Leptonic and semileptonic decays of B mesons

Semileptonic decays are ideally suited to study the weak interaction as well as strong interaction effects in B-meson decays. In the last decade, precision studies of semileptonic B decays have been made possible by the large samples of B mesons collected at the B factories KEKB in Japan and PEP-II...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Reviews of modern physics 2016-09, Vol.88 (3), Article 035008
Main Authors: Dingfelder, Jochen, Mannel, Thomas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Decay
Decay rate
Descriptions
Higgs bosons
Industrial plants
Mathematical models
Mesons
Particle physics
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Summary:Semileptonic decays are ideally suited to study the weak interaction as well as strong interaction effects in B-meson decays. In the last decade, precision studies of semileptonic B decays have been made possible by the large samples of B mesons collected at the B factories KEKB in Japan and PEP-II in the USA. Measurements of the charged-current semileptonic transitions b[arrowright]q[scriptl][nu] (q=u, c) allow for a determination of the magnitude of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix elements V sub(cb) and V sub(ub) and the masses of the b and c quarks, which are fundamental parameters of the standard model of particle physics. The values of V sub(cb) and V sub(ub) are determined from measurements of inclusive B decays in combination with calculations of partial decay rates or from exclusive decays combined with theoretical predictions of hadronic form factors. Purely leptonic B decays B[arrowright][scriptl][nu] ([scriptl]=e, [mu], [tau]) also provide access to V sub(ub). They are theoretically simpler, but the available signal samples are still small. Decays involving a [tau] lepton, B[arrowright][tau][nu] and B[arrowright]D(*)[tau][nu], are sensitive to new physics, in particular, to charged Higgs bosons in models with an extended Higgs sector, and provide a window to the physics of the third generation. In this article, the measurements and theoretical descriptions of charged-current leptonic and semileptonic B decays and the status of V sub(cb) and V sub(ub) determinations are reviewed. An overview of the theoretical approaches and the experimental techniques used in the study of these decays is also provided.
ISSN:0034-6861
1539-0756
DOI:10.1103/RevModPhys.88.035008