Can the Odderon be "Supercritical"?

TL;DR

This paper argues that the Odderon, a theoretical C-odd exchange in particle physics, cannot have an intercept greater than one, based on symmetry and interaction principles.

Contribution

It introduces a new theoretical constraint on the Odderon intercept derived from C-odd exchange assumptions.

Findings

Odderon intercept cannot exceed unity

C-odd exchange leads to repulsion in pp systems

C-odd exchange leads to attraction in p̄p systems

Abstract

Based on the postulate that a $C$-odd exchange leads to repulsion in the particle-particle system (say, $pp$) and to attraction in the antiparticle-particle system (say, $\bar{p}p$), we show that the Odderon intercept cannot be greater than unity.