Jonathan M. M. Hall

Lattice QCD evidence that the Λ(1405) resonance is an antikaon-nucleon molecule.

For almost 50 years the structure of the Λ(1405) resonance has been a mystery. Even though it contains a heavy strange quark and has odd parity, its mass is lower than any other excited spin-1/2 baryon. Dalitz and co-workers speculated that it might be a molecular state of an antikaon bound to a nucleon. However, a standard quark-model structure is also admissible. Although the intervening years have seen considerable effort, there has been no convincing resolution. Here we present a new lattice QCD simulation showing that the strange magnetic form factor of the Λ(1405) vanishes, signaling the formation of an antikaon-nucleon molecule. Together with a Hamiltonian effective-field-theory model analysis of the lattice QCD energy levels, this strongly suggests that the structure is dominated by a bound antikaon-nucleon component. This result clarifies that not all states occurring in nature can be described within a simple quark model framework and points to the existence of exotic molecular meson-nucleon bound states.

Optimization of whispering gallery resonator design for biosensing applications

Whispering gallery modes (WGMs) within microsphere cavities enable highly sensitive label-free detection of changes in the surrounding refractive index. This detection modality is of particular interest for biosensing applications. However, the majority of biosensing work utilizing WGMs to date has been conducted with resonators made from either silica or polystyrene, while other materials remain largely uninvestigated. By considering characteristics such as the quality factor and sensitivity of the resonator, the optimal WGM sensor design can be identified for various applications. This work explores the choice of resonator refractive index and size to provide design guidelines for undertaking refractive index biosensing using WGMs.

Method for predicting whispering gallery mode spectra of spherical microresonators

A full three-dimensional Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD)-based toolkit is developed to simulate the whispering gallery modes of a microsphere in the vicinity of a dipole source. This provides a guide for experiments that rely on efficient coupling to the modes of microspheres. The resultant spectra are compared to those of analytic models used in the field. In contrast to the analytic models, the FDTD method is able to collect flux from a variety of possible collection regions, such as a disk-shaped region. The customizability of the technique allows one to consider a variety of mode excitation scenarios, which are particularly useful for investigating novel properties of optical resonators, and are valuable in assessing the viability of a resonator for biosensing.

Chiral extrapolations for nucleon electric charge radii

Lattice simulations for the electromagnetic form factors of the nucleon yield insights into the internal structure of hadrons. The logarithmic divergence of the charge radius in the chiral limit poses an interesting challenge in achieving reliable predictions from finite-volume lattice simulations. Recent results near the physical pion mass are examined in order to confront the issue of how the chiral regime is approached. The electric charge radius of the nucleon presents a forum for achieving consistent finite-volume corrections. Newly-developed techniques within the framework of chiral effective field theory are used to achieve a robust extrapolation of the electric charge radius to the physical pion mass, and to infinite volume. The chiral extrapolations exhibit considerable finite-volume dependence; lattice box sizes of L > 7 fm are required in order to achieve a direct lattice simulation result within 2% of the infinite-volume value at the physical point. Predictions of the volume-dependence are provided to guide the interpretation of future lattice results.

Structure of the

The pole structure of the

\mathbf{\Lambda(1405)}

\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}(1405)

from Hamiltonian effective field theory

is examined by fitting the couplings of an underlying Hamiltonian effective field theory to cross sections of

Finite-volume and partial quenching effects in the magnetic polarizability of the neutron

{K}^{\ensuremath{-}}p

Power counting regime of chiral effective field theory and beyond

scattering in the infinite-volume limit. Finite-volume spectra are then obtained from the theory, and compared to lattice QCD results for the mass of the

Chiral extrapolations for nucleon magnetic moments

\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}(1405)