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This study probes the lithosphere‐asthenosphere system beneath 155 Ma Pacific seafloor using teleseismic S‐to‐p receiver functions at the Pacific Lithosphere Anisotropy and Thickness Experiment project ocean‐bottom‐seismometers. Within the lithosphere, a significant velocity decrease at 33–50 km depth is observed. This mid‐lithospheric discontinuity is consistent with the velocity contrast between the background mantle and thin, trapped layers of crystallized partial melt, in the form of either dolomite or garnet granulite. These melts possibly originated from deeper asthenospheric melting beneath the flanks of spreading centers, and were transported within the cooling lithosphere. A positive velocity increase of 3%–6% is observed at 130–155 km depth and is consistent with the base of a layer with partial melt in the asthenosphere. A shear velocity decrease associated with the lithosphere‐asthenosphere boundary at 95–115 km depth is permitted by the data, but is not required.

 

The Colorado Plateau and its surroundings serve as an archetypal case to investigate the interaction of mantle melting processes and lithospheric structure. It has been hypothesized that widespread Cenozoic volcanism indicates the encroachment of the convective upwelling of asthenosphere toward the Plateau center. In this study, we generate a Common Conversion Point (CCP) stack of S‐to‐p (Sp) receiver functions to image the locations of lithospheric discontinuities in the southwestern United States. Our results are broadly similar to prior work, showing a strong and continuous Negative Velocity Gradient (NVG) consistent with the Lithosphere‐Asthenosphere Boundary (LAB) over much of the study area. However, with several methodological improvements, we are able to obtain more reliable NVG depth picks below the Colorado Plateau where the LAB becomes weaker, deeper, and broader. We compare the inferred topography of NVGs with the locations of volcanoes, and find that the majority of recent volcanoes are co‐located with lithosphere that is ∼80 km thick. This appears to be the critical depth at which partial melt from upwelling asthenosphere pooling at the base of (or within) the lithosphere may percolate to the surface. We compare our CCP profiles with magma equilibration conditions determined from petrologic analysis and find good agreement between the depth of NVGs and depth of magma equilibration. This analysis provides insight into the progression of magmatism and lithospheric loss toward the center of the Colorado Plateau, and demonstrates how small‐scale processes like melting influence lithosphere‐asthenosphere interactions that persist over large temporal and spatial scales.

 

Strain partitioning in oblique convergent margins results in margin‐parallel shear in the overriding plate. Margin‐parallel shear is often accommodated by margin‐parallel strike‐slip faults proximal to active volcanic arcs. Along the Nicaraguan segment of the Central American Forearc (CAFA) in the Cocos‐Caribbean plate convergent margin, there are no well‐expressed right‐lateral faults that accommodate CA‐CAFA relative motion. Instead, historical earthquakes and mapped fault orientations indicate that the ∼12 mm/yr of dextral motion is accommodated on arc‐normal, left‐lateral faults (i.e., bookshelf faults). We investigate three upper‐plate earthquakes; the 10 April 2014 (M_w6.1), 15 September 2016 (M_w5.7), and 28 September 2016 (M_w5.5), using Global Position System co‐seismic displacements and relocated earthquake aftershocks. Our analyses of the three earthquakes indicate that the 10 April 2014 earthquake ruptured an unmapped margin‐parallel right‐lateral fault in Lago Xolotlán (Managua) and the September 2016 earthquakes ruptured arc‐normal, left‐lateral and oblique‐slip faults. These earthquakes represent a triggered sequence whereby the 10 April 2014 earthquake promoted failure of the faults that ruptured in September 2016 by imparting a static Coulomb stress change (ΔCFS) of 0.02–0.07 MPa. Likewise, the 15 September 2016, earthquake additionally promoted failure (ΔCFS of 0.08–0.1 MPa) on sub‐parallel faults that ruptured in two subsequent earthquakes. We also present an instance of magma‐tectonic interaction whereby the 10 April 2014 earthquake dilated (10s of μStrain) the shallow magmatic system of Momotombo Volcano, which led to magma injection, ascent, and eruption on 1 December 2015, after ∼100 years of quiescence.

