion light-cone wave function in a quark-antiquark pair. The method improves the short distance behavior of the renormalized lattice correlations, which is now consistent with the prediction of the short distance operator product expansion, showing a reasonable value for the moments of pion distribution amplitude.  We also develop the first strategy to resum the large logarithms in the matching to physical pion distribution amplitude when the momentum of quark or antiquark in the pion are small, that could improve the accuracy of the prediction near the endpoint regions. After extracting the x-dependence from the large momentum expansion in mid-x region, we complete the endpoint regions by fitting to the short distance correlations. Then a complete x-dependence is obtained for the pion distribution amplitude, which suggests a broad distribution compared to previous lattice calculations or model predictions.

Yuxun Guo - April 6, 2023

Dissertation Title: UNRAVELING THE NUCLEON 3D STRUCTURE FROM EXPERIMENT, LATTICE AND GLOBAL ANALYSIS
Date and Time: Thursday, April 6, 11:00 am
Location:  PSC 2136
Dissertation Committee Chair: Prof. Xiangdong Ji

Committee:

 Professor Kaustubh Agashe
 Professor Zackaria Chacko
 Professor Thomas Cohen
 Professor Da-Lin Zhang

Abstract:

 Nucleon 3D structure has been one of the most important goals in modern nuclear physics, which will provide, among other insights, an intuitive understanding of how the fundamental properties of the nucleon, such as its mass and spin, arise from the underlying quark and gluon degrees of freedom. I will present studies the 3D structure of nucleon via generalized parton distributions (GPDs) with inputs from experiments, lattice and global fits. I will discuss various exclusive measurements at HERA, JLab that can be used to probe the nucleon 3D structures as well as progresses in lattice QCD calculation related to nucleon 3D structures. I will also introduce a global analysis program that combines both experiment and lattice inputs and generate the state-of-art GPDs, which will shed a refreshing new light on the problem of proton structure and confinement.

DinhDuy Vu - March 29, 2023

Dissertation Title: Topology, localization, and spontaneous symmetry breaking in nonequilibrium many-body systems
Date and Time: Wednesday,March 29, 10:30 am
Location: ATL 4402 (CMTC conference room)
Dissertation Committee Chair: Prof. Sankar Das Sarma

Committee:

Prof. Jay Deep Sau
Prof. Maissam Barkeshli
Prof. Alicia Kollar
Prof. Christopher Jarzynski (Dean's Representative)

Abstract:

Exotic many-body phenomena are usually associated with the ground state of a time-independent Hamiltonian. It is natural to ask whether these physics can survive in a dynamic setting. Under a generic drive, the steady equilibrium state is most likely an infinite-temperature featureless thermal state. However, there exist exceptional cases where thermalization either does not happen or is delayed for a sufficiently long time, called nonequilibrium many-body systems. In this thesis, we study mechanisms that can generate nonequilibrium dynamics: many-body localization, prethermalization, and projective measurements. We then demonstrate that the resulting quantum states can host a wide variety of many-body phenomena similar to the groundstate, focusing on three aspects: topology, localization, and spontaneous symmetry breaking.

Kaustubh Wagh- March 27, 2023

Dissertation Title: REGULATING GENE EXPRESSION: THE ROLE OF TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR DYNAMICS
Date and Time: Monday, March 27, 12:30 PM
Location: Conference Room, 1116, Institute for Physical Science and Technology (IPST) Building
Dissertation Committee Chair: Prof. Arpita Upadhyaya

Committee:

Dr. Gordon L. Hager
Dr. Michelle Girvan
Dr. Wolfgang Losert
Dr. Helim Aranda-Espinoza

Abstract:

The genetic information encoded within our DNA is converted into RNA in a process called transcription. This is a tightly regulated process where multiple proteins act in concert to activate appropriate gene expression programs. Transcription factors (TFs) are key players in this process, with TF binding being the first step in the assembly of the transcriptional machinery. TFs are sequence-specific DNA binding proteins that bind specific motifs within chromatin. How TFs navigate the complex nuclear microenvironment to rapidly find their target sites remains poorly understood. Technological advances over the past 20 years have enabled us to follow single TF molecules within live cells as they interact with chromatin. Most TFs have been shown to exhibit power law distributed residence times, which arise from the broad distribution of binding affinities within the nucleus. This blurs the line between specific and non-specific binding and renders it impossible to distinguish between different binding modes based on residence times alone.

