K+→π+π0e+e?: a novel short-distance probe

We study the decay K ⁺→π ⁺ π ⁰ e ⁺ e ⁻, currently under analysis by the NA62 Collaboration at CERN. In particular, we provide a detailed analysis of the Dalitz plot for the long-distance, γ ^∗-mediated, contributions (Bremsstrahlung, direct emission and its interference). We also examine a set of asymmetries to isolate genuine short-distance effects. While we show that charge asymmetries are not required to test short distances, they provide the best environment for its detection. This constitutes by itself a strong motivation for NA62 to study K ⁻ decays in the future. We therefore provide a detailed study of different charge asymmetries and the corresponding estimated signals. Whenever possible, we make contact with the related processes K ⁺→π ⁺ π ⁰ γ and K _L →π ⁺ π ⁻ e ⁺ e ⁻ and discuss the advantages of K ⁺→π ⁺ π ⁰ e ⁺ e ⁻ over them.