 

This study presents an improved approach to common‐conversion point stacking of converted body waves that incorporates scattering kernels, accurate and efficient measurement of stack uncertainties, and an alternative method for estimating free surface seismic velocities. To better separate waveforms into thePandSVcomponents to calculate receiver functions, we developed an alternative method to measure near‐surface compressional and shear wave velocities from particle motions. To more accurately reflect converted phase scattering kernels in the common‐conversion point stack, we defined new weighting functions to project receiver function amplitudes only to locations where sensitivities to horizontal discontinuities are high. To better quantify stack uncertainties, we derived an expression for the standard deviation of the stack amplitude that is more efficient than bootstrapping and can be used for any problem requiring the standard deviation of a weighted average. We tested these improved methods onSpphase data from the Anatolian region, using multiple band‐pass filters to image velocity gradients of varying depth extents. Common conversion point stacks of 23,787Spreceiver functions demonstrate that the new weighting functions produce clearer and more continuous mantle phases, compared to previous approaches. The stacks reveal a positive velocity gradient at 80–150 km depth that is consistent with the base of an asthenospheric low‐velocity layer. This feature is particularly strong in stacks of longer period data, indicating it represents a gradual velocity gradient. At shorter periods, a lithosphere‐asthenosphere boundary phase is observed at 60–90 km depth, marking the top of the low‐velocity layer.

 

A comprehensive study of the local and nonlocal amplitudes contributing to the decayB⁰→K^*0(→K⁺π⁻)μ⁺μ⁻is performed by analysing the phase-space distribution of the decay products. The analysis is based onppcollision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 8.4 fb⁻¹collected by the LHCb experiment. This measurement employs for the first time a model of both one-particle and two-particle nonlocal amplitudes, and utilises the complete dimuon mass spectrum without any veto regions around the narrow charmonium resonances. In this way it is possible to explicitly isolate the local and nonlocal contributions and capture the interference between them. The results show that interference with nonlocal contributions, although larger than predicted, only has a minor impact on the Wilson Coefficients determined from the fit to the data. For the local contributions, the Wilson Coefficient$$ {\mathcal{C}}_9 $$$C_9$, responsible for vector dimuon currents, exhibits a 2.1σdeviation from the Standard Model expectation. The Wilson Coefficients$$ {\mathcal{C}}_{10} $$$C_{10}$,$$ {\mathcal{C}}_9^{\prime } $$$C_9^{\prime }$and$$ {\mathcal{C}}_{10}^{\prime } $$$C_{10}^{\prime }$are all in better agreement than$$ {\mathcal{C}}_9 $$$C_9$with the Standard Model and the global significance is at the level of 1.5σ. The model used also accounts for nonlocal contributions fromB⁰→ K^*0[τ⁺τ⁻→ μ⁺μ⁻] rescattering, resulting in the first direct measurement of thebsττvector effective-coupling$$ {\mathcal{C}}_{9\tau } $$$C_{9\tau }$.

 

A search for hidden-charm pentaquark states decaying to a range of${\mathrm{\Sigma }}_c\overline{D}$and${\mathrm{\Lambda }}_c^{+}\overline{D}$final states, as well as doubly charmed pentaquark states to${\mathrm{\Sigma }}_{c}D$and${\mathrm{\Lambda }}_c^{+}D$, is made using samples of proton-proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of$5.7{\mathrm{fb}}^{-1}$recorded by the LHCb detector at$\sqrt{s}=13\mathrm{TeV}$. Since no significant signals are found, upper limits are set on the pentaquark yields relative to that of the${\mathrm{\Lambda }}_c^{+}$baryon in the${\mathrm{\Lambda }}_c^{+}\to p{K}^{-}{\pi }^{+}$decay mode. The known pentaquark states are also investigated, and their signal yields are found to be consistent with zero in all cases.

