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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Journal of High Energy Physics

Metastable strings at PTAs: classical stability analysis

  • Simone Blasi1
  • Maxime Grandjean2,3
  • Alberto Mariotti2,3
  1. 1Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY
  2. 2Vrije Universiteit Brussel
  3. 3The International Solvay Institutes
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Abstract

A bstract : Metastable strings can arise from a two-step symmetry breaking chain of the type SU (2) → U (1) → 1. They can decay through quantum tunneling by nucleating a monopole-antimonopole pair, and are prominent candidates for explaining the gravitational wave background detected at Pulsar Timing Arrays (PTAs). We investigate the classical stability of the strings arising in this commonly-considered setup, which serves as a fundamental input for discussing their possible decay channels. We identify the regions of parameter space in which the strings are either classically stable or unstable. Our results show that classical instabilities can impact the parameter space relevant for PTAs. We also discuss the possible fate of the string network in the regions of classical instability.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{blasi2026metastable,
  title = {{Metastable strings at PTAs: classical stability analysis}},
  author = {Simone Blasi and Maxime Grandjean and Alberto Mariotti},
  journal = {Journal of High Energy Physics},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1007/jhep10(2026)049},
  url = {https://link.springer.com/10.1007/JHEP10(2026)049},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Metastable strings at PTAs: classical stability analysis
AU  - Simone Blasi
AU  - Maxime Grandjean
AU  - Alberto Mariotti
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/05
JO  - Journal of High Energy Physics
DO  - 10.1007/jhep10(2026)049
UR  - https://link.springer.com/10.1007/JHEP10(2026)049
AB  - A bstract : Metastable strings can arise from a two-step symmetry breaking chain of the type SU (2) → U (1) → 1. They can decay through quantum tunneling by nucleating a monopole-antimonopole pair, and are prominent candidates for explaining the gravitational wave background detected at Pulsar Timing Arrays (PTAs). We investigate the classical stability of the strings arising in this commonly-considered setup, which serves as a fundamental input for discussing their possible decay channels. We identify the regions of parameter space in which the strings are either classically stable or unstable. Our results show that classical instabilities can impact the parameter space relevant for PTAs. We also discuss the possible fate of the string network in the regions of classical instability.
SN  - 1029-8479
ER  -