{
  "abstract": "The Standard Model Higgs quartic coupling $λ$ turns negative at high energies. We show that in a small periodic box with antiperiodic fermions, zero-point fluctuations of the constant gauge modes turn the Higgs zero mode into a resonance for $λ<0$, whose width falls exponentially in $|λ|^{-1/2}$. A box lasting $N$ light-crossing times keeps its vacuum with probability above $1/2$ for $λ>λ_c(N)$, which depends on $N$ only logarithmically. For a universe that begins at a Casimir turning point, $λ_c\\approx-0.012$ lies below the Standard Model value $-0.0098$; given a curvature coupling $ξ_H\\gtrsim0.08$, survival has probability above $1/2$ for $m_t<172.96$ GeV and $\\approx0.7$ for current data, and FCC-ee can exclude this beginning if $m_t\\gtrsim173.7$ GeV.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2610.28704",
  "author_total": 1,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Alan Zhang"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cayh3q7w90tq5.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2610.28704",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "cayh3q7w90tq5",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.28704",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "gr-qc"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "hep-ph"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "hep-th"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3106|Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223245827",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2610.28704",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-20",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cayh3q7w90tq5.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:34:18Z",
      "native_id": "2610.28704",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.28704"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:gr-qc",
      "subfield": "gravitation"
    },
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:hep-ph",
      "subfield": "high-energy"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Gauge Field Fluctuations Protect the Higgs Vacuum When a Small Universe Begins",
  "title_text": "Gauge Field Fluctuations Protect the Higgs Vacuum When a Small Universe Begins",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:34:18Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cayh3q7w90tq5",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}