arXiv subjects

P. Ecker

Publications and source records attributed to P. Ecker.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2024

Search for the baryon number and lepton number violating decays $τ^-\to Λπ^-$ and $τ^-\to \barΛπ^-$ at Belle II

We present a search for the baryon number $B$ and lepton number $L$ violating decays $τ^- \rightarrow Λπ^-$ and $τ^- \rightarrow \barΛ π^-$ produced from the $e^+e^-\to τ^+τ^-$ process, using a 364 fb$^{-1}$ data sample collected by the Belle~II experiment at the SuperKEKB collider. No evidence of signal is found in either decay mode, which have $|Δ(B-L)|$ equal to $2$ and $0$, respectively. Upper limits at 90\% credibility level on the branching fractions of $τ^- \rightarrow Λπ^-$ and $τ^- \rightarrow \barΛπ^-$ are determined to be $4.7 \times 10^{-8}$ and $4.3 \times 10^{-8}$, respectively.

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arXiv2024

Evidence of $h_{b}(\text{2P}) \to Υ(\text{1S})η$ decay and search for $h_{b}(\text{1P,2P}) \to Υ(\text{1S})π^0$ with the Belle detector

We report the first evidence for the $h_{b}(\text{2P}) \to Υ(\text{1S})η$ transition with a significance of $3.5$ standard deviations. The decay branching fraction is measured to be $\mathcal{B}[h_{b}(\text{2P}) \to Υ(\text{1S})η]=(7.1 ~^{+3.7} _{-3.2}\pm 0.8)\times10^{-3}$, which is noticeably smaller than expected. We also set upper limits on $π^0$ transitions of $\mathcal{B}[h_{b}(\text{2P}) \to Υ(\text{1S})π^0] < 1.8\times10^{-3}$, and $\mathcal{B}[h_{b}(\text{1P})\to Υ(\text{1S})π^0] < 1.8\times10^{-3}$, at the $90\%$ confidence level. These results are obtained with a $131.4$~fb$^{-1}$ data sample collected near the $Υ(\text{5S})$ resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy $e^+e^-$ collider.

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arXiv2024

Measurement of the branching fraction of the decay $B^- \to D^0 ρ(770)^-$ at Belle II

We measure the branching fraction of the decay $B^- \to D^0 ρ(770)^-$ using data collected with the Belle II detector. The data contain 387 million $B\overline{B}$ pairs produced in $e^+e^-$ collisions at the $Υ(4S)$ resonance. We reconstruct $8360\pm 180$ decays from an analysis of the distributions of the $B^-$ energy and the $ρ(770)^-$ helicity angle. We determine the branching fraction to be $(0.939 \pm 0.021\mathrm{(stat)} \pm 0.050\mathrm{(syst)})\%$, in agreement with previous results. Our measurement improves the relative precision of the world average by more than a factor of two.

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arXiv2024

Search for a $μ^+μ^-$ resonance in four-muon final states at Belle II

We report on a search for a resonance $X$ decaying to a pair of muons in $e^{+}e^{-}\rightarrow μ^+ μ^- X$ events in the 0.212-9.000 GeV/$c^{2}$ mass range, using 178 fb$^{-1}$ of data collected by the BelleII experiment at the SuperKEKB collider at a center of mass energy of 10.58 GeV. The analysis probes two different models of $X$ beyond the standard model: a $Z^{\prime}$ vector boson in the $L_μ-L_τ$ model and a muonphilic scalar. We observe no evidence for a signal and set exclusion limits at the 90$\%$ confidence level on the products of cross section and branching fraction for these processes, ranging from 0.046 fb to 0.97 fb for the $L_μ-L_τ$ model and from 0.055 fb to 1.3 fb for the muonphilic scalar model. For masses below 6 GeV/$c^{2}$, the corresponding constraints on the couplings of these processes to the standard model range from 0.0008 to 0.039 for the $L_μ-L_τ$ model and from 0.0018 to 0.040 for the muonphilic scalar model. These are the first constraints on the muonphilic scalar from a dedicated search.

