Search

The Belle II detector will provide a major step forward in precision heavy flavor physics, quarkonium and exotic states, searches for dark sectors, and many other areas. The sensitivity to a large number of key observables can be improved by about an order of magnitude compared to the current measurements, and up to two orders in very clean search measurements. This increase in statistical precision arises not only due to the increased luminosity, but also from improved detector efficiency and precision for many channels. Many of the most interesting observables tend to have very small theoretical uncertainties that will therefore not limit the physics reach. This book has presented many new ideas for measurements, both to elucidate the nature of current anomalies seen in flavor, and to search for new phenomena in a plethora of observables that will become accessible with the Belle II dataset. The simulation used for the studiesinthis book was state ofthe artat the time, though weare learning a lot more about the experiment during the commissioning period. The detector is in operation, and working spectacularly well.

This Report summarizes the results of the activities of the LHC Higgs Cross Section Working Group in the period 2014-2016. The main goal of the working group was to present the state-of-the-art of Higgs physics at the LHC, integrating all new results that have appeared in the last few years. The first part compiles the most up-to-date predictions of Higgs boson production cross sections and decay branching ratios, parton distribution functions, and off-shell Higgs boson production and interference effects. The second part discusses the recent progress in Higgs effective field theory predictions, followed by the third part on pseudo-observables, simplified template cross section and fiducial cross section measurements, which give the baseline framework for Higgs boson property measurements. The fourth part deals with the beyond the Standard Model predictions of various benchmark scenarios of Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model, extended scalar sector, Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model and exotic Higgs boson decays. This report follows three previous working-group reports: Handbook of LHC Higgs Cross Sections: 1. Inclusive Observables (CERN-2011-002), Handbook of LHC Higgs Cross Sections: 2. Differential Distributions (CERN-2012-002), and Handbook of LHC Higgs Cross Sections: 3. Higgs properties (CERN-2013-004). The current report serves as the baseline reference for Higgs physics in LHC Run 2 and beyond., Comment: 869 pages, 295 figures, 248 tables and 1645 citations. Working Group web page: https://twiki.cern.ch/twiki/bin/view/LHCPhysics/LHCHXSWG

Motivated by a recent paper by the RBC–UKQCD Collaboration, which observes large violations of the naïve factorization hypothesis in K→ππ decays, we study in this paper the accuracy of the Vacuum Insertion Approximation (VIA) for the matrix elements of the complete basis of four-fermion ΔF=2 operators. We perform a comparison between the matrix elements in QCD, evaluated on the lattice, and the VIA predictions. We also investigate the dependence on the external meson masses by computing matrix elements for K , Ds , Bs and static mesons. In commonly used renormalization schemes, we find large violations of the VIA in particular for one of the two relevant Wick contractions in the kaon sector. These deviations, however, decrease significantly as the meson mass increases and the VIA predictions turn out to be rather well verified for B -meson matrix elements and, even better, in the infinite mass limit.

We present the first unquenched lattice QCD results for the bag parameters controlling the short distance contribution to D meson oscillations in the Standard Model and beyond. We have used the gauge configurations produced by the European Twisted Mass Collaboration with Nf = 2 dynamical quarks, at four lattice spacings and light meson masses in the range 280-500 MeV. Renormalization is carried out non-perturbatively with the RI-MOM method. The bag-parameter results have been used to constrain New Physics effects in D-Dbar mixing, to put a lower bound to the generic New Physics scale and to constrain off-diagonal squark mass terms for TeV-scale Supersymmetry., Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, 10 tables, updated to match the version accepted for publication in Physical Review D. This article draws form arXiv:1308.1851 which is on B-Bbar mixing instead of D-Dbar mixing

The status of the Unitarity Triangle beyond the Standard Model including the most recent results on Delta m_s, on dilepton asymmetries and on width differences is presented. Even allowing for general New Physics loop contributions the Unitarity Triangle must be very close to the Standard Model result. With the new measurements from the Tevatron, we obtain for the first time a significant constraint on New Physics in the B_s sector. We present the allowed ranges of New Physics contributions to Delta F=2 processes, and of the time-dependent CP asymmetry in B_s to J/Psi phi decays., 5 pages, 4 figures. v2: numerical error in Delta Gamma_s/Gamma_s corrected. Plots and tables updated. v3: update after ICHEP06, final version published in Phys Rev Letters

We consider the QCD corrections to the electric dipole moment of the neutron in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. We provide a master formula for the Wilson coefficients at the low energy scale including for the first time the mixing between the electric and chromoelectric operators and correcting widely used previous LO estimates. We show that, because of the mixing between the electric and chromoelectric operators, the neutralino contribution is always strongly suppressed. We find that, in general, the effect of the QCD corrections is to reduce the amount of CP violation generated at the high scale. We discuss the perturbative uncertainties of the LO computation, which are particularly large for the gluino-mediated contribution. This motivates our Next-to-Leading order analysis. We compute for the first time the order alpha(s) corrections to the Wilson coefficients for the gluino contributions, and recompute the two-loop anomalous dimension for the dipole operators. We show that the large LO uncertainty disappears once NLO corrections are taken into account.

During 2011 the LHCb experiment at CERN collected 1.0 fb−1 of √s = 7 TeV pp collisions. Due to the large heavy quark production cross-sections, these data provide unprecedented samples of heavy flavoured hadrons. The first results from LHCb have made a significant impact on the flavour physics landscape and have definitively proved the concept of a dedicated experiment in the forwardregion at a hadron collider. This document discusses the implications of these first measurements on classes of extensions to the Standard Model, bearing in mind the interplay with the results of searches for on-shell production of new particles at ATLAS and CMS. The physics potential of an upgrade to the LHCb detector, which would allow an order of magnitude more data to be collected, is emphasised.

We propose to perform a combined analysis of $B \to ����$ and $B_s \to K^+ K^-$ modes, in the framework of a global CKM fit. The method optimizes the constraining power of these decays and allows to derive constraints on NP contributions to penguin amplitudes or on the $B_s$ mixing phase. We illustrate these capabilities with a simplified analysis using the recent measurements by the LHCb Collaboration, neglecting correlations with other SM observables., 5 pages, 4 figures. v2: references and clarifications added, version published in JHEP

The recently measured B -> tau nu branching ratio allows to test the Standard Model by probing virtual effects of new heavy particles, such as a charged Higgs boson. The accuracy of the test is currently limited by the experimental error on BR(B -> tau nu) and by the uncertainty on the parameters fB and |Vub|. The redundancy of the Unitarity Triangle fit allows to reduce the error on these parameters and thus to perform a more precise test of the Standard Model. Using the current experimental inputs, we obtain BR(B -> tau nu)_SM = (0.84 +- 0.11)x10^{-4}, to be compared with BR(B -> tau nu)_exp = (1.73 +- 0.34)x10^{-4}. The Standard Model prediction can be modified by New Physics effects in the decay amplitude as well as in the Unitarity Triangle fit. We discuss how to disentangle the two possible contributions in the case of minimal flavour violation at large tan beta and generic loop-mediated New Physics. We also consider two specific models with minimal flavour violation: the Type-II Two Higgs Doublet Model and the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model., 7 pages, 13 figures, 1 table. v2: added references and discussion of B -> D tau nu in the 2HDM. v3: added Bs->mumu in the 2HDM. Final version to appear in PLB

The European Physical Journal C

We combine all the available experimental information on Bs mixing, including the very recent tagged analyses of Bs to J/Psi phi by the CDF and D0 collaborations. We find that the phase of the Bs mixing amplitude deviates more than 3 sigma from the Standard Model prediction. While no single measurement has a 3 sigma significance yet, all the constraints show a remarkable agreement with the combined result. This is a first evidence of physics beyond the Standard Model. This result disfavours New Physics models with Minimal Flavour Violation with the same significance., Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, 2 tables. v2: added a note on more recent Tevatron results

With the advent of the LHC, we will be able to probe New Physics (NP) up to energy scales almost one order of magnitude larger than it has been possible with present accelerator facilities. While direct detection of new particles will be the main avenue to establish the presence of NP at the LHC, indirect searches will provide precious complementary information, since most probably it will not be possible to measure the full spectrum of new particles and their couplings through direct production. In particular, precision measurements and computations in the realm of flavour physics are expected to play a key role in constraining the unknown parameters of the Lagrangian of any NP model emerging from direct searches at the LHC. The aim of Working Group 2 was twofold: on one hand, to provide a coherent, up-to-date picture of the status of flavour physics before the start of the LHC; on the other hand, to initiate activities on the path towards integrating information on NP from high-pT and flavour data., Report of Working Group 2 of the CERN Workshop ``Flavour in the era of the LHC'', Geneva, Switzerland, November 2005 -- March 2007

