arXiv subjects

V. Vagnoni

Publications and source records attributed to V. Vagnoni.

18 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

Global analysis of charm mixing parameters and determination of the CKM angle $\gamma$

We present an updated global analysis of beauty decays sensitive to the angle $\gamma$ of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix and of $D$-meson mixing data in the framework of approximate universality, in which CP violation in $D-\overline{D}$ mixing is described in terms of two universal weak phases corresponding to dispersive and absorptive contributions. We extract the fundamental theoretical parameters determining absorptive and dispersive contributions to $D$ meson mixing and CP violation, together with the angle $\gamma$. The results for the charm mixing parameters are $x_{12} \simeq x = (0.401 \pm 0.043)\%$ and $y_{12} \simeq y = (0.610 \pm 0.017)\%$, while the two CP-violating phases are given by $\phi_2^M = (0.13 \pm 0.70)^{\circ}$ and ${\phi}_2^{\Gamma} = (2.1 \pm 1.6)^{\circ}$. The angle $\gamma$ is found to be $\gamma = (65.7 \pm 2.5)^{\circ}$, in excellent agreement with the indirect determination from the Unitarity Triangle analysis.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

The UTfit Collaboration Average of $D$ meson mixing data: Winter 2014

We update the analysis of $D$ meson mixing including the latest experimental results as of January 2014. We derive constraints on the parameters $M_{12}$, $Γ_{12}$ and $Φ_{12}$ that describe $D$ meson mixing using all available data, allowing for CP violation. We also provide posterior distributions for observable parameters appearing in $D$ physics.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2012

The UTfit Collaboration Average of D meson mixing data: Spring 2012

We derive constraints on the parameters $M_{12}$, $Γ_{12}$ and $Φ_{12}$ that describe $D$ meson mixing using all available data, allowing for CP violation. We also provide posterior distributions and predictions for observable parameters appearing in $D$ physics.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2010

Update of the Unitarity Triangle Analysis

We present the status of the Unitarity Triangle Analysis (UTA), within the Standard Model (SM) and beyond, with experimental and theoretical inputs updated for the ICHEP 2010 conference. Within the SM, we find that the general consistency among all the constraints leaves space only to some tension (between the UTA prediction and the experimental measurement) in BR(B -> tau nu), sin(2 beta) and epsilon_K. In the UTA beyond the SM, we allow for New Physics (NP) effects in (Delta F)=2 processes. The hint of NP at the 2.9 sigma level in the B_s-\bar B_s mixing turns out to be confirmed by the present update, which includes the new D0 result on the dimuon charge asymmetry but not the new CDF measurement of phi_s, being the likelihood not yet released.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2010

Proceedings of the First International Workshop on Multiple Partonic Interactions at the LHC (MPI08)

The objective of this first workshop on Multiple Partonic Interactions (MPI) at the LHC is to raise the profile of MPI studies, summarizing the legacy from the older phenomenology at hadronic colliders and favouring further specific contacts between the theory and experimental communities. The MPI are experiencing a growing popularity and are currently widely invoked to account for observations that would not be explained otherwise: the activity of the Underlying Event, the cross sections for multiple heavy flavour production, the survival probability of large rapidity gaps in hard diffraction, etc. At the same time, the implementation of the MPI effects in the Monte Carlo models is quickly proceeding through an increasing level of sophistication and complexity that in perspective achieves deep general implications for the LHC physics. The ultimate ambition of this workshop is to promote the MPI as unification concept between seemingly heterogeneous research lines and to profit of the complete experimental picture in order to constrain their implementation in the models, evaluating the spin offs on the LHC physics program.

hep-ex↗

arXiv2010

An Improved Standard Model Prediction Of BR(B -> tau nu) And Its Implications For New Physics

The recently measured B -> tau nu branching ratio allows to test the Standard Model by probing virtual effects of new heavy particles, such as a charged Higgs boson. The accuracy of the test is currently limited by the experimental error on BR(B -> tau nu) and by the uncertainty on the parameters fB and |Vub|. The redundancy of the Unitarity Triangle fit allows to reduce the error on these parameters and thus to perform a more precise test of the Standard Model. Using the current experimental inputs, we obtain BR(B -> tau nu)_SM = (0.84 +- 0.11)x10^{-4}, to be compared with BR(B -> tau nu)_exp = (1.73 +- 0.34)x10^{-4}. The Standard Model prediction can be modified by New Physics effects in the decay amplitude as well as in the Unitarity Triangle fit. We discuss how to disentangle the two possible contributions in the case of minimal flavour violation at large tan beta and generic loop-mediated New Physics. We also consider two specific models with minimal flavour violation: the Type-II Two Higgs Doublet Model and the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2009

