Supersymmetric Proton Decay Revisited

TL;DR

This paper reevaluates proton decay predictions in supersymmetric GUT models considering new experimental sensitivities, uncertainties in hadronic and coupling parameters, and various supersymmetry-breaking scenarios, showing future detectors can probe higher mass scales.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of proton decay in minimal supersymmetric SU(5) GUTs, incorporating updated uncertainties and exploring different supersymmetry-breaking scenarios.

Findings

Next-generation detectors can probe sparticle masses around 10 TeV.

Uncertainties in hadronic matrix elements and coupling constants significantly affect decay predictions.

Certain models predict proton decay within experimental reach beyond LHC capabilities.

Abstract

Encouraged by the advent of a new generation of underground detectors---JUNO, DUNE and Hyper-Kamiokande---that are projected to improve significantly on the present sensitivities to various baryon decay modes, we revisit baryon decay in the minimal supersymmetric SU(5) GUT. We discuss the phenomenological uncertainties associated with hadronic matrix elements and the value of the strong coupling $\alpha_s$---which are the most important---the weak mixing angle $\theta_W$, quark masses including one-loop renormalization effects, quark mixing and novel GUT phases that are not visible in electroweak interaction processes. We apply our analysis to a variety of CMSSM, super- and sub-GUT scenarios in which soft supersymmetry-breaking parameters are assumed to be universal at, above and below the GUT scale, respectively. In many cases, we find that the next generation of underground detectors should be able to probe models with sparticle masses that are ${\cal O}(10)$~TeV, beyond the reach of the LHC.