We study the constraints on supersymmetric contributions to b{yields}s transitions from the recent allowed range and measurement of B{sub s}-B{sub s} mixing obtained by the D0 and Collider Detector at Fermilab collaborations at the Tevatron. We compute the upper bounds on the relevant off-diagonal squark mass terms and compare them with the bounds coming from {delta}F=1 decays. We find that the constraints on chirality-flipping mass insertions are unaffected. Conversely, the measurement of B{sub s}-B{sub s} mixing is effective in constraining chirality-conserving mass insertions, and it has striking effects in the case in which left- and right-handed insertions have similar size. Finally, we discuss the phase of the B{sub s}-B{sub s} mixing amplitude in the presence of supersymmetric contributions.

We present a new technique to extract information on the Unitarity Triangle from the study of B -> K pi pi Dalitz plots. Using the sensitivity of Dalitz analyses to the absolute values and the phases of decay amplitudes and isospin symmetry, we obtain a new constraint on the elements of the CKM matrix. We discuss in detail the role of electroweak penguins and outline future prospects., 5 pages, 1 figure. v2: extended discussion of electroweak penguins. v3: error in the treatment of electroweak penguins corrected. v4: misprint pointed out in hep-ph/0608243 corrected

We present a new technique to extract information on the Unitarity Triangle from the study of Bs -> K pi pi Dalitz plot. Using isospin symmetry and the possibility to access the decay amplitudes from Dalitz analyses, we propose a new strategy to extract the weak phase gamma from Bs to K pi pi., 2 pages. v2: Discussion of interference on Dalitz plot clarified. Bs -> K K pi channels removed. v3: Improved discussion of experimental aspects. Final version to appear in Phys. Lett. B

The Proceedings of the 2003 SLAC Workshops on flavor physics with a high luminosity asymmetric e+e- collider. The sensitivity of flavor physics to physics beyond the Standard Model is addressed in detail, in the context of the improvement of experimental measurements and theoretical calculations., Comment: 476 pages. Printed copies may be obtained by request to kwebb@slac.stanford.edu . arXiv admin note: v2 appears to be identical to v1

Performing a fit to the available experimental data, we quantify the effect of long-distance contributions from penguin contractions in B^0 to J/psi K^0 decays. We estimate the deviation of the measured S_CP term of the time-dependent CP asymmetry from sin(2 beta) induced by these contributions and by the penguin operators. We find Delta S = 0.000 +- 0.012 ([-0.025,0.024] @ 95% probability)., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. v2: Numbers updated with BaBar data on B to J/Psi pi. v3: References added, version published in PRL

Using the most recent determinations of several theoretical and experimental parameters, we update the Unitarity Triangle analysis in the Standard Model. The basic experimental constraints come from the measurements of epsilon_k, Vub/Vcb and Delta m_d, the limit on Delta m_s, and the measurement of the CP asymmetry in the B sector through the J/psi K^0 channel. In addition we also include in our analysis the direct determination of sin 2 alpha, gamma and sin(2 beta + gamma) from the measurements of new CP-violating quantities, recently coming from the B-Factories. We also discuss the opportunities offered by improving the precision of the measurements of the various physical quantities entering in the determination of the Unitarity Triangle parameters. The results and the plots presented in this paper can be also found at http://www.utfit.org, where they are continuously updated with the newest experimental and theoretical results., Comment: LaTeX, 27 pages, 16 figures. Submitted to the 32nd International Conference on High-Energy Physics, ICHEP 04, 16-22 August 2004, Beijing, China

We present a systematic study of the CP conserving and violating SUSY contributions to b to s processes in a generic MSSM, considering gluino exchange contributions. Experimental information on B to Xs gamma, B to Xs l+ l- and the Bs-Bsbar mass difference Delta Ms have been taken into account. We study the induced correlations among several observables: Delta Ms and the amount of CP violation in B to phi Ks, Bs to J/psi phi, B to Xs gamma. Our results show that b to s transitions represent a splendid opportunity to constrain different MSSM realizations and offer concrete prospects to exhibit SUSY signals at B factories and hadron colliders., Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, uses moriond.sty. Presented by M.C. at the XXXVIII Rencontres de Moriond: Electroweak interactions and Unified Theories, Les Arcs, France, 15-22 March 2003. v2: paper not changed, removed additional eps files uploaded by mistake

We present a next-to-leading order determination of the gluino-mediated SUSY contributions to B-d-(B) over bard mixing and to the CP asymmetry a(J)/psiK(s) in the framework of the mass-insertion approximation. Using hadronic matrix elements recently computed on the lattice, we obtain improved constraints on the squark-mass splittings.

