Measurement of the Ω_{c}^{0} Baryon Lifetime

Area of Science:

• High Energy Physics
• Particle Physics
• Hadron Spectroscopy

Background:

• The Omega_c^0 baryon (Ω_{c}^{0}) is a charm baryon with a short lifetime.
• Previous measurements of the Ω_{c}^{0} lifetime have shown significant discrepancies.
• Accurate lifetime measurements are crucial for understanding baryon properties and testing theoretical models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To precisely measure the lifetime of the Ω_{c}^{0} baryon.
• To compare the measured lifetime with the current world average and investigate potential discrepancies.
• To contribute to a better understanding of heavy baryon properties.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment at center-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV.
• Selection of approximately 1000 Ω_{b}^{-}→Ω_{c}^{0}μ^{-}ν[over ¯]_{μ}X signal decays.
• Reconstruction of the Ω_{c}^{0} baryon in the pK^{-}K^{-}π^{+} final state.

Main Results:

• The lifetime of the Ω_{c}^{0} baryon was measured to be τ_{Ω_{c}^{0}}=268±24±10±2 fs.
• The measured lifetime is approximately four times larger than the current world-average value.
• The new measurement is inconsistent with the previously accepted value, indicating a significant deviation.

Conclusions:

• The precise measurement of the Ω_{c}^{0} lifetime challenges existing theoretical predictions.
• The discrepancy suggests the possibility of new physics phenomena influencing the decay dynamics of heavy baryons.
• Further theoretical and experimental investigations are warranted to resolve this puzzle.