Baryons with two heavy quarks

We consider general physical characteristics of doubly heavy baryons: the spectroscopy in the framework of potential approach and sum rules of QCD, mechanisms of production in various interactions on the basis of fragmentation model with account of preasymptotic corrections caused by higher twists over the transverse momentum of baryon, inclusive decays and lifetimes in the operator product expansion over the inverse powers of heavy quark masses as well as the exclusive decays in the sum rules of QCD. We generalize the methods developed in the effective theory of heavy quarks towards the description of systems with two heavy quarks and a single light quark. The calculations are presented for the masses, decay widths and yields of baryons with two heavy quarks in the running and planned experimental facilities. We discuss the prospects of search for the baryons and possibilities of experimental observation. The most bright physical effects concerning these baryons as well as their position in the system for the theoretical description of heavy quark dynamics are considered.Comment: review, LaTeX file, 32 postscript figure

SU(3) Landau - Zener Interferometry

We consider a general theory of Landau-Zener transitions in a three-level system. Based on a classification of three level crossings we express the Landau - Zener Hamiltonians in terms of two bases: i) spin S=1 SU(2) operators and ii) SU(3) Gell - Mann matrices. We show that the generic Hamiltonians being non-linear in terms of the SU(2) group generators become linear in the SU(3) basis. If the diabatic states of the SU(3) Landau - Zener Hamiltonian form a triangle, the interference between two paths results in formation of "beats" and "steps" pattern in the time-dependent transition probability. The characteristic time scales describing the "beats" and "steps" depend on a dwell time through the triangle. These scales are related to the geometric size of the interferometer. We formulate the SU(3) Landau - Zener problem in terms of Bloch dynamics of a unit vector and find a solution of eight-dimensional Bloch equations in the limit of a non-adiabatic transition. Possible experiments in triangular and linearly arranged triple quantum dots where Landau - Zener interferometry can be used for finding manifestations of SU(3) symmetry are discussed.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure