Unique forbidden beta decays at zero momentum transfer

Abstract

We report an exploratory study of the $\mathcal{O}(\hat{I}\pm )$ structure-dependent electromagnetic radiative corrections to unique first-forbidden nuclear beta decays. We show that the insertion of angular momentum into the nuclear matrix element by the virtual/real photon exchange opens up the decay at vanishing nuclear recoil momentum which was forbidden at tree level, leading to a dramatic change in the decay spectrum not anticipated in existing studies. We discuss its implications for precision tests on the Standard Model and searches for new physics.

Version accepted by Physical Review Letters