Proton lifetime in the minimal SO(10) GUT and its implications for the LHC

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the minimal non-supersymmetric SO(10) GUT, focusing on proton lifetime predictions and their testability at future proton decay experiments and colliders, especially considering a ZeV-scale color sextet scalar.

Contribution

It provides a detailed NLO analysis of gauge unification and proton lifetime constraints in a minimal SO(10) GUT with specific scalar configurations, highlighting testable scenarios.

Findings

Proton lifetime predictions compatible with future experiments.

Existence of a TeV-scale color octet accessible at colliders.

Two minimal fine-tuned scenarios consistent with phenomenology.

Abstract

We review the current status of the minimal non-supersymmetric SO(10) grand unified theory and perform a detailed next-to-leading-order analysis of the gauge unification and proton lifetime constraints on the part of its parameter space supporting a ZeV-scale color sextet scalar. This, together with a TeV-scale color octet studied in detail in a preceding work, represents one of the two minimally fine-tuned settings compatible with all the relevant consistency and phenomenology limits. Both these scenarios can be extensively tested at the future megaton-scale proton-decay facilities. On top of that, the light octet solution can be accessible in the TeV-scale collider searches.