Charged Lepton Flavor Violation Research Articles

FlexibleSUSY extended to automatically compute physical quantities in any beyond the standard model theory: Charged lepton flavor violation processes, Higgs decays, and user-defined observables

FlexibleSUSY is a framework for the automated computation of physical quantities (observables) in models beyond the Standard Model (BSM). This paper describes an extension of FlexibleSUSY which allows to define and add new observables that can be enabled and computed in applicable user-defined BSM models. The extension has already been used to include Charged Lepton Flavor Violation (CLFV) observables, but further observables can now be added straightforwardly. The paper is split into two parts. The first part is non-technical and describes from the user's perspective how to enable the calculation of predefined observables, in particular CLFV observables. The second part of the paper explains how to define new observables such that their automatic computation in any applicable BSM model becomes possible. A key ingredient is the new NPointFunctions extension which allows to use tree-level and loop calculations in the model-independent setup of observables. Three examples of increasing complexity are fully worked out. This illustrates the features and provides code snippets that may be used as a starting point for implementation of further observables. Program summaryProgram title:NPointFunctionsCPC Library link to program files:https://doi.org/10.17632/kf7m8gn8vp.2Developer's repository link:https://github.com/FlexibleSUSY/FlexibleSUSYLicensing provisions: GPLv3Programming language:C++, Wolfram Language, Fortran, Bourne shellJournal reference of previous version:: Comput. Phys. Commun. 230 (2018) 145–217; PoS CompTools2021 (2022) 036Does the new version supersede the previous version?: YesReasons for the new version: Program extension including new observables and file structuresNature of problem: Determining observables for an arbitrary extension of the Standard Model supported by FlexibleSUSY, input by the user.Solution method: Generation of the code from automated algebraic manipulations. Automatic filling and compiling of predefined template files.Additional comments including restrictions and unusual features: Vertices with a direct product of Lorentz and color structures are supported. Settings of the advanced NPointFunctions mode rely on explicit specification of topologies.

U(2) Is Right for Leptons and Left for Quarks.

We posit that the distinct patterns observed in fermion masses and mixings are due to a minimally broken U(2)_{q+e} flavor symmetry acting on left-handed quarks and right-handed charged leptons, giving rise to an accidental U(2)^{5} symmetry at the renormalizable level without imposing selection rules on the Weinberg operator. We show that the symmetry can be consistently gauged by explicit examples and comment on realizations in SU(5) unification. Via a model-independent analysis of a standard model viewed as an effective field theory, we find that selection rules due to U(2)_{q+e} enhance the importance of charged lepton flavor violation as a probe, where significant experimental progress is expected in the near future.

Lepton flavor violation by two units

Charged lepton flavor violation arises in the Standard Model Effective Field Theory at mass dimension six. The operators that induce neutrinoless muon and tauon decays are among the best constrained and are sensitive to new-physics scales up to 107GeV. An entirely different class of lepton-flavor-violating operators violates lepton flavors by two units rather than one and does not lead to such clean signatures. Even the well-known case of muonium–anti-muonium conversion that falls into this category is only sensitive to two out of the three ΔLμ=−ΔLe=2 dimension-six operators. We derive constraints on many of these operators from lepton flavor universality and show how to make further progress with future searches at Belle II and future experiments such as Z factories or muon colliders.

Radiative neutrino mass with electroweak scale Majorana dark matter in the Scotogenic model

Non-zero neutrino mass and dark matter (DM) overshadow the success of the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics. The most straightforward extension of the SM to explain these two issues is the Scotogenic model, where the SM particle spectrum extends with three isospin singlet right-handed neutrinos and one doublet scalar, all odd under a Z2 symmetry. The neutrino masses and mixings result from the Weinberg operator induced at one-loop level. The particle spectrum of this model contains a few weakly interacting stable massive particles, each of which can be a good candidate for DM. In this work, we have considered the lightest right-handed neutrino as DM candidate. The Yukawa couplings that give rise to the observed flavor mixings in the neutrino sector also lead to flavor violation in the SM charged lepton sector and hence, get tightly constrained from the charged lepton flavor violating (CLFV) observables. The same Yukawa couplings also contribute to the DM annihilation in the early universe and hence, determine the relic density of the DM. In this work, we address the tension between the constraints from CLFV observables and measured DM relic density to obtain the large Yukawa couplings with the help of a parameterization that reduces the phenomenology relevant parameters to merely three and enhances the detection prospect at the collider experiments. We have explored the parameter space consistent with current CLFV bounds, the observed DM relic density, and the absolute neutrino mass limit. To search for these scenarios, we have identified two promising signals at the proposed lepton colliders: the mono-photon plus missing energy and di-lepton plus missing energy signals. We have studied the collider phenomenology of these signatures and estimated the 5σ detection required luminosity for the center of mass energies at 500 GeV and 1 TeV.

