Is There New Physics Beyond 30 TeV in the BOAT?

TL;DR

This paper uses the GRB 221009A spectrum data to investigate potential signs of Lorentz Invariance Violation effects at energies above 30 TeV, which could suggest new physics beyond current models.

Contribution

It demonstrates that high-energy gamma-ray observations can be utilized to probe quadratic subluminal LIV effects, expanding the search for new physics at energies above 30 TeV.

Findings

Excesses at >30 TeV may indicate LIV effects.

Potential recovery of intrinsic source spectrum due to LIV.

Data warrants further investigation for new physics evidence.

Abstract

We show that the GRB 221009A spectrum detected by LHAASO can be used to probe effects of quadratic subluminal Lorentz Invariance Violation (LIV) through the enhancement of the observed flux at the highest energies. In particular, we argue that excesses in the GRB 221009A data currently classified as non-detections at energies $E \gtrsim 30$ TeV warrant further investigation, as they may indicate a recovery of the intrinsic source spectrum consistent with the LIV-induced suppression of $\gamma\gamma \to e^-e^+$ interactions within the quadratic subluminal scenario. This would increase the accessible parameter space of the energy scale of new physics.