In the presence of large New Physics contributions to loop-induced b->s transitions, sizable direct CP violation in B-> phi K decays is expected on general grounds. We compute explicitly CP-violating effects using QCD factorization and find that, even in the restricted case in which New Physics has the same penguin structure as the Standard Model, the rate asymmetry can be of order one. We briefly discuss a more general scenario and comment on the inclusion of power-suppressed corrections to factorization., 3 pages

The present unitarity triangle fit, whose essential input is represented by the s to d and b to d transition processes, fully agrees with the SM. However, most of the phenomena involving b to s transitions are still largely unexplored and hence b to s phenomenology still constitutes a place for new physics manifestations, in spite of the tremendous experimental and theoretical progress on B to X_s gamma. We perform a systematic study of the CP conserving and violating SUSY contributions to b to s processes in a generic MSSM. We consider gluino exchange contributions including NLO QCD corrections and lattice hadronic matrix elements for Delta B = 2 and Delta B = 1 processes. We take into account all available experimental information on processes involving b to s transitions (B to X_s gamma, B to X_s l^+ l^- and the lower bound on the B_s - bar B_s mass difference Delta M_s). We study the correlations among the relevant observables under scrutiny at present or in a not too far future: Delta M_s and the amount of CP violation in B to phi K_s, B_s to J/psi phi, B to X_s gamma. In particular we discuss the recent data by BaBar and BELLE on the time-dependent CP asymmetry in the decay B to phi K_s which suggest a deviation from the SM expectation. Our results show that the processes involving b to s transitions represent a splendid opportunity to constrain different MSSM realizations, and, even more important, that they offer concrete prospects to exhibit SUSY signals at B factories and hadron colliders in spite of all the past frustration in FCNC searches of new physics hints., 20 pages, 8 figures. Bug in the code corrected, figures for RL and RL=RR cases and some conclusions changed

We study Lambda_{QCD}/m_B corrections to factorization in B -> K pi decays. First, we analyze these decay channels within factorization, showing that, irrespectively of the value of gamma, it is not possible to reproduce the experimental data. Then, we discuss Lambda_{QCD}/m_B corrections to these processes, and argue that there is a class of doubly Cabibbo enhanced non-factorizable contributions, usually called charming penguins, that cannot be neglected. Including these corrections, we obtain an excellent agreement with experimental data. Furthermore, contrary to what is obtained with factorization, we predict sizable rate asymmetries in B^\pm -> K^\pm ��^0 and B -> K^\pm pi^\mp., 4 pages, 3 figures. Talk given by L. Silvestrini at BCP4, Ise-Shima, Japan, 18-23 Feb 2001

We present a next-to-leading order determination of the gluino-mediated SUSY contributions to B_d-Bbar_d mixing and to the CP asymmetry a_{J/psi K_s} in the framework of the mass-insertion approximation. Using hadronic matrix elements recently computed on the lattice, we obtain improved constraints on the squark-mass splittings., 17 pages, 13 figures

