$B to pi ell u$ and $B_s to K ell u$ form factors and $|V_{ub}|$ from 2+1-flavor lattice QCD with domain-wall light quarks and relativistic heavy quarks


Abstract in English

We calculate the $B topiell u$ and $B_s to K ell u$ form factors in dynamical lattice QCD. We use the (2+1)-flavor RBC-UKQCD gauge-field ensembles generated with the domain-wall fermion and Iwasaki gauge actions. For the $b$ quarks we use the anisotropic clover action with a relativistic heavy-quark interpretation. We analyze two lattice spacings $a approx 0.11, 0.086$ fm and unitary pion masses as light as $M_pi approx 290$ MeV. We simultaneously extrapolate our numerical results to the physical light-quark masses and to the continuum and interpolate in the pion/kaon energy using SU(2) hard-pion chiral perturbation theory. We provide complete error budgets for the form factors $f_+(q^2)$ and $f_0(q^2)$ at three momenta that span the $q^2$ range accessible in our numerical simulations. We extrapolate these results to $q^2 = 0$ using a model-independent $z$-parametrization and present our final form factors as the $z$-coefficients and the matrix of correlations between them. Our results agree with other lattice determinations using staggered light quarks and provide important independent cross-checks. Both $B topiell u$ and $B_s to K ell u$ decays enable a determination of the CKM matrix element $|V_{ub}|$. To illustrate this, we perform a combined $z$-fit of our numerical $Btopiell u$ form-factor data with the experimental branching-fraction measurements leaving the relative normalization as a free parameter; we obtain $|V_{ub}| = 3.61(32) times 10^{-3}$, where the error includes statistical and systematic uncertainties. This approach can be applied to $B_sto K ell u$ decay to determine $|V_{ub}|$ once the process has been measured experimentally. Finally, in anticipation of future measurements, we make predictions for $B to piell u$ and $B_sto K ell u$ Standard-Model differential branching fractions and forward-backward asymmetries.

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