© 2024 CERN, for the LHCb Collaboration2024CERN 

A search for the fully reconstructed$$ {B}_s^0 $$$B_s^0$→ μ⁺μ⁻γdecay is performed at the LHCb experiment using proton-proton collisions at$$ \sqrt{s} $$$\sqrt{s}$= 13 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.4 fb⁻¹. No significant signal is found and upper limits on the branching fraction in intervals of the dimuon mass are set$$ {\displaystyle \begin{array}{cc}\mathcal{B}\left({B}_s^0\to {\mu}^{+}{\mu}^{-}\gamma \right)<4.2\times {10}^{-8},& m\left({\mu}^{+}{\mu}^{-}\right)\in \left[2{m}_{\mu },1.70\right]\textrm{GeV}/{c}^2,\\ {}\mathcal{B}\left({B}_s^0\to {\mu}^{+}{\mu}^{-}\gamma \right)<7.7\times {10}^{-8},&\ m\left({\mu}^{+}{\mu}^{-}\right)\in \left[\textrm{1.70,2.88}\right]\textrm{GeV}/{c}^2,\\ {}\mathcal{B}\left({B}_s^0\to {\mu}^{+}{\mu}^{-}\gamma \right)<4.2\times {10}^{-8},& m\left({\mu}^{+}{\mu}^{-}\right)\in \left[3.92,{m}_{B_s^0}\right]\textrm{GeV}/{c}^2,\end{array}} $$$\begin{array}{cc}B\left(B_s^0\to {\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}\gamma \right)<4.2\times {10}^{-8},& m\left({\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}\right)\in \left(2m_{\mu },1.70\right)\mathrm{GeV}/c^2,\\ B\left(B_s^0\to {\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}\gamma \right)<7.7\times {10}^{-8},& m\left({\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}\right)\in \left(\mathrm{1.70,\; 2.88}\right)\mathrm{GeV}/c^2,\\ B\left(B_s^0\to {\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}\gamma \right)<4.2\times {10}^{-8},& m\left({\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}\right)\in \left(3.92,m_{B_s^0}\right)\mathrm{GeV}/c^2,\end{array}$

at 95% confidence level. Additionally, upper limits are set on the branching fraction in the [2m_μ,1.70] GeV/c²dimuon mass region excluding the contribution from the intermediateϕ(1020) meson, and in the region combining all dimuon-mass intervals.

 

The production of 𝜂 and 𝜂′ mesons is studied in proton-proton and proton-lead collisions collected with the LHCb detector. Proton-proton collisions are studied at center-of-mass energies of 5.02 and 13TeV and proton-lead collisions are studied at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon of 8.16TeV. The studies are performed in center-of-mass (c.m.) rapidity regions 2.5<𝑦c.m.<3.5 (forward rapidity) and −4.0<𝑦c.m.<−3.0 (backward rapidity) defined relative to the proton beam direction. The 𝜂 and 𝜂′ production cross sections are measured differentially as a function of transverse momentum for 1.5<𝑝T<10GeV and 3<𝑝T<10GeV, respectively. The differential cross sections are used to calculate nuclear modification factors. The nuclear modification factors for 𝜂 and 𝜂′ mesons agree at both forward and backward rapidity, showing no significant evidence of mass dependence. The differential cross sections of 𝜂 mesons are also used to calculate 𝜂/𝜋0 cross-section ratios, which show evidence of a deviation from the world average. These studies offer new constraints on mass-dependent nuclear effects in heavy-ion collisions, as well as 𝜂 and 𝜂′ meson fragmentation. 

The ratios of branching fractions R(D*)= B(B0 --> D*+tau- nu(bar))/ B(B0--> D*+mu- nu(bar)) and R(D)= B(B0 --> D0tau- nu(bar))/ B(B0 --> D0mu- nu(bar)) are measured, assuming isospin symmetry, using a sample of proton-proton collision data corresponding to 3.0 fb−1 of integrated luminosity recorded by the LHCb experiment during 2011 and 2012. The tau lepton is identified in the decay mode τ− → μ−ντν¯μ. The measured values are R*D*)= 0.281+/- 0.018+/- 0.024 and R(D0)=0.441+/- 0.060+/- 0.066, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. The correlation between these measurements is ρ= −0.43. The results are consistent with the current average of these quantities and are at a combined 1.9 standard deviations from the predictions based on lepton flavor universality in the standard model