First Evidence of New Physics in b <--> s Transitions

We combine all the available experimental information on Bs mixing, including the very recent tagged analyses of Bs to J/Psi phi by the CDF and D0 collaborations. We find that the phase of the Bs mixing amplitude deviates more than 3 sigma from the Standard Model prediction. While no single measurement has a 3 sigma significance yet, all the constraints show a remarkable agreement with the combined result. This is a first evidence of physics beyond the Standard Model. This result disfavours New Physics models with Minimal Flavour Violation with the same significance.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2009

Status of the Unitarity Triangle Analysis

We present an update of the Unitarity Triangle (UT) analysis, within the Standard Model (SM) and beyond. Within the SM the main novelties are the inclusion in epsilon_K of the contributions of xi and phi_epsilon \neq π/4 pointed out by A.J. Buras and D. Guadagnoli, and an accurate prediction of BR(B -> tau nu), by using the indirect determination of |V_ub| from the UT fit, which can be compared to the present experimental result. In the generalization of the UT analysis to investigate New Physics (NP) effects, the estimate of xi is more delicate and only the effect of phi_epsilon \neq π/4 has been included. We confirm an hint of NP in the B_s-\bar B_s mixing at the 2.9 sigma level, which makes a comparison with new experimental data certainly desired.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2009

New Physics from Flavour

The UT{\it{fit}} Collaboration has produced several analyses in the context of flavour physics both within and beyond the Standard Model. In this paper we present updated results for the Standard Model analysis of the Unitarity Triangle using the latest experimental and lattice QCD inputs, as well as an update of the Unitarity Triangle analysis in a scenario beyond the Standard Model. Combining all available experimental and theoretical information on $ΔF=2$ processes and using a model-independent parameterization, we extract the allowed New Physics contributions in the $K^0$, $D^0$, $B_d$, and $B_s$ sectors. We observe a departure of the $B_s$ mixing phase from the Standard Model expectation with a significance of about $3σ$.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2008

Model-independent constraints on Delta F=2 operators and the scale of New Physics

We update the constraints on new-physics contributions to Delta F=2 processes from the generalized unitarity triangle analysis, including the most recent experimental developments. Based on these constraints, we derive upper bounds on the coefficients of the most general Delta F=2 effective Hamiltonian. These upper bounds can be translated into lower bounds on the scale of new physics that contributes to these low-energy effective interactions. We point out that, due to the enhancement in the renormalization group evolution and in the matrix elements, the coefficients of non-standard operators are much more constrained than the coefficient of the operator present in the Standard Model. Therefore, the scale of new physics in models that generate new Delta F=2 operators, such as next-to-minimal flavour violation, has to be much higher than the scale of minimal flavour violation, and it most probably lies beyond the reach of direct searches at the LHC.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2007

Improved Determination of the CKM Angle alpha from B to pi pi decays

Motivated by a recent paper that compares the results of the analysis of the CKM angle alpha in the frequentist and in the Bayesian approaches, we have reconsidered the information on the hadronic amplitudes, which helps constraining the value of alpha in the Standard Model. We find that the Bayesian method gives consistent results irrespective of the parametrisation of the hadronic amplitudes and that the results of the frequentist and Bayesian approaches are equivalent when comparing meaningful probability ranges or confidence levels. We also find that from B to pi pi decays alone the 95% probability region for alpha is the interval [80^o,170^o], well consistent with recent analyses of the unitarity triangle where, by using all the available experimental and theoretical information, one gets alpha = (93 +- 4)^o. Last but not least, by using simple arguments on the hadronic matrix elements, we show that the unphysical region alpha ~ 0, present in several experimental analyses, can be eliminated.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2006

Constraints on new physics from the quark mixing unitarity triangle

The status of the Unitarity Triangle beyond the Standard Model including the most recent results on Delta m_s, on dilepton asymmetries and on width differences is presented. Even allowing for general New Physics loop contributions the Unitarity Triangle must be very close to the Standard Model result. With the new measurements from the Tevatron, we obtain for the first time a significant constraint on New Physics in the B_s sector. We present the allowed ranges of New Physics contributions to Delta F=2 processes, and of the time-dependent CP asymmetry in B_s to J/Psi phi decays.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2006

The Unitarity Triangle Fit in the Standard Model and Hadronic Parameters from Lattice QCD: A Reappraisal after the Measurements of Delta m_s and BR(B to tau nu)

The recent measurements of the B_s meson mixing amplitude by CDF and of the leptonic branching fraction BR(B to tau nu) by Belle call for an upgraded analysis of the Unitarity Triangle in the Standard Model. Besides improving the previous constraints on the parameters of the CKM matrix, these new measurements, combined with the recent determinations of the angles alpha, beta and gamma from non-leptonic decays, allow, in the Standard Model, a quite accurate extraction of the values of the hadronic matrix elements relevant for K-Kbar and B_{s,d}-B_{s,d}bar mixing and of the leptonic decay constant f_B. These values, obtained ``experimentally'', can then be compared with the theoretical predictions, mainly from lattice QCD. In this paper we upgrade the UT fit, we determine from the data the kaon B-parameter B_Khat, the B^0 mixing amplitude parameters f_Bs B^{1/2}_Bs and xi, the decay constant f_B, and make a comparison of the obtained values with lattice predictions. We also discuss the different determinations of V_ub and show that current data do not favour the value measured in inclusive decays.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2006