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arXiv2024

Study of $Υ(10753)$ decays to $π^{+}π^{-}Υ(nS)$ final states at Belle II

We present an analysis of the process $e^{+}e^{-}\toπ^{+}π^{-}Υ(nS)$ (where $n$ = 1, 2, or 3) reconstructed in $19.6\rm$ $\rm fb^{-1}$ of Belle II data during a special run of the SuperKEKB collider at four energy points near the peak of the $Υ(10753)$ resonance. By analyzing the mass distribution of the $π^+π^-Υ(nS)$ system and the Born cross sections of the $e^{+}e^{-}\toπ^{+}π^{-}Υ(nS)$ process, we report the first observation of $Υ(10753)$ decays to the $π^{+}π^{-}Υ(1S)$ and $π^{+}π^{-}Υ(2S)$ final states, and find no evidence for decays to $π^{+}π^{-}Υ(3S)$. Possible intermediate states in the $π^+π^-Υ(1S,2S)$ transitions are also investigated, and no evidence for decays proceeding via the $π^\mp Z_b^\pm$ or $f_0(980)Υ(nS)$ intermediate states is found. We measure Born cross sections for the $e^{+}e^{-}\toπ^{+}π^{-}Υ(nS)$ process that, combined with results from Belle, improve the precision of measurements of the $Υ(10753)$ mass and width by nearly a factor of two to $(10756.3\pm2.7\pm0.6)$ MeV/$c^2$ and $(29.7\pm8.5\pm1.1)$ MeV, respectively. The relative ratios of the Born cross sections at the $Υ(10753)$ resonance peak are also reported for the first time.

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arXiv2024

Search for a heavy neutral lepton that mixes predominantly with the tau neutrino

We report a search for a heavy neutral lepton (HNL) that mixes predominantly with $ν_τ$. The search utilizes data collected with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric energy $e^+ e^-$ collider. The data sample was collected at and just below the center-of-mass energies of the $Υ(4S)$ and $Υ(5S)$ resonances and has an integrated luminosity of $915~\textrm{fb}^{-1}$, corresponding to $(836\pm 12)\times 10^6$ $e^+e^\toτ^+τ^-$ events. We search for production of the HNL (denoted $N$) in the decay $τ^-\to π^- N$ followed by its decay via $N \to μ^+μ^- ν_τ$. The search focuses on the parameter-space region in which the HNL is long lived, so that the $μ^+μ^-$ originate from a common vertex that is significantly displaced from the collision point of the KEKB beams. Consistent with the expected background yield, one event is observed in the data sample after application of all the event-selection criteria. We report limits on the mixing parameter of the HNL with the $τ$ neutrino as a function of the HNL mass.

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arXiv2024

Evidence for $B^{+}\to K^{+}ν\barν$ decays

We search for the rare decay $B^{+}\rightarrow K^{+}ν\barν$ in a $362\ \rm{fb}^{-1}$ sample of electron-positron collisions at the $Υ(4S)$ resonance collected with the Belle II detector at the SuperKEKB collider. We use the inclusive properties of the accompanying $B$ meson in $Υ(4S) \to B\kern 0.18em\overline{\kern -0.18em B}{}$ events to suppress background from other decays of the signal $B$ candidate and light-quark pair production. We validate the measurement with an auxiliary analysis based on a conventional hadronic reconstruction of the accompanying $B$ meson. For background suppression, we exploit distinct signal features using machine learning methods tuned with simulated data. The signal-reconstruction efficiency and background suppression are validated through various control channels. The branching fraction is extracted in a maximum likelihood fit. Our inclusive and hadronic analyses yield consistent results for the $B^{+}\rightarrow K^{+}ν\barν$ branching fraction of $\left[2.7\pm 0.5(\mathrm{stat})\pm 0.5(\mathrm{syst})\right] \times 10^{-5}$ and $\left[1.1^{+0.9}_{-0.8}(\mathrm{stat}){}^{+0.8}_{-0.5}(\mathrm{syst})\right] \times 10^{-5}$, respectively. Combining the results, we determine the branching fraction of the decay $B^{+}\rightarrow K^{+}ν\barν$ to be $\left[2.3 \pm 0.5(\mathrm{stat})^{+0.5}_{-0.4}(\mathrm{syst})\right]\times 10^{-5}$, providing the first evidence for this decay at $3.5$ standard deviations. The combined result is $2.7$ standard deviations above the standard model expectation.

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arXiv2024

First Measurement of $R(X_{τ/\ell})$ as an Inclusive Test of the $b \to c τν$ Anomaly

We measure the tau-to-light-lepton ratio of inclusive $B$-meson branching fractions $R(X_{τ/\ell}) \equiv \mathcal{B}(B\to X τν)/\mathcal{B}(B \to X \ell ν)$, where $\ell$ indicates an electron or muon, and thereby test the universality of charged-current weak interactions. We select events that have one fully reconstructed $B$ meson and a charged lepton candidate from $189~\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ of electron-positron collision data collected with the Belle II detector. We find $R(X_{τ/\ell}) = 0.228 \pm 0.016~(\mathrm{stat}) \pm 0.036~(\mathrm{syst})$, in agreement with standard-model expectations. This is the first direct measurement of $R(X_{τ/\ell})$.

