Measurement of the half-life of the T=$\frac{1}{2}$ mirror decay of ${}^{19}$Ne and its implication on physics beyond the standard model

Abstract

The ${\frac{1}{2}}^{+}\to {\frac{1}{2}}^{+}$ superallowed mixed mirror decay of ${}^{19}$Ne to ${}^{19}$F is excellently suited for high precision studies of the weak interaction. However, there is some disagreement on the value of the half-life. In a new measurement we have determined this quantity to be $T_{1/2}$ = $17.2832\pm 0.0051_{(stat)}$ $\pm 0.0066_{(sys)}$ s, which differs from the previous world average by 3 standard deviations. The impact of this measurement on limits for physics beyond the standard model such as the presence of tensor currents is discussed.

5 pages, 3 figures, 1 table