The UTfit Collaboration Report on the Status of the Unitarity Triangle beyond the Standard Model I. Model-independent Analysis and Minimal Flavour Violation

Starting from a (new physics independent) tree level determination of rhobar and etabar, we perform the Unitarity Triangle analysis in general extensions of the Standard Model with arbitrary new physics contributions to loop-mediated processes. Using a simple parameterization, we determine the allowed ranges of non-standard contributions to |Delta F|=2 processes. Remarkably, the recent measurements from B factories allow us to determine with good precision the shape of the Unitarity Triangle even in the presence of new physics, and to derive stringent constraints on non-standard contributions to |Delta F|=2 processes. Since the present experimental constraints favour models with Minimal Flavour Violation, we present the determination of the Universal Unitarity Triangle that can be defined in this class of extensions of the Standard Model. Finally, we perform a combined fit of the Unitarity Triangle and of new physics contributions in Minimal Flavour Violation, reaching a sensitivity to a new physics scale of about 5 TeV. We also extrapolate all these analyses into a "year 2010" scenario for experimental and theoretical inputs in the flavour sector. All the results presented in this paper are also available at the URL http://www.utfit.org, where they are continuously updated.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2006

Probing quantum gravity effects in black holes at LHC

We study modifications of the Hawking emission in the evaporation of miniature black holes possibly produced in accelerators when their mass approaches the fundamental scale of gravity, set to 1 TeV according to some extra dimension models. Back-reaction and quantum gravity corrections are modelled by employing modified relations between the black hole mass and temperature. We release the assumption that black holes explode at 1 TeV or leave a remnant, and let them evaporate to much smaller masses. We have implemented such modified decay processes into an existing micro-black hole event generator, performing a study of the decay products in order to search for phenomenological evidence of quantum gravity effects.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2003

DIRAC - Distributed Infrastructure with Remote Agent Control

This paper describes DIRAC, the LHCb Monte Carlo production system. DIRAC has a client/server architecture based on: Compute elements distributed among the collaborating institutes; Databases for production management, bookkeeping (the metadata catalogue) and software configuration; Monitoring and cataloguing services for updating and accessing the databases. Locally installed software agents implemented in Python monitor the local batch queue, interrogate the production database for any outstanding production requests using the XML-RPC protocol and initiate the job submission. The agent checks and, if necessary, installs any required software automatically. After the job has processed the events, the agent transfers the output data and updates the metadata catalogue. DIRAC has been successfully installed at 18 collaborating institutes, including the DataGRID, and has been used in recent Physics Data Challenges. In the near to medium term future we must use a mixed environment with different types of grid middleware or no middleware. We describe how this flexibility has been achieved and how ubiquitously available grid middleware would improve DIRAC.

cs.DC↗

arXiv2002

Bayesian analysis of the constraints on gamma from B --> K pi rates and CP asymmetries in the flavour-SU(3) approach

The relation between the branching ratios and direct CP asymmetries of B --> K pi decays and the angle gamma of the CKM unitarity triangle is studied numerically in the general framework of the SU(3) approach, with minimal assumptions about the parameters not fixed by flavour-symmetry arguments. Experimental and theoretical uncertainties are subjected to a statistical treatment according to the Bayesian method. In this context, the experimental limits recently obtained by CLEO, BaBar and Belle for the direct CP asymmetries are translated into the bound |gamma - 90 deg| > 21 deg at the 95% C.L.. A detailed analysis is carried out to evaluate the conditions under which measurements of the CP averaged branching ratios may place a significant constraint on gamma. Predictions for the ratios of charged (R_c) and neutral (R_n) B --> K pi decays are also presented.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2001

Present knowledge of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix

A complete review of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) matrix elements and of the experimental methods for their determination is presented. A critical analysis of the relevant experimental results, and in particular of the most recent ones, allows to improve the accuracies of all the matrix elements. A chi-square minimization with the three-family unitarity constraint on the CKM matrix is performed to test the current interpretation of the CP violating phenomena inside the Standard Model. A complete and unambiguous solution satisfying all the imposed constraints is found. As a by-product of the fit, the precision on the values of the matrix elements is further increased and it is possible to obtain estimates for the important CP violation observables $sin 2β$, $sin 2α$ and $γ$. Finally, an independent estimation of the CKM elements based on a Bayesian approach is performed. This complementary method constitutes a check of the results obtained, providing also the probability functions of the CKM elements and of the related quantities.

hep-ph↗