Method for Flavor Tagging in Neutral B Meson Decays

A method is proposed for tagging the flavor of neutral $B$ mesons in the study of CP-violating decay asymmetries. The method makes use of a possible difference in interactions in $B \pi$ or $B^* \pi$ systems with isospins 1/2 and 3/2, and would be particularly clean if the $I = 1/2$ systems can be detected as ``$B^{**}$'' resonances.Comment: Submitted to Phys. Rev. D. 11 pages, LaTeX, Technion-PH-92-40 / PITHA 92/39 / EFI 92-5

Use of a cAMP BRET Sensor to Characterize a Novel Regulation of cAMP by the Sphingosine 1-Phosphate/G13 Pathway

Regulation of intracellular cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cAMP) is integral in mediating cell growth, cell differentiation, and immune responses in hematopoietic cells. To facilitate studies of cAMP regulation we developed a BRET (bioluminescence resonance energy transfer) sensor for cAMP, CAMYEL (cAMP sensor using YFP-Epac-RLuc), which can quantitatively and rapidly monitor intracellular concentrations of cAMP in vivo. This sensor was used to characterize three distinct pathways for modulation of cAMP synthesis stimulated by presumed Gs-dependent receptors for isoproterenol and prostaglandin E2. Whereas two ligands, uridine 5'-diphosphate and complement C5a, appear to use known mechanisms for augmentation of cAMP via Gq/calcium and Gi, the action of sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) is novel. In these cells, S1P, a biologically active lysophospholipid, greatly enhances increases in intracellular cAMP triggered by the ligands for Gs-coupled receptors while having only a minimal effect by itself. The enhancement of cAMP by S1P is resistant to pertussis toxin and independent of intracellular calcium. Studies with RNAi and chemical perturbations demonstrate that the effect of S1P is mediated by the S1P2 receptor and the heterotrimeric G13 protein. Thus in these macrophage cells, all four major classes of G proteins can regulate intracellular cAMP

Intermittency and Exotic Channels

It is pointed out that accurate measurements of short-range two-particle correlations in like-charge $K\pi$ and in $\pi^ 0\pi^ 0$ channels should be very helpful in determining the origin of the \lq\lq intermittency\rq\rq\ phenomenon observed recently for the like-charge pion pairs.Comment: 5 p., plain tex, preprint T94/078(Saclay), LPTHE 94/58(Orsay

Lepton flavor conserving Z -> l^+ l^-$ decays in the general two Higgs doublet model

We calculate the new physics effects to the branching ratios of the lepton flavor conserving decays Z -> l^+ l^- in the framework of the general two Higgs Doublet model. We predict the upper limits for the couplings |\bar{\xi}^{D}_{N,\mu\tau}| and |\bar{\xi}^{D}_{N,\tau\tau}| as 3\times 10^2 GeV and 1\times 10^2 GeV, respectively.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

The Kalman-Tran-D'Souza Model and the Semileptonic Decay Rates of Heavy Baryons

We present an investigation of the inclusive semileptonic decay widths of the heavy baryons Lambda_Q and Xi_Q, (Q=b,c) performed within a relativistic constituent quark model, formulated on the light-front. In a way conceptually similar to the deep-inelastic scattering case, the H_Q baryon inclusive width is expressed as the integral of the free Q-quark partial width multiplied by a bound-state factor related to the Q-quark distribution function in the H_Q. The non-perturbative meson structure is described through the quark-model wave functions, constructed via the Hamiltonian light-front formalism using as input the Kalman-Tran-D'Souza equal time wave functions. A link between spectroscopic quark models and the H_Q decay physics is obtained in this way. It is shown that the bound-state effects and the Fermi motion of the b-quark remarkably reduce the decay rate with respect to the free-quark result. Our predictions for the BR(Lambda_c ->X_s e nu_e) and BR(Lambda_b->X_c e nu_e) decays are in good agreement with existing data.Comment: 6 pages, latex, espcrc2.sty (included), 3 figures. The invited talk presented by C.S.K. at the 4-th International Conference on Hyperons, Charm and Beauty Hadrons, Valencia, June 27-30, 200

Bounds on Vector Leptoquarks

We derive bounds on vector leptoquarks coupling to the first generation, using data from low energy experiments as well as from high energy accelerators. Similarly to the case of scalar leptoquarks, we find that the strongest indirect bounds arise from atomic parity violation and universality in leptonic pi decays. These bounds are considerably stronger than the first direct bounds of HERA, restricting vector leptoquarks that couple with electromagnetic strength to right-handed quarks to lie above 430 GeV or 460 GeV, and leptoquarks that couple with electromagnetic strength to left-handed quarks to lie above 1.3 TeV, 1.2 TeV and 1.5 TeV for the SU(2)_W singlet, doublet and triplet respectively.Comment: 14 Pages (LaTeX), including 1 uufiled postscript figure. WIS-93/119/Dec-P

A Comprehensive Study of Leptoquark Bounds

We make a comprehensive study of indirect bounds on scalar leptoquarks that couple chirally and diagonally to the first generation by examining available data from low energy experiments as well as from high energy e+ e- and p pbar accelerators. The strongest bounds turn out to arise from low energy data: For leptoquarks that couple to right--handed quarks, the most stringent bound comes from atomic parity violation. For leptoquarks that couple to left--handed quarks, there are two mass regions: At low masses the bounds arise from atomic parity violation or from universality in leptonic pi decays. At masses above a few hundred GeV's, the dominant bounds come from the FCNC processes that are unavoidable in these leptoquarks: The FCNC bound of the up sector, that arises from D-Dbar mixing, combines with the FCNC bounds from the down sector, that arise from rare K decays and K-Kbar mixing, to a bound on the flavour CONSERVING coupling to the first generation. The bounds restrict leptoquarks that couple with electromagnetic strength to lie above 600 GeV or 630 GeV for leptoquarks that couple to RH quarks, and above 1040 GeV, 440 GeV, and 750 GeV for the SU(2)_W scalar, doublet and triplet leptoquarks that couple to LH quarks. These bounds are considerably stronger than the first results from the direct searches at HERA. Our bounds also already exclude large regions in the parameter space that could be examined by various methods proposed for indirect leptoquark searches.Comment: 23 Pages (LaTeX), including 3 uufiled postscript figures. WIS--93/90/Sept--PH. To appear in PRD. Changes: updated numbers ---> stronger bound

Supersonic strain front driven by a dense electron-hole plasma

We study coherent strain in (001) Ge generated by an ultrafast laser-initiated high density electron-hole plasma. The resultant coherent pulse is probed by time-resolved x-ray diffraction through changes in the anomalous transmission. The acoustic pulse front is driven by ambipolar diffusion of the electron-hole plasma and propagates into the crystal at supersonic speeds. Simulations of the strain including electron-phonon coupling, modified by carrier diffusion and Auger recombination, are in good agreement with the observed dynamics.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figure

Leptoquark pair production at the Fermilab Tevatron: Signal and backgrounds

We perform a Monte-Carlo simulation of scalar leptoquark pair production at the Tevatron (energy =1.8 TeV and luminosity =100 pb^{-1}) with ISAJET. We also investigate the dominant sources of Standard Model background: Z*jj, ZZ production and heavy quark top-antitop. We find that the top-antitop background is the most important except near the Z pole where the Z*jj background is peaked. We also evaluate the signal-to-background ratio and find a discovery reach of 130 GeV (170 GeV) for a branching ratio of B(LQ-> eq)=0.5 (B=1).Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, latex (revtex