Related papers: Precision Measurements and CKM Unitarity
The value of the $V_{ud}$ matrix element of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) matrix can be derived from nuclear superallowed beta decays, neutron decay, and pion beta decay. We survey current world data for all three. Today, the most…
Till the middle of 2004 it appeared that the unitarity relation Vud^2+Vus^2+Vub^2=1 might not hold at the 2.3sigma level. At that time, however, Vus was inferred from old experimental data. Since then, a large experimental and theoretical…
The value of the V_{ud} matrix element of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) matrix can be derived from nuclear superallowed beta decays, neutron decay, and pion beta decay. We survey current world data for all three. Today, the most…
The analysis made in 2000 indicated that the unitarity relation Vud^2 + Vus^2 + Vub^2 = 1 might be broken at the 2.3 sigma level. At that time, however, Vus was inferred from old experimental data. Since then, a great experimental and…
A new critical survey is presented of all half-life, decay-energy and branching-ratio measurements related to 20 superallowed 0+ --> 0+ beta decays. Included are 222 individual measurements of comparable precision obtained from 177…
We review recent measurements of kaon decays and lifetimes for the determination of the CKM element Vus. Their relevance to CKM matrix unitarity is discussed.
We report on a new measurement of neutron $\beta$-decay asymmetry. From the result \linebreak $A_0$ = -0.1189(7), we derive the ratio of the axial vector to the vector coupling constant $\lambda$ = ${\it g_A/g_V}$ = -1.2739(19). When…
The matrix element Vud of the CKM matrix can be determined by two independent measurements on neutron decay: the neutron lifetime tau and the ratio of coupling constants lambda, which is most precisely determined by measurements of the beta…
In this talk I briefly review the precision test of the first row CKM unitarity, focusing mainly on $V_{ud}$ and $V_{us}$ extracted from pion, kaon, neutron and superallowed nuclear beta decays. I will discuss the current status of several…
The matrix element \Vud of the CKM matrix can be determined by two independent measurements in neutron decay: the neutron lifetime $\tau_n$ and the ratio of coupling constants $\lambda=g_A/g_V$, which is most precisely determined by…
The experimental determination of V_{ud} from neutron beta decay requires accurate values of the neutron lifetime and the ratio of the weak axial-vector to vector coupling constants of the nucleon. The latter is derived from measurements of…
Precision measurements of the free neutron lifetime $\tau_n$, when combined with measurements of the axial vector form factor, can be used to test unitarity of the CKM matrix. Non-unitarity is a signal for physics Beyond the Standard Model…
A complete and critical survey is presented of all half-life, decay-energy and branching-ratio measurements related to 20 superallowed decays; no measurements are ignored, though some are rejected for cause and others updated. A new…
The half-life of \tsups{37}K has been measured to be $1.23651(94)~\mathrm{s}$, a value nearly an order of magnitude more precise than the best previously reported. The $\beta^+$ decay of \tsups{37}K occurs mainly via a superallowed branch…
If the Standard Model is correct, and fundamental fermions exist only in the three generations, then the CKM matrix should be unitary. However, there remains a question over a deviation from unitarity from the value of the neutron lifetime.…
The neutron lifetime is determined for now most accurately by two methods --the so-called "beam method" and the method of neutron storage in a trap. The goal of this research is to obtain the neutron lifetime with a higher precision by…
Nuclear $\beta$ decays as well as the decay of the neutron are well-established low-energy probes of physics beyond the Standard Model (SM). In particular, with the axial-vector coupling of the nucleon $g_A$ determined from lattice QCD, the…
We discuss the effect of the recent change of $V_{\rm us}$ by three standard deviations on the standard model predictions for neutron beta decay observables. We also discuss the effect the experimental error bars of $V_{\rm us}$ have on…
The universal radiative corrections common to neutron and super-allowed nuclear beta decays (also known as ``inner'' corrections) are revisited in light of a recent dispersion relation study that found $+2.467(22)\%$, i.e.~about $2.4\sigma$…
Unitarity along with precision measurements of sin2\beta, V_{us} and V_{cb} allows one to find a lower bound V_{ub}\geq 0.0035 which, on using the recently measured angle \alpha of the unitarity triangle, translates to V_{ub}= 0.0035\pm…