Probing ALP-Sterile Neutrino Couplings at the LHC

TL;DR

This paper explores how the LHC can detect axion-like particles coupled to sterile neutrinos, especially when a heavy scalar enhances ALP decay, providing new experimental prospects and a UV-complete model.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to probe ALP-sterile neutrino couplings at the LHC using mono-photon searches within an EFT framework and presents a UV model realization.

Findings

LHC can constrain ALP-sterile neutrino couplings in previously unexplored parameter regions.

Mono-photon searches are effective when a heavy scalar boosts ALP decay yields.

Certain model benchmarks could be discovered at the 13 TeV LHC with 300 fb$^{-1}$.

Abstract

In this work, prospects to probe an overlooked facet of axion-like particles (ALPs) -- their potential couplings to sterile neutrinos -- are presented. We found that mono-photon searches have the potential to constrain ALP couplings to sterile neutrinos when a new heavy scalar boosts the ALP decay yields. Working within an effective field theory (EFT) approach, we scan the parameters space to establish the reach of the 13 TeV LHC to probe such couplings. We found regions of the parameters space evading several experimental constraints that can be probed at the LHC. Moreover, a complementary role between the LHC and various experiments that search for axions and ALPs can be anticipated for models where ALPs interact with sterile neutrinos. We also present the UV realization of a model having an axion-like particle, a heavy scalar and sterile neutrinos whose parameters are spanned by our EFT approach. The proposed model contains a type of seesaw mechanism for generating masses for the active neutrinos along with sterile neutrinos involving the high energy scale of the spontaneous breaking of the global symmetry associated to the ALP. Some benchmark points of this model can be discovered at the 13 TeV LHC with 300 fb$^{-1}$.