Direct-Channel Option of the Forward Slope Increase

The LHC data on the elastic scattering indicate that the forward slope increase is not consistent with the contributions of the simple Regge poles only with the linear Regge trajectories. The dynamics might be associated with unitarization in the direct channel of reaction. We discuss the problems of the Regge model and provide a respective illustration of the direct-channel option.

Recent results for UPC at the LHC

Ultraperipheral heavy ion collisions are a source of photons which can collide with each other producing a pair of particles. This work will be focused on analysis of the light-by-light scattering. Here contribution from fermionic boxes, resonance scattering, VDM-Regge model, two-gluon exchange and pionic background will be compared. Each of these processes dominate at different ranges of two-photon invariant masses. Our calculated nuclear cross section is in good agreement with recently measured ATLAS and CMS data. Predictions including ALICE and LHCb experimental cuts for the next run at the LHC will be shown.

SPIN-CUBE MODELS OF QUANTUM GRAVITY

We study the state-sum models of quantum gravity based on a representation 2-category of the Poincaré 2-group. We call them spin-cube models, since they are categorical generalizations of spin-foam models. A spin-cube state sum can be considered as a path integral for a constrained 2-BF theory, and depending on how the constraints are imposed, a spin-cube state sum can be reduced to a path integral for the area-Regge model with the edge-length constraints, or to a path integral for the Regge model. We also show that the effective actions for these spin-cube models have the correct classical limit.