Measurement of $B\to \rho\ell\nu$ Decay and $|V_{ub}|$

TL;DR

This paper measures the branching fraction of B -> rho l nu decay and determines |V_ub| using data from the CLEO II detector, providing key insights into quark mixing and decay processes.

Contribution

First measurement of B -> rho l nu branching fraction and |V_ub| using CLEO II data, with detailed q^2 bin analysis and combined results improving precision.

Findings

B(B^0 -> rho^- l^+ nu) = (2.69 ± 0.41 ^+0.35_-0.40 ± 0.50) x 10^-4

|V_ub| = (3.23 ± 0.24 ^+0.23_-0.26 ± 0.58) x 10^-3

Combined |V_ub| = (3.25 ± 0.14 ^+0.21_-0.29 ± 0.55) x 10^-3

Abstract

Using a sample of 3.3 million Upsilon(4S) -> BBbar events collected with the CLEO II detector at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring (CESR), we measure the branching fraction for B -> rho l nu, |V_ub|, and the partial rate (Delta Gamma) in three bins of q^2 = (p_B-p_rho)^2. We find B(B^0 -> rho^- l^+ nu)=(2.69 +- 0.41^+0.35_-0.40 +- 0.50) 10^-4, |V_ub|=(3.23 +- 0.24^+0.23_-0.26 +- 0.58) 10^-3, Delta Gamma (0 < q^2 < 7 GeV^2/c^4) =(7.6 +- 3.0 ^+0.9_-1.2 +- 3.0) 10^-2 ns^-1, Delta Gamma (7 < q^2 < 14 GeV^2/c^4) =(4.8 +- 2.9 ^+0.7_-0.8 +- 0.7) 10^-2 ns^-1, and Delta Gamma (14 < q^2 < 21 GeV^2/c^4) = (7.1 +- 2.1^+0.9_-1.1 +- 0.6)10^-2 ns^-1. The quoted errors are statistical, systematic, and theoretical. The method is sensitive primarily to B -> rho l nu decays with leptons in the energy range above 2.3 GeV. Averaging with the previously published CLEO results, we obtain B(B^0 -> rho^- l^+ nu) = (2.57 +- 0.29^+0.33_-0.46 +- 0.41) 10^-4 and |V_{ub}| = (3.25 +- 0.14 ^+0.21_-0.29 +- 0.55) 10^-3.