Charged Lepton-Flavour Violation

We review the experimental status of searches for lepton-flavour violation in the charged sector. We give an overview of searches for lepton-flavour violation in purely leptonic decays, hadron decays, and decays of heavy bosons. We focus on the most stringent constraints on lepton-flavour violating processes in these areas and give prospects for ongoing and future experiments.

DUNE potential as a new physics probe

Neutrino experiments, in the next years, aim to determine with precision all the six parameters of the three-neutrino standard paradigm. The complete success of the experimental program is, nevertheless, attached to the non-existence (or at least smallness) of Non-Standard Interactions (NSI). In this work, anticipating the data taken from long-baseline neutrino experiments, we map all the weakly coupled theories that could induce sizable NSI, with the potential to be determined in these experiments, in particular DUNE. Once present constraints from other experiments are taken into account, in particular charged-lepton flavor violation, we find that only models containing leptoquarks (scalar or vector) and/or neutral isosinglet vector bosons are viable. We provide the explicit matching formulas connecting weakly coupled models and NSI, both in propagation and production. Departing from the weakly coupled completion with masses at TeV scale, we also provide a global fit on all NSI for DUNE, finding that NSI smaller than 10−2 cannot be probed even in the best-case scenario.

Search for charged-lepton flavor violation in Υ(2S) → ℓ∓τ± (ℓ = e, μ) decays at Belle

We report a search for the charged-lepton flavor violation in Υ(2S) → ℓ∓τ± (ℓ = e, μ) decays using a 25 fb−1 Υ(2S) sample collected by the Belle detector at the KEKB e+e− asymmetric-energy collider. We find no evidence for a signal and set upper limits on the branching fractions (B\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{B} $$\\end{document}) at 90% confidence level. We obtain the most stringent upper limits: B\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{B} $$\\end{document}(Υ(2S) → μ∓τ±) < 0.23 × 10−6 and B\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{B} $$\\end{document}(Υ(2S) → e∓τ±) < 1.12 × 10−6.

B meson anomalies and large B+→K+νν¯\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ {B}^{+}\ o {K}^{+}\ u \\overline{\ u} $$\\end{document} in non-universal U(1)′ models

In view of both the latest LHCb measurement of RK∗\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ {R}_{K^{\\left(\\ast \\right)}} $$\\end{document} and the new 2.7σ deviation reported by Belle II on B+→K+νν¯\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ {B}^{+}\ o {K}^{+}\ u \\overline{\ u} $$\\end{document} decays, we present a fit to the B meson anomalies for various one and two dimensional hypothesis including complex Wilson coefficients. We show in a model-independent way that the generic non-universal U(1)′ extensions of the SM, without flavour violation, fail to simultaneously fit those observables and corroborate that they can modify BRB+→K+νν¯\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \ extrm{BR}\\left({B}^{+}\ o {K}^{+}\ u \\overline{\ u}\\right) $$\\end{document} up to only a 10%. In view of this deficit, we propose a new way in which those models can accommodate the data at tree level by introducing lepton flavour violating couplings and non-diagonal elements of the charged lepton mixing matrix, with implications in future charged lepton flavour violation searches.

Observable ΔNeff\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\Delta {\ extrm{N}}_{\ extrm{eff}}$$\\end{document} in Dirac scotogenic model

We study the possibility of probing the radiative Dirac seesaw model with dark sector particles going inside the loop, popularly referred to as the Dirac scotogenic model via measurements of effective relativistic degrees of freedom ΔNeff\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\Delta {\ extrm{N}}_{\ extrm{eff}}$$\\end{document} at cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments. The loop suppression and additional free parameters involved in neutrino mass generation allow large (∼O(1))\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$(\\sim {\\mathcal {O}}(1))$$\\end{document} coupling of light Dirac neutrinos with the dark sector particles. Such large Yukawa coupling not only dictates the relic abundance of heavy fermion singlet dark matter but also can lead to the thermalisation of the right chiral part of Dirac neutrinos, generating additional relativistic degrees of freedom ΔNeff.\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\Delta {\ extrm{N}}_{\ extrm{eff}}.$$\\end{document} We find that the parameter space consistent with dark matter phenomenology and neutrino mass bounds can also be probed at future cosmic microwave background experiments like CMB-S4 via precision measurements of ΔNeff.\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\Delta {\ extrm{N}}_{\ extrm{eff}}.$$\\end{document} The same parameter space, while leading to loop-suppressed direct detection cross-section of dark matter outside future sensitivities, can also have other interesting and complementary observational prospects via charged lepton flavour violation and collider signatures.

