167 research outputs found
From Little Bangs to the Big Bang
The `Little Bangs' made in particle collider experiments reproduce the
conditions in the Big Bang when the age of the Universe was a fraction of a
second. It is thought that matter was generated, the structures in the Universe
were formed and cold dark matter froze out during this very early epoch when
the equation of state of the Universe was dominated by the quark-gluon plasma
(QGP). Future Little Bangs may reveal the mechanism of matter generation and
the nature of cold dark matter. Knowledge of the QGP will be an essential
ingredient in quantitative understanding of the very early Universe.Comment: Invited Plenary Talk at the International Conference on the Physics
and Astrophysics of the Quark-Gluon Plasma, Kolkata, Feb. 2005: 13 pages, 11
figures, uses IoP style files (included
Determining Supersymmetric Parameters With Dark Matter Experiments
In this article, we explore the ability of direct and indirect dark matter
experiments to not only detect neutralino dark matter, but to constrain and
measure the parameters of supersymmetry. In particular, we explore the
relationship between the phenomenological quantities relevant to dark matter
experiments, such as the neutralino annihilation and elastic scattering cross
sections, and the underlying characteristics of the supersymmetric model, such
as the values of mu (and the composition of the lightest neutralino), m_A and
tan beta. We explore a broad range of supersymmetric models and then focus on a
smaller set of benchmark models. We find that by combining astrophysical
observations with collider measurements, mu can often be constrained far more
tightly than it can be from LHC data alone. In models in the A-funnel region of
parameter space, we find that dark matter experiments can potentially determine
m_A to roughly +/-100 GeV, even when heavy neutral MSSM Higgs bosons (A, H_1)
cannot be observed at the LHC. The information provided by astrophysical
experiments is often highly complementary to the information most easily
ascertained at colliders.Comment: 46 pages, 76 figure
Constraining Supersymmetry
We review constraints on the minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard
Model (MSSM) coming from direct searches at accelerators such as LEP, indirect
measurements such as b -> s gamma decay and the anomalous magnetic moment of
the muon. The recently corrected sign of pole light-by-light scattering
contributions to the latter is taken into account. We combine these constraints
with those due to the cosmological density of stable supersymmetric relic
particles. The possible indications on the supersymmetric mass scale provided
by fine-tuning arguments are reviewed critically. We discuss briefly the
prospects for future accelerator searches for supersymmetry.Comment: 21 LaTeX pages, 9 eps figures, Invited Contribution to the New
Journal of Physics Focus Issue on Supersymmetr
Measurement of the branching fraction and CP content for the decay B(0) -> D(*+)D(*-)
This is the pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the links below. Copyright @ 2002 APS.We report a measurement of the branching fraction of the decay B0→D*+D*- and of the CP-odd component of its final state using the BABAR detector. With data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20.4 fb-1 collected at the Υ(4S) resonance during 1999–2000, we have reconstructed 38 candidate signal events in the mode B0→D*+D*- with an estimated background of 6.2±0.5 events. From these events, we determine the branching fraction to be B(B0→D*+D*-)=[8.3±1.6(stat)±1.2(syst)]×10-4. The measured CP-odd fraction of the final state is 0.22±0.18(stat)±0.03(syst).This work is supported by DOE and NSF (USA), NSERC (Canada), IHEP (China), CEA and CNRS-IN2P3 (France), BMBF (Germany), INFN (Italy), NFR (Norway), MIST (Russia), and PPARC (United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from the A.P. Sloan Foundation, Research Corporation, and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
Measurement of D-s(+) and D-s(*+) production in B meson decays and from continuum e(+)e(-) annihilation at √s=10.6 GeV