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arXiv2024

Search for Two-Body $B$ Meson Decays to $Λ^{0}$ and $Ω^{(*)0}_{c}$

We report the results of the first search for Standard Model and baryon-number-violating two-body decays of the neutral $B$ mesons to $Λ^{0}$ and $Ω^{(*)0}_c$ using 711~${\rm fb^{-1}}$ of data collected at the $Υ(4S)$ resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy $e^+ e^-$ collider. We observe no evidence of signal from any such decays and set 95\% confidence-level upper limits on the products of $B^0$ and $\bar{B}^0$ branching fractions for these two-body decays with $\mathcal{B}(Ω_{c}^{0} \to π^+ Ω^-)$ in the range between 9.5~$\times 10^{-8}$ and 31.2~$\times 10^{-8}$.

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arXiv2024

Search for baryon and lepton number violating decays $\boldsymbol{D \rightarrow p\ell}$

We search for the baryon and lepton number violating charm decays, $D \rightarrow p\ell$, where $D$ is either a $D^0$ or a $\overline{D}^0$ and $\ell$ is a muon or an electron, using a data sample of $921\,\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ collected by the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric energy $e^{+}e^{-}$ collider. In the absence of significant signals, we set upper limits on the branching fractions in the range $(5 - 8) \times 10^{-7}$ at a 90\% confidence level, depending on the decay mode.

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arXiv2024

Measurement of $CP$ asymmetries in $B^0 \rightarrow K^0_S K^0_S K^0_S$ decays at Belle II

We report a measurement of decay-time dependent charge-parity ($CP$) asymmetries in $B^0 \rightarrow K^0_S K^0_S K^0_S$ decays. We use $387 \times 10^6 B\bar{B}$ pairs collected at the $Υ(4S)$ resonance with the Belle II detector at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy electron-positron collider. We reconstruct 220 signal events and extract the $CP$-violating parameters $S$ and $C$ from a fit to the distribution of the decay-time difference between the two $B$ mesons. The resulting confidence region is consistent with previous measurements in $B^0 \rightarrow K^0_S K^0_S K^0_S$ and $B^0 \rightarrow (c\bar{c})K^0$ decays, and with predictions based on the standard model.

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arXiv2024

Search for charged-lepton flavor violation in $Υ(2S) \to \ell^\mpτ^\pm$ ($\ell=e,μ$) decays at Belle

We report a search for the charged-lepton flavor violation in $Υ(2S) \to \ell^\mpτ^\pm$ ($\ell=e,μ$) decays using a $25~\fbi$ $Υ(2S)$ sample collected by the Belle detector at the KEKB $e^{+}$$e^-$ asymmetric-energy collider. We find no evidence for a signal and set upper limits on the branching fractions ($\mathcal{B}$) at 90\% confidence level. We obtain the most stringent upper limits: $\mathcal{B}(\Ytomutau) < 0.23 \times 10^{-6}$ and $\mathcal{B}(\Ytoetau) < 1.12 \times 10^{-6}$.

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arXiv2024

Search for a dark leptophilic scalar produced in association with $τ^+τ^-$ pair in $e^+e^-$ annihilation at center-of-mass energies near 10.58 GeV

A dark leptophilic scalar $(ϕ_L)$ is a hypothetical particle that couples only to leptons rather than quarks. We report on a search for $ϕ_L$ in the $e^+e^- \to τ^+ τ^- ϕ_L, ~ϕ_L \to \ell^+ \ell^- ~(\ell = e, μ)$ process using 626~\invfb of data collected by the Belle experiment near the \Y4S resonance. We validate the backgrounds with multiple control regions in data, using a novel multiclass multivariate event classifier. In absence of a signal, we quote upper limits at the 90\% confidence level on the coupling between $ϕ_L$ and leptons. Our bounds, obtained in a blinded approach, are 19\% more constraining than the previous limits, averaged over the mass range $0.04 \leq m_{ϕ_L} \leq 6.5~\gev$. We exclude the parameter space below 4~\gev favored by measurement of the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon.

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arXiv2024

Search for Baryon-Number-Violating Processes in $B^-$ Decays to the $\barΞ_{c}^{0} \barΛ_{c}^{-}$ Final State

We report the results of the first search for $B^-$ decays to the $\barΞ_{c}^{0} \barΛ_{c}^{-}$ final state using 711~${\rm fb^{-1}}$ of data collected at the $Υ(4S)$ resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy $e^+ e^-$ collider. The results are interpreted in terms of both direct baryon-number-violating $B^-$ decay and $Ξ_{c}^{0}-\barΞ_{c}^{0}$ oscillations which follow the Standard Model decay $B^- \to Ξ_{c}^{0} \barΛ_{c}^{-}$. We observe no evidence for baryon number violation and set the 95\% confidence-level upper limits on the ratio of baryon-number-violating and Standard Model branching fractions ${\mathcal{B}(B^- \rightarrow \barΞ_{c}^{0} \barΛ_{c}^{-})}/{\mathcal{B}(B^- \rightarrow Ξ_{c}^{0} \barΛ_{c}^{-})}$ to be $< 2.7\%$ and on the $Ξ_{c}^{0} - \barΞ_{c}^{0}$ oscillation angular frequency $ω$ to be $< 0.76\ \mathrm{ps}^{-1}$ (equivalent to $τ_{\rm mix} > 1.3$~ps).

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arXiv2024

Measurements of the branching fraction, polarization, and $CP$ asymmetry for the decay $B^0\rightarrow ωω$

We present a measurement of $B^{0} \rightarrow ωω$, a charmless decay into two vector mesons, using 772 $\times 10^6$ $B\overline{B}$ pairs collected with the Belle detector at the KEKB $e^+e^-$ collider. The decay is observed with a significance of 7.9 standard deviations. We measure a branching fraction $\mathcal{B} = (1.53 \pm 0.29 \pm 0.17) \times 10^{-6}$, a fraction of longitudinal polarization $f_L = 0.87 \pm 0.13 \pm 0.13$, and a time-integrated $CP$ asymmetry $A_{CP}$ = $-0.44 \pm 0.43 \pm 0.11$, where the first uncertainties listed are statistical and the second are systematic. This is the first observation of $B^{0} \rightarrow ωω$, and the first measurements of $f_L$ and $A_{CP}$ for this decay.

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arXiv2024

A test of lepton flavor universality with a measurement of $R(D^{*})$ using hadronic $B$ tagging at the Belle II experiment

The ratio of branching fractions $R(D^{*}) = \mathcal{B}(\overline{B} \rightarrow D^{*} τ^{-} \overlineν_τ)$/$\mathcal{B} (\overline{B} \rightarrow D^{*} \ell^{-} \overlineν_{\ell})$, where $\ell$ is an electron or muon, is measured using a Belle~II data sample with an integrated luminosity of $189~\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy $e^{+} e^{-}$ collider. Data is collected at the $Υ(\mathrm{4S})$ resonance, and one $B$ meson in the $Υ(\mathrm{4S})\rightarrow B\overline{B}$ decay is fully reconstructed in hadronic decay modes. The accompanying signal $B$ meson is reconstructed as $\overline{B}\rightarrow D^{*} τ^{-}\overlineν_τ$ using leptonic $τ$ decays. The normalization decay, $\overline{B}\rightarrow D^{*} \ell^{-} \overlineν_{\ell}$, where $\ell$ is an electron or muon, produces the same observable final state particles. The ratio of branching fractions is extracted in a simultaneous fit to two signal-discriminating variables in both channels and yields $R(D^{*}) = 0.262~_{-0.039}^{+0.041}(\mathrm{stat})~_{-0.032}^{+0.035}(\mathrm{syst})$. This result is consistent with the current world average and with standard model predictions.

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arXiv2024

Measurement of branching fractions and direct $CP$ asymmetries for $B \to Kπ$ and $B\toππ$ decays at Belle II

We report measurements of the branching fractions and direct $\it{CP}$ asymmetries of the decays $B^0 \to K^+ π^-$, $B^+ \to K^+ π^0$, $B^+ \to K^0 π^+$, and $B^0 \to K^0 π^0$, and use these for testing the standard model through an isospin-based sum rule. In addition, we measure the branching fraction and direct $\it{CP}$ asymmetry of the decay $B^+ \to π^+π^0$ and the branching fraction of the decay $B^0 \to π^+π^-$. The data are collected with the Belle II detector from $e^+e^-$ collisions at the $Υ(4S)$ resonance produced by the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy collider and contain $387\times 10^6$ bottom-antibottom meson pairs. Signal yields are determined in two-dimensional fits to background-discriminating variables, and range from 500 to 3900 decays, depending on the channel. We obtain $-0.03 \pm 0.13 \pm 0.04$ for the sum rule, in agreement with the standard model expectation of zero and with a precision comparable to the best existing determinations.

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arXiv2023

Precise measurement of the $D^+_s$ lifetime at Belle II

We measure the lifetime of the $D_s^+$ meson using a data sample of 207 fb$^{-1}$ collected by the Belle II experiment running at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy $e^+ e^-$ collider. The lifetime is determined by fitting the decay-time distribution of a sample of $116\times 10^3$ $D_s^+\rightarrowϕπ^+$ decays. Our result is $τ^{}_{D^+_s} = (499.5\pm 1.7\pm 0.9)$ fs, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. This result is significantly more precise than previous measurements.

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