Hints of New Physics in the Decay Sigma-plus -> proton + mu-plus + mu-minus

TL;DR

The HyperCP experiment observed three rare Sigma-plus decays into a proton and a muon pair, hinting at a possible new intermediate particle, which could indicate physics beyond the Standard Model.

Contribution

First observation of Sigma-plus -> proton + mu+ + mu- decay with potential evidence for a new intermediate particle, suggesting new physics phenomena.

Findings

Three events consistent with Sigma-plus decay

Narrow dimuon mass distribution indicating possible intermediate state

Potential identification of a pseudoscalar sgoldstino particle

Abstract

The HyperCP (E871) experiment collected several billion hyperon decays in the 1997 and 1999 Fermilab fixed-target running periods. Using the data from the 1999 run, we report on the observation of three isolated events with reconstructed masses consistent with the hypothesis Sigma-plus -> proton + mu-plus + mu-minus. This is the rarest baryon decay ever observed. The dimuon mass distribution is unexpectedly narrow, suggesting the decay may proceed via an intermediate state of mass 214.3 +/- 0.5 MeV/c^2. This state is consistent with a short-lived pseudoscalar sgoldstino with parity-conserving interactions decaying into two unlike-sign muons.