Analysis of electroweak precision data and prospects for future improvements

We update our previous work on an analysis of the electroweak data by including new and partly preliminary data available up to the 1996 summer conferences. The new results on the partial decay widths into and hadrons now offer a consistent interpretation of all data in the minimal standard model. The value extracted for the strong interaction coupling constant agrees well with determinations in other areas. New constraints on the universal parameters , and are obtained from the updated measurements. No signal of new physics is found in the , , analysis once the SM contributions with GeV and those of not a too heavy Higgs boson are accounted for. The naive QCD-like technicolor model is now ruled out at the 99% CL even for the minimal model with . In the absence of a significant new physics effect in the electroweak observables, constraints on masses of the top quark, , and Higgs boson, , are derived as a function of and the QED effective coupling . The preferred range of depends rather strongly on the actual value of : for , while for at 95% CL. Prospects due to forthcoming improved measurements of asymmetries, the mass of the weak boson , and are discussed. Anticipating uncertainties of 0.00020 for , 20 MeV for , and 2 GeV for , the new physics contributions to the , , parameters will be constrained more severely, and, within the SM, the logarithm of the Higgs mass can be constrained to about . The better constraints on , , and on within the minimal SM should be accompanied with matching precision in . Received: 18 June 1997     

High energy electronic neutrino (ve) and antineutrino (ve) interactions

The total cross-sections for $\text{v}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>e</mtext>}}\text{(}\text{v}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>e</mtext>}}\text{)}$-nucleon scattering have been measured. A test has been made of the muon number conservation law. A limit of 2.4 GeV is found the mass of the “Georgi-Glashow type” heavy lepton     

IV International Symposium on LHC Physics and Detectors – Foreword

The European Physical Journal C - The fourth LHC Symposium was held at Fermilab in May 2003 following the first two meetings in Russia and the third symposium in Italy. The theme of this meeting...     

Experimental limits on the strength of weak neutral currents in lepton pair production at PETRA energies

The processes e⁺e^? → e⁺e^? and μ⁺μ^? have been studied at PETRA using the JADE detector. The data, which were collected at s-values of up to 1300 GeV² have been analysed in terms of an electro-weak extension of QED to obtain values for the weak vector and axial vector couplings in the lepton sector. The values obtained agree with the predictions of the standard Salam-Weinberg model and the data are further analysed in terms of this model to obtain the limits 0.10 < sin²?_w < 0.40 (68% CL). The mass of the neutral weak gauge boson is deduced to be greater than 51 GeV/c².     

Dilepton and strange particles production by neutrinos in gargamelle

New results are presented of an analysis of pictures taken during an exposure of Gargamelle to the CERN ν beam in 1975. In addition to three ν_μ+N→μ^?+e⁺+V⁰+ hadrons events previously reported, an excess is found of events of the type ν_μ+N→μ^?+e⁺+ hadrons without V⁰. An analysis of strange particle production in charged current events suggests a possible violation of the ΔS=ΔQ rule. Interpreted in terms of charm production, the data permit an estimate of branching ratios and production rate of charmed particles. A limit is also placed on charmed particle production by neutral currents.     

Experimental study of the reaction vp → μ−pπ+: Gargamelle neutrino propane experiment

A sample of 357 events fitting the reaction ν + p → μ^? + p + π⁺ on free proton is obtained from the Gargamelle neutrino propane experiment at the CERN-PS. The average value of the cross section above 1 GeV is found to be (0.60 ± 0.07) 10^?38 cm². The reaction is dominated by the production of the Δ⁺⁺(1232) resonance. Results on the Δ⁺⁺ spin density matrix are given.     

A search for monojet events produced by virtual Z0 bosons in e+e− annihalation at petra

A search was performed for the associated production of two different Higgs bosons via a virtual Z⁰ in e⁺e^? annihilation (e⁺e^? → h₁⁰h₂⁰) using the JADE detector at PETRA. This was motivated by the interpretation of the monojet events observed at the CERN p$\text{p}$ collider as anomalous Z⁰ decays into two neutral Higgs bosons (h₁⁰ and h₂⁰), where h₁⁰ is stable and escapes detection while h₂⁰ decays into hadrons. Single- or di-jet events with large momentum imbalance are then expected at PETRA energies. No evidence for such events was found in our data; this excludes h₂⁰ masses in the range of 1 to 21 GeV with 95% CL, if the branching fraction for Z⁰ → h₁⁰h₂⁰ is a larger than one half that for $\text{Z}{}^0\text{→ v}{}_{\mathrm{\mu }}\text{v}{}_{\mathrm{\mu }}$. The possibility that the monojets could originate from supersymmetric higgsino production from Z⁰ decay is also examined.     

A search for massive photinos at petra

We have searched for the supersymmetric partner of the photon, the photino, by investigating two-photon and single photon final states in e⁺e^? collisions. No significant signals were observed, which excludes the existence of the photino in the mass range 0.08–18 GeV/c² at the 95% confidence level, subject to the assumptions d=(100 GeV)² and $\text{m}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>e</mtext><mtext>?</mtext>}}\text{=40}\text{GeV}\text{/c}{}^2$, where d is the supersymmetry breaking scale parameter and $\text{m}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>e</mtext><mtext>?</mtext>}}$ is the scalar electron mass.     

Comparison of three-jet events with QCD shower models

Distributions of particles in three-jet events from e⁺e^? → hadrons are compared with different fragmentation schemes, i.e. the Lund string model, independent parton fragmentation and QCD shower models. Effects specific to the string scheme, which have been seen in the data, are also reproduced by QCD shower models if soft gluon interference effects are included.