Alternative 3-3-1 models with exotic electric charges

We report the most general classification of 3-3-1 models with β=3 . We found several solutions where anomaly cancellation occurs among fermions of different families. These solutions are particularly interesting as they generate non-universal heavy neutral vector bosons. Non-universality in the standard model fermion charges under an additional gauge group generates charged lepton flavor violation and flavor changing neutral currents; we discuss under what conditions the new models can evade constraints coming from these processes. In addition, we also report the Large Hadron Collider~(LHC) constraints.

Phenomenological profile of scotogenic fermionic dark matter

We consider the possibility that neutrino masses arise from the exchange of dark matter states. We examine in detail the phenomenology of fermionic dark matter in the singlet-triplet scotogenic model. We explore the case of singlet-like fermionic dark matter, taking into account all coannihilation effects relevant for determining its relic abundance, such as fermion-fermion and scalar-fermion coannihilation. Although this in principle allows for dark matter below 60 GeV, the latter is in conflict with charged lepton flavour violation (cLFV) and/or collider physics constraints. We examine the prospects for direct dark matter detection in upcoming experiments up to 10 TeV. Fermion-scalar coannihilation is needed to obtain viable fermionic dark matter in the 60-100 GeV mass range. Fermion-fermion and fermion-scalar coannihilation play complementary roles in different parameter regions above 100 GeV.

Studies on τ decays at Belle II

Tau leptons are powerful tools to probe physics beyond the Standard Model (SM). The Belle II experiment is installed at the SuperKEKB asymmetric energy electron-positron collider and aims at collecting the world's largest sample of tau pair events e+e-→τ+ τ-.Direct searches for new invisible mediators, charged lepton flavor violation in τ decays, and tests of the SM via precision measurements of τ lepton properties and couplings are reported in the following article. The results presented here are based on the data collected by Belle II during 2019–2021.

Dark matter from a radiative inverse seesaw majoron model

We propose a Majoron-like extension of the Standard Model with an extra global U(1)X-symmetry where neutrino masses are generated through an inverse seesaw mechanism at the 1-loop level. In contrast to the tree-level inverse seesaw, our framework contains dark matter (DM) candidates stabilized by a residual Z2-symmetry surviving spontaneous breaking of the U(1)X-group. We explore the case in which the DM is a Majorana fermion. Furthermore, we provide parameter space regions allowed by current experimental constraints coming from the dark matter relic abundance, (in)direct detection, and charged lepton flavor violation.

Development of the scintillating fiber timing detector for the Mu3e experiment

We present the development and discuss the performance of a compact scintillating fiber detector for the Mu3e experiment for accurate time measurements at very high particle rates. Mu3e is a new experiment under preparation at the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI) to search for charged Lepton Flavor Violation in the neutrinoless muon decay μ+→e+e−e+ with a projected sensitivity of 10−16 using the most intense continuous surface muon beam in the world. A very thin scintillating fiber detector (thickness <0.2% of a radiation length X0) with a time resolution of about 250 ps, efficiency around 97%, and spatial resolution of ∼100μm has been developed. The SciFi detector is read out with multi-channel silicon photomultiplier arrays at both ends to achieve the best timing performance. Different scintillating fiber types have been evaluated and various assembly procedures have been tested to achieve the best performance.

MEG II physics and detector performance

In the panorama of the state-of-the-art searches for extremely rare Charged Lepton Flavor Violating (CLFV) processes, the Mu-E-Gamma (MEG) experiment is definitely a reference point in the intensity frontier of modern physics research, setting the best upper limit on the μ + → e + γ decay. The upgrade of MEG, MEG II, wants to give further impetus to the CLFV searches with muons. MEG II relies on a series of upgrades: on the photon side we point up improvements of the γ detector resolutions and acceptance; on the positron side we rely on completely brand new detectors with better acceptance, efficiency and performances; on the Trigger and Data Acquisition (DAQ) side we are able to exploit a higher muon beam intensity despite the increased number of read out channels thanks to a new and optimized electronics. After three years of commissioning, in 2021 the MEG II experiment finally entered the physics data taking phase. An overview of the MEG II physics and experimental contexts is presented, together with the current detector performances based on data. Thanks to the new experimental apparatus the final sensitivity goal is expected to be one order of magnitude better than the first phase of MEG.

Sensitivity potential to a light flavor-changing scalar boson with DUNE and NA64mu

In this work, we report on the sensitivity potential of complementary muon-on-target experiments to new physics using a scalar boson benchmark model associated with charged lepton flavor violation. The NA64mu experiment at CERN uses a 160-GeV energy muon beam with an active target to search for excess events with missing energy and momentum as a probe of new physics. At the same time, the proton beam at Fermilab, which is used to produce the neutrino beam for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), will also produce a high-intensity muon beam dumped in an absorber. Combined with the liquid argon near detector, the system could be used to search for similar scalar boson particles with a lower-energy but higher-intensity beam. We find that both NA64mu and DUNE could cover new, unexplored parts of the parameter space of the same benchmark model, providing a complementary way to search for new physics.

