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RESEARCH PRODUCT

New Limit on Lorentz-Invariance- andCPT-Violating Neutron Spin Interactions Using a Free-Spin-PrecessionHe3-Xe129Comagnetometer

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We report on the search for a $CPT$- and Lorentz-invariance-violating coupling of the $^{3}\mathrm{He}$ and $^{129}\mathrm{Xe}$ nuclear spins (each largely determined by a valence neutron) to posited background tensor fields that permeate the Universe. Our experimental approach is to measure the free precession of nuclear spin polarized $^{3}\mathrm{He}$ and $^{129}\mathrm{Xe}$ atoms in a homogeneous magnetic guiding field of about 400 nT using ${\mathrm{LT}}_{C}$ SQUIDs as low-noise magnetic flux detectors. As the laboratory reference frame rotates with respect to distant stars, we look for a sidereal modulation of the Larmor frequencies of the colocated spin samples. As a result we obtain an upper limit on the equatorial component of the background field interacting with the spin of the bound neutron ${\stackrel{\texttildelow{}}{b}}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}^{\mathrm{n}}l8.4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}34}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{GeV}$ (68% C.L.). Our result improves our previous limit (data measured in 2009) by a factor of 30 and the world's best limit by a factor of 4.