Search for b --> u Transitions in B^{+-} --> [K^{-+} pi^{+-} pi0]_D K^{+-} Decays

TL;DR

This study searches for rare B meson decays involving b to u transitions, setting upper limits on their occurrence and constraining the ratio of decay amplitudes using data from the BaBar experiment.

Contribution

The paper provides the first upper limits on B^{+-} --> D K^{+-} decays involving b to u transitions, improving constraints on the amplitude ratio r_B.

Findings

Upper limits: R^+<23×10^{-3}, R^-<29×10^{-3}

Constraint: r_B<0.13 at 90% probability

Data sample: 474 million BBbar pairs from BaBar

Abstract

We present a study of the decays B^{+-} --> D K^{+-} with D mesons reconstructed in the K+pi-pi0 or K-pi+pi0 final states, where D indicates a D0 or a anti-D0 meson. Using a sample of 474 million BBbar pairs collected with the BaBar detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy e+e- collider at SLAC we obtain R^{+} = (5^{+12}_{-10}(stat) ^{+2}_{-4}(syst))\times10^{-3} and R^{-} = (12^{+12}_{-10}(stat) ^{+3}_{-5}(syst))\times10^{-3}, from which we extract the upper limits at 90% probability: R^+<23\times10^{-3} and R^-<29\times10^{-3}. Using these measurements, we obtain an upper limit for the ratio rB of the magnitudes of the b --> u and b --> c amplitudes r_B<0.13 at 90% probability.