Search for charged lepton flavor violation in J/ψ decays at BESIII

The observation of any charged lepton flavor violation (CLFV) process would be a clear signal of new physics beyond the Standard Model. Various decay modes, including lepton (μ, τ) decays, pseudoscalar meson (K,π) decays, vector meson (ϕ, J/ψ, Υ) decays, and Higgs decays, have been explored to detect CLFV. Focusing on the search for CLFV at the τ-charm region, the results of the search for J/ψ → eτ/eμ using the 10 billion J/ψ events collected by the BESIII experiment are presented. The upper limits (ULs) at the 90% confidence level are ℬ(J/ψ → e ± τ ∓) < 7.5 × 10-8 and ℬ(J/ψ → e ± μ ∓) < 4.5 × 10-9, respectively. Improving the previously published limits by two orders of magnitudes, the results are the most stringent CLFV searches in heavy quarkonium system.

Complementarity of μTRISTAN and Belle II in searches for charged-lepton flavour violation

We analyse the potential of the proposed μ+μ+ and μ+e− collider μTRISTAN to complement the searches for charged-lepton flavour-violation (CLFV) that can be carried out by Belle II. μTRISTAN offers the possibility of directly producing and studying new resonances that could mediate CLFV for a certain range of masses. In addition, we find that it can produce competitive bounds to those from Belle II for cases where the new resonance lies beyond direct reach. We illustrate these points with three Z3 “lepton triality” models, where we also find an example that can only be probed by μTRISTAN. These three models feature doubly-charged scalars, denoted k1,2,3 respectively, that induce both CLFV and flavour-conserving processes. Tree-level k1 exchange induces the CLFV scattering process μ+e−→e+τ−, while k2 interactions induce μ+μ+→τ+e+, μ+e−→τ+μ− and make a non-SM contribution to the flavour-conserving scattering μ+μ+→μ+μ+. The k3 model has a non-SM contribution to the flavour-conserving process μ+e−→μ+e−. Other scattering processes involving k1, k2 or k3 are not relevant for μTRISTAN and outside the scope of our analysis. We quantify the sensitivity of μTRISTAN for each of these processes. For the k1 and k2 cases we compare the μTRISTAN reach to the expected sensitivity of Belle II to the crossing symmetry related CLFV τ decays.

Commissioning the Muon Campus external beamline: first beam optics measurement

The Fermilab Mu2e experiment aims to observe charged lepton flavor violation through the direct conversion of a muon to an electron. This can be accomplished with the considerable challenge of manipulating and transporting large numbers of protons confined to a narrow phase space region without significant particle losses or deterioration of beam quality before reaching the production target. In this paper we report the first results from the commissioning the beamline upstream the Mu2e production target. We first discuss the evolution of the beam distribution in x-y plane after collecting a series of beam profiles along the line. Then, we discuss the beam evolution in phase-space by measuring the beam's Twiss parameters using two independent techniques. Finally, with the aid of numerical simulations we compare our measured data with design parameters and discuss similarities and differences observed.

Nuclear-level effective theory of μ→e conversion: Formalism and applications

New mu-to-e conversion searches aim to advance limits on charged lepton flavor violation (CLFV) by four orders of magnitude. By considering P and CP selection rules and the structure of possible charge and current densities, we show that rates are governed by six nuclear responses. To generate a microscopic formulation of these responses, we construct in non-relativistic effective theory (NRET) the CLFV nucleon-level interaction, then embed it in a nucleus. We discuss previous work, noting the lack of a systematic treatment of the various small parameters. Because the momentum transfer is comparable to the inverse nuclear size, a full multipole expansion of the response functions is necessary, a daunting task with Coulomb-distorted electron partial waves. We perform such an expansion to high precision by introducing a simplifying local electron momentum, treating the full set of 16 NRET operators. Previous work has been limited to the simplest charge/spin operators, ignored Coulomb distortion (or alternatively truncated the partial wave expansion) and the nucleon velocity operator, which is responsible for three of the response functions. This generates inconsistencies in the treatment of small parameters. We obtain a "master formula" for mu-to-e conversion that properly treats all such effects and those of the muon velocity. We compute muon-to-electron conversion rates for a series of experimental targets, deriving bounds on the coefficients of the CLFV operators. We discuss the nuclear physics: two types of coherence enhance certain CLFV operators and selection rules blind elastic mu-to-e conversion to others. We discuss the matching of the NRET onto higher level EFTs, and the relation to mu-to-e conversion to other CLFV tests. Finally we describe a publicly available script that can be used to compute mu-to-e conversion rates in nuclear targets.