We analyze the rare kaon decays $K_L \to \pi^0 \nu \bar \nu$, $K^+ \to \pi^+ \nu \bar \nu$, $K_L \to \pi^0 e^+ e^-$ and $K_L \to \mu^+ \mu^-$ in conjunction with the CP violating ratio $\epsilon'/\epsilon$ in a general class of supersymmetric models in which $Z$- and magnetic-penguin contributions can be substantially larger than in the Standard Model. We point out that radiative effects relate the double left-right mass insertion to the single left-left one, and that the phenomenological constraints on the latter reflect into a stringent bound on the supersymmetric contribution to the $Z$ penguin. Using this bound, and those coming from recent data on $\epsilon'/\epsilon$ we find ${\rm BR}(K_L \to \pi^0 \nu \bar \nu)\lsim 1.2\cdot 10^{-10}$, ${\rm BR}(K^+ \to \pi^+ \nu \bar \nu)\lsim 1.7\cdot 10^{-10}$, ${\rm BR}(K_L \to \pi^0 e^+ e^-)_{\rm dir}\lsim 2.0\cdot 10^{-11}$, assuming the usual determination of the CKM parameters and neglecting the possibility of cancellations among different supersymmetric effects in $\epsilon'/\epsilon$. Larger values are possible, in principle, but rather unlikely. We stress the importance of a measurement of these three branching ratios, together with improved data and improved theory of $\epsilon'/\epsilon$, in order to shed light on the realization of various supersymmetric scenarios. We reemphasize that the most natural enhancement of $\epsilon'/\epsilon$, within supersymmetric models, comes from chromomagnetic penguins and show that in this case sizable enhancements of $BR(K_L \to \pi^0 e^+ e^-)_{\rm dir}$ can also be expected., Comment: 40 pages, 5 figures

We analyze the CP violating ratio epsilon'/epsilon and rare K and B decays in the MSSM with minimal flavour and CP violation, including NLO QCD corrections and imposing constraints on the supersymmetric parameters coming from epsilon, B_{d,s}^0-\bar B_{d,s}^0 mixings, B to X_s gamma, Delta rho in the electroweak precision studies and from the lower bound on the neutral Higgs mass. We provide a compendium of phenomenologically relevant formulae in the MSSM. Denoting by T(Q) the MSSM prediction for a given quantity normalized to the Standard Model result we find the ranges: 0.53 < T(epsilon'/epsilon) < 1.07, 0.65 < T(K^+ to pi^+ nu nubar) < 1.02, 0.41 < T(K_L to pi^0 nu nubar) < 1.03, 0.48 < T(K_L to pi^0 e^+ e^-) < 1.10, 0.73 < T(B to X_s nu nubar) < 1.34 and 0.68 < T(B_s to mu^+ mu^-) < 1.53. We point out that these ranges will be considerably reduced when the lower bounds on the neutral Higgs mass and tan beta improve. Some contour plots illustrate the dependences of the quantities above on the relevant supersymmetric parameters. As a byproduct of this work we update our previous analysis of epsilon'/epsilon in the SM and find in NDR epsilon'/epsilon = (9.2^{+6.8}_{-4.0}), a value 15 % higher than in our 1999 analysis., 44 pages, 7 figures

We critically analyze recent attempts to include final state interaction (FSI) effects in the calculation of the CP violating ratio epsilon'/epsilon. In particular the approach of using the Muskhelishvili-Omnes equation for the decay amplitudes is examined. We find that the values of the dispersive correction factors are very sensitive to initial conditions which are, at present, out of control, and demonstrate that the claimed large enhancement of epsilon'/epsilon through FSI is questionable. We propose, instead, a different implementation of this approach which may be useful to lattice determinations of weak amplitudes., Comment: 11 pages, LaTeX source. The discussion on the validity of the Omnes equation in the present case has been extended. Conclusions unchanged

We analyze the CP violating ratio \epe=epsilon'/epsilon in the Standard Model in view of the new KTeV results. We review the present status of the most important non-perturbative parameters B_6, B_8, B_K and of the strange quark mass m_s. We also briefly discuss the issues of final state interactions and renormalization scheme dependence. Updating the values of the CKM parameters, of m_t and Lambda (MSbar) and using Gaussian errors for the experimental input and flat distributions for the theoretical parameters we find \epe substantially below the NA31 and KTeV data: \epe= (7.7^{+6.0}_{-3.5}) 10^{-4} and \epe= (5.2^{+4.6}_{-2.7}) 10^{-4} in the NDR and HV renormalization schemes respectively. A simple scanning of all input parameters gives on the other hand 1.05 10^{-4} < \epe < 28.8 10^{-4} and 0.26 10^{-4} < \epe < 22.0 10^{-4} respectively. Analyzing the dependence on various parameters we find that only for extreme values of B_6, B_8 and m_s and suitable values of CKM parameters and Lambda(MSbar), the ratio \epe can be made consistent with data. We analyze the impact of these data on the lower bounds for Im(V_{td}V_{ts}^*), Br(K_L to pi^0 nu barnu), Br(K_L to pi^0e^+e^-)_{dir} and on tan(beta) in the Two Higgs Doublet Model II., main latex-file, 4 figures and related latex files, 47 pages