This is the pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the links below. Copyright @ 2002 APSNew measurements of Ds+ and Ds*+ meson production rates from B decays and from qq̅ continuum events near the Υ(4S) resonance are presented. Using 20.8 fb-1 of data on the Υ(4S) resonance and 2.6 fb-1 off-resonance, we find the inclusive branching fractions B(B⃗Ds+X)=(10.93±0.19±0.58±2.73)% and B(B⃗Ds*+X)=(7.9±0.8±0.7±2.0)%, where the first error is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is due to the Ds+→φπ+ branching fraction uncertainty. The production cross sections σ(e+e-→Ds+X)×B(Ds+→φπ+)=7.55±0.20±0.34pb and σ(e+e-→Ds*±X)×B(Ds+→φπ+)=5.8±0.7±0.5pb are measured at center-of-mass energies about 40 MeV below the Υ(4S) mass. The branching fractions ΣB(B⃗Ds(*)+D(*))=(5.07±0.14±0.30±1.27)% and ΣB(B⃗Ds*+D(*))=(4.1±0.2±0.4±1.0)% are determined from the Ds(*)+ momentum spectra. The mass difference m(Ds+)-m(D+)=98.4±0.1±0.3MeV/c2 is also measured.This work was supported by DOE and NSF (USA), NSERC (Canada), IHEP (China), CEA and CNRS-IN2P3 (France), BMBF (Germany), INFN (Italy), NFR (Norway), MIST (Russia), and PPARC (United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from the Swiss NSF, A. P. Sloan Foundation, Research Corporation, and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
Search for rare quark-annihilation decays, B --> Ds(*) Phi
We report on searches for B- --> Ds- Phi and B- --> Ds*- Phi. In the context
of the Standard Model, these decays are expected to be highly suppressed since
they proceed through annihilation of the b and u-bar quarks in the B- meson.
Our results are based on 234 million Upsilon(4S) --> B Bbar decays collected
with the BABAR detector at SLAC. We find no evidence for these decays, and we
set Bayesian 90% confidence level upper limits on the branching fractions BF(B-
--> Ds- Phi) Ds*- Phi)<1.2x10^(-5). These results
are consistent with Standard Model expectations.Comment: 8 pages, 3 postscript figues, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (Rapid
Communications
Measurement of the branching fraction for
We present a measurement of the branching fraction for the decay B- --> D0 K*- using a sample of approximately 86 million BBbar pairs collected by the BaBar detector from e+e- collisions near the Y(4S) resonance. The D0 is detected through its decays to K- pi+, K- pi+ pi0 and K- pi+ pi- pi+, and the K*- through its decay to K0S pi-. We measure the branching fraction to be B.F.(B- --> D0 K*-)= (6.3 +/- 0.7(stat.) +/- 0.5(syst.)) x 10^{-4}
A Precision Measurement of the Lambda_c Baryon Mass
The baryon mass is measured using and decays reconstructed in 232
fb of data collected with the BaBar detector at the PEP-II
asymmetric-energy storage ring. The mass is measured to
be . The dominant systematic uncertainties
arise from the amount of material in the tracking volume and from the magnetic
field strength.Comment: 14 pages, 8 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Observation of a significant excess of events in B meson decays
We present an observation of the decay based on a sample of 124 million pairs recorded by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy Factory at SLAC. We observe events, where the first error is statistical and the second is systematic, corresponding to a significance of 4.2 standard deviations including systematic uncertainties. We measure the branching fraction \BR(B^{0} \to \pi^{0} \pi^{0}) = (2.1 \pm 0.6 \pm 0.3) \times 10^{-6}, averaged over and decays
Search for the radiative decays B ->rho gamma and B-0 ->omega gamma
A search of the exclusive radiative decays B-->rho(770)gamma and B-0-->omega(782)gamma is performed on a sample of about 84x10(6) B (B) over bar events collected by the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II asymmetric-energy e(+)e(-) storage ring. No significant signal is seen in any of the channels. We set upper limits on the branching fractions B of B(B-0-->rho(0)gamma)rho(+)gamma)omegagamma)rhogamma)=Gamma(B+-->rho(+)gamma)=2xGamma(B-0-->rho(0)gamma), we find the combined limit B(B-->rhogamma)rhogamma)/B(B-->K(*)gamma)<0.047 at 90% C.L
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