In this dissertation, I combine single molecule tracking (SMT) with statistical algorithms to identify two distinct low-mobility states for chromatin (histone H2B) and bound transcriptional regulators within the nucleus. On our timescales, the TF mobility states represent the mobility of the piece of chromatin that they are bound to. Ligand activation results in a dramatic increase in the proportion of steroid receptors in the lowest mobility state. Mutational analysis revealed that only chromatin interactions in the lowest mobility state require an intact DNA-binding domain as well as oligomerization domains. Importantly, these states are not spatially separated as previously believed but in fact, individual H2B and chromatin-bound TF molecules can dynamically switch between them. Single molecules presenting different mobilities exhibit different residence time distributions, suggesting that the mobility of a TF is intimately coupled with their temporal dynamics. This provides a way to identify different binding modes that cannot be detected by measuring residence times alone. Together, these results identify two unique and distinct low-mobility states of chromatin that appear to represent common pathways for transcription activation in mammalian cells.

Next, I demonstrate how SMT can complement genome wide assays to paint a complete picture of gene regulation by TFs using two case studies: corticosteroid signaling and endocrine therapy resistance in breast cancer. Finally, I conclude with a roadmap for future work on examining the role of mechanical cues within the cellular microenvironment (such as stiffness and topography) in regulating TF dynamics and gene expression.

Yipeng Sun- March 1, 2023

Dissertation Title: MEASUREMENT OF R(D(∗)) IN SEMILEPTONIC B DECAYS AND UPGRADE OF THE LHCB UPSTREAM TRACKER
Date and Time: Wednesday,March 1, 2023, 1:00 pm
Location: PSC3204
Dissertation Committee Chair: Prof. Manuel Franco Sevilla

Committee:

Dr. Abohassan Jawahery
Dr. Zakaria Chacko
Dr. Christopher Palmer
Dr. Alice Mignerey

Abstract:

The LHCb experiment at the Large Hadron Collider provides a unique opportunity to study flavor physics with high luminosity. One topic in flavor physics is lepton flavor universality (LFU), a property of the standard model (SM) which requires the three generations of leptons (e,µ, τ) couple to gauge bosons of the eletroweak interactions with) couple to gauge bosons of the eletroweak interactions with the same strength. It is an important probe for testing the validity of the SM and possibly providing hints to new physics beyond the SM. This thesis presents a preliminary framework for the measurement of R(D(∗)), a proxy to test LFU, defined as the ratio of branching fractions B(B → D(∗)τ −ντ)/B(B → D(∗)µ−νµ), with LHCb 2016 data. Another topic of the thesis is the upgrade of the LHCb Upstream Tracker (UT) which greatly increases the readout rate of the detector and removes limitations due to hardware trigger, paving the way for future precision measurements with even higher luminosity.

Zishuo Yang - February 20, 2023

Dissertation Title: Experimental study of semitauonic B_c decays and development of the Upstream Tracker electronics for the LHCb upgrade
Date and Time: Monday, February 20, 9:00 am
Location: PSC 3150
Dissertation Committee Chair: Prof. Hassan Jawahery

Committee:

Dr. Thomas Cohen
Dr. Sarah Eno
Dr. Manuel Franco Sevilla
Dr. Richard Mushotzky

Abstract:

The LHCb experiment at the Large Hadron Collider is designed for studying the properties of heavy quarks and CP violation to indirectly search for new physics beyond the Standard Model. The first topic of this dissertation is a study of semitauonic B_c meson decays at LHCb to test the universality of the couplings of charged leptons in electroweak interactions, which is known as lepton flavor universality in the Standard Model. The second topic of this dissertation is the development of readout electronics for a new silicon-strip tracking detector, the Upstream Tracker, to upgrade the LHCb detector. The upgraded LHCb detector will collect much more data in the upcoming runs of the Large Hadron Collider.