Research Interests
Some of my actual and past Research Interests.
-- UNDER MAINTENANCE: see CV --
Axion-Like Particles (ALPs)
Particles with properties analogous to the QCD-axion, i.e. only anomalous or derivative couplings, arise in many different models as the result of the breaking of some axial symmetries. The phenomenological consequences of such particles are therefore of the innermost interest.
Extra-Dimensional Gravity
A fascinating possibility is the existence of extra dimensions invisible to us. If this was the case, Einstein's General Relativity (GR) would have to be recovered in the 4D-Effective Field Theory. The reduction from the 5D to 4D theory usually generates a huge spectrum of particles, which existence's consequences may be detected at colliders.
I have focused on the Randall-Sundrum (RS) model, which through a compact warped 5th-dimension solves elegantly the hierarchy problem between the Planck and the Higgs scales and naturally includes gravitational interactions much stronger compared to GR.
Dark Matter
The nature of Dark Matter (DM) remains one of the biggest open questions in physics. Since hydrodynamically it seems to behave as dust, the simplest assumption is to consider DM as made of some type of unknown particle. Its reluctance to interact with the Standard Model particles becomes the key element to a world of models: sterile neutrinos, WIMPs and Axions are some of the most studied options. Since we know of its existence only through its gravitational force, an interesting possibility is that this particle only interacts gravitationally; this is the path I am exploring.