Effective Field Theory and Time-Reversal Violation in Light Nuclei

Abstract

Thanks to the unnaturally small value of the QCD vacuum angle $\bar{\theta }<10^{-10}$, time-reversal ($T$) violation offers a window into physics beyond the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics. We review the effective-field-theory framework that establishes a clean connection between $T$-violating mechanisms, which can be represented by higher-dimensional operators involving SM fields and symmetries, and hadronic interactions, which allow for controlled calculations of low-energy observables involving strong interactions. The chiral properties of $T$-violating mechanisms leads to a pattern that should be identifiable in measurements of the electric dipole moments of the nucleon and light nuclei.

35 pages. Accepted for publication in Ann. Rev. Nucl. Part. Sci. 65 (2015)

References in corpus (2)

• Enhancement of the CP-odd effect in the nuclear electric dipole moment of ${}^6$Li
• Disconnected Quark Loop Contributions to Nucleon Structure