arXiv · 0708.1303
Search for the decay B+ -> K+ tau-/+ mu+/-
Abstract
We present a search for the lepton flavor violating decay B+ --> K+ tau-/+ mu+/- using 383 million B Bbar events collected by the BABAR experiment. The branching fraction for this decay can be substantially enhanced in new physics models. The kinematics of the tau from the signal B decay are inferred from the K+, mu, and other B in the event, which is fully reconstructed in one of a variety of hadronic decay modes, allowing the signal B candidate to be fully reconstructed. We observe no excess of events over the expected background and set a limit of B(B+ --> K+ tau mu) < 7.7 x 10^-5 at 90% confidence level, where the branching fraction is for the sum of the K+ tau- mu+ and K+ tau+ mu- final states. We use this result to improve a model-independent bound on the energy scale of flavor-changing new physics.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Explore connections, maps & timelines
The BABAR Collaboration, B. Aubert et al. 2007-12-11. Search for the decay B+ -> K+ tau-/+ mu+/-. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.99.201801
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.