We study the semileptonic decays B -> Xs e+ e- and B -> Xs mu+ mu- in generic supersymmetric extensions of the Standard Model. SUSY effects are parameterized using the mass insertion approximation formalism and differences with the Constrained MSSM results are pointed out. Constraints on SUSY contributions coming from other processes (e.g. b -> s photon) are taken into account. Chargino and gluino contributions to photon and Z-mediated decays are computed and non-perturbative corrections are considered. We find that the integrated branching ratios and the asymmetries can be strongly modified. Moreover, the behavior of the differential Forward-Backward asymmetry remarkably changes with respect to the Standard Model expectation., 29 pages, 8 figures, latex, some misprints corrected, to be published in Nucl. Phys. B

We discuss the supersymmetric contribution to $��'/��$ in various supersymmetric flavor models. We find that in alignment models the supersymmetric contribution could be significant while in heavy squark models it is expected to be small. The situation is particularly interesting in models that solve the flavor problems by either of the above mechanisms and the remaining CP problems by means of approximate CP, that is, all CP violating phases are small. In such models, the standard model contributions cannot account for $��'/��$ and a failure of the supersymmetric contributions to do so would exclude the model. In models of alignment and approximate CP, the supersymmetric contributions can account for $��'/��$ only if both the supersymmetric model parameters and the hadronic parameters assume rather extreme values. Such models are then strongly disfavored by the $��'/��$ measurements. Models of heavy squarks and approximate CP are excluded., 16 pages, harvmac. v2: We added a discussion of the intriguing implications that would follow if a recent lattice result is confirmed

We present a model independent analysis of new-physics contributions to the decays K^+ \to ��^+ ��\bar ��and K_L \to ��^0 ��\bar ��. We parameterize the effects of new physics in these decays by two parameters: r_K and ��_K, with r_K=1 and ��_K=0 in the Standard Model (SM). We show how these parameters can be extracted from future data. This analysis offers some insight in a possible violation of a "golden relation" between K \to ����\bar ��decays and the CP asymmetry in B \to ��K_S in the SM pointed out some time ago. We illustrate these ideas by considering a general class of supersymmetric models. We find that in the "constrained" MSSM, in which ��_K=0, the measurements of Br(K^+ \to ��^+ ��\bar ��) and Br(K_L \to ��^0 ��\bar ��) directly determine the angle ��. Moreover, the "golden relation" remains unaffected. On the other hand, in general SUSY models with unbroken R-parity the present experimental constraints still allow for substantial deviations from r_K=1 and ��_K=0. Typically 0.5 < r_K < 1.3 and -25^0 < ��_K < 25^0. Consequently, in these models the violation of the "golden relation" is possible and values for Br(K^+ \to ��^+ ��\bar ��) and Br(K_L \to ��^0 ��\bar ��) departing from the SM expectations by factors 2-3 cannot be excluded. Our conclusions differ in certain aspects from the ones reached in previous analyses. In particular, we stress the possible importance of left-right flavour-violating mass insertions that were not considered before., LaTeX, 32 pages, 14 figures. Constraints in Table 1 and related text changed due to a previously overlooked constraint. Figures 13 and 14 slightly modified, general conclusions unchanged. Final version to appear in Nucl. Phys. B

We discuss CP violation in the context of the minimal SUSY extension of the standard model as well as in a generic low-energy SUSY model. After analyzing the SUSY contributions to the observed CP violation in the kaon system, we emphasize the prospects for disentangling SUSY loop contributions from pure SM effects in B physics., Comment: LaTeX, 19 pages, 3 figures. To appear in "Perspectives on Supersymmetry", G.L. Kane editor, World Scientific, Singapore, 1997

The most general QCD next-to-leading anomalous-dimension matrix of all possible four-fermion, dimension-six $��F=2$ operators is computed. The results of this calculation can be used in many phenomenological applications, among which the most important are those related to theoretical predictions of $K^0-\bar{K}^0 $ and $B^0-\bar{B}^0$ mixing in several extension of the Standard Model (Supersymmetry, left-right symmetric, multi-Higgs models, etc.), to estimates of the $B^0_s$--$\bar B^0_s$ width difference, $����_{B_s}$, and to the calculation of the $O(1/m_b^3)$ corrections for inclusive b-hadron decay rates., 33 pages, 3 figures

