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Updated: May 13, 2026

Setting Limits on Supersymmetry Using Simplified Models
Published on: November 15, 2013
Constraining the axion-photon coupling with massive stars
Alexander Friedland1, Maurizio Giannotti, Michael Wise
1Theoretical Division, T-2, MS B285, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, USA. friedland@lanl.gov
Abstract:
We point out that stars in the mass window ~8-12M([circumpunct]) can serve as sensitive probes of the axion-photon interaction, g(Aγγ). Specifically, for these stars axion energy losses from the helium-burning core would shorten and eventually eliminate the blue loop phase of the evolution. This would contradict observational data, since the blue loops are required, e.g., to account for the existence of Cepheid stars. Using the MESA stellar evolution code, modified to include the extra cooling, we conservatively find g(Aγγ)~0.8×10(-10) GeV(-1), which compares favorably with the existing bounds.
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