We analyse the contribution of new heavy virtual fermions to the $e^+e^- \rightarrow W^+W^-$ cross section. We find that there exists a relevant interplay between trilinear and bilinear oblique corrections. The result strongly depends on the chiral or vector--like nature of the new fermions. As for the chiral case we consider sequential fermions: one obtains substantial deviation from the Standard model prediction, making the effect possibly detectable at $\sqrt{s}=500$ or $1000$ GeV linear colliders. As an example for the vector--like case we take a SUSY extension with heavy charginos and neutralinos: due to cancellation, the final effect turns out to be negligible., uuencoded, gz-compressed, tar-ed file. 8 pages, 4 EPS figures, uses EPSFIG.STY

International audience; Review of prospects for discovery of new physics signals at LEP2. The areas covered include SUSY, exotic fermions, BESS models, leptoquarks, virtual effects and CP violating observables.

An upgraded analysis of $\ep$, $x_d$ and $\epp/\ep$, using the latest determinations of the relevant experimental and theoretical parameters, is presented. Using the recent determination of the top quark mass, $m_t=(174 \pm 17)$ GeV, our best estimate is $\epp/\ep= 3.1 \pm 2.5 $, which lies in the range given by E731. We describe our determination of $\epp/\ep$ and make a comparison with other similar studies. A detailed discussion of the matching of the full theory to the effective Hamiltonian, written in terms of lattice operators, is also given., LaTeX, 45 pages, 6 postscript figures

We discuss in detail the calculation of the leading order QCD corrections to the Effective Hamiltonian which governs $b \rightarrow s\, ��$ and $b \rightarrow s \, g$ transitions in three different regularization schemes (HV, NDR and DRED). We show that intermediate stages of the calculation do depend on the regularization, but the same scheme independent coefficients can be obtained in all the considered schemes. A detailed discussion of the results already present in the literature is also given., 35 pp + 4 figs not included (available by anonymous ftp at amisan.iss.infn.it (141.108.15.215), directory /ftp/dred ), LaTeX, ROME 973/93, INFN-ISS 93/6, ULB-TH 15/93

We present a calculation of the effective weak Hamiltonian which governs $b \rightarrow s\, ��$ and $b \rightarrow s \, g$ transitions in two different renormalization schemes (NDR and HV). In the leading logarithmic approximation, we show that the coefficients of the effective Hamiltonian are scheme independent only when one takes correctly into account the scheme dependence of one- and two- loop diagrams. We demonstrate that in NDR there are contributions which were missed in previous calculations. These contributions are necessary to obtain scheme independent coefficients in the final results., 16 pp + 5 figures not included (available by anonymous ftp at amisan.iss.infn.it (141.108.15.215), directory /ftp/bsgamma), LaTeX, LPTENS 93/28, ROME 93/958, ULB-TH 93/09

Proposal for a long term strategy for accelerator based experiments

This is the final report of the Workshop on Physics at LEP2, held at CERN during 1995. The first part of vol. 1 is devoted to aspects of machine physics of particular relevance to experiments, including the energy, luminosity and interaction regions, as well as the measurement of beam energy. The second part of vol. 1 is a relatively concise, but fairly complete, handbook on the physics of e+ e- annihilation above the WW threshold and up to $\sqrt{s} \approx 200$ GeV. It contains discussions on WW cross-sections and distributions, W mass determination, Standard Model processes, QCD and gamma--gamma physics, as well as aspects of discovery physics, such as Higgs, new particle searches, triple gauge boson couplings and Z'. The second volume contains a review of the existing Monte Carlo generators for LEP2 physics. These include generators for WW physics, QCD and gamma--gamma processes, Bhabha scattering and discovery physics. A special effort was made to co-ordinate the different parts, with a view to achieving a systematic and balanced review of the subject, rather than just publishing a collection of separate contributions.

International audience; We present the status of the Unitarity Triangle Analysis (UTA) performed by the UTfit Collaboration, with experimental and theoretical inputs updated for the last summer conferences. Several analyses are presented, corresponding to different assumptions for the theoretical model, that is either the Standard Model, or Minimal Flavour Violation orc ompletely generic NewPhysics.