Isospin-based EWP-tree Relations

Abstract

In 1998, it was shown that, if flavor SU(3) symmetry [SU(3)${}_F$] is assumed in charmless $B\to PP$ decays ($P$ is a light pseudoscalar meson), some reduced matrix elements involving electroweak penguin (EWP) operators are related to those involving tree operators. Similarly, EWP diagrams are related to tree diagrams. These SU(3)${}_F$ EWP-tree relations were recently used in global analyses of $B\to PP$ decays. They have also been used over the years in analyses of the $B\to \ddot{I}€K$ puzzle, even though the $B\to \ddot{I}€K$ amplitudes are related by isospin symmetry [SU(2)${}_I$], and not the full SU(3)${}_F$. In this paper, we show that, even if only SU(2)${}_I$ is assumed, there are still EWP-tree relations. In $\hat{I}”S=0$ decays, these relations are similar to those of SU(3)${}_F$, and can be used to take into account the EWP contributions in the extraction of the CP phase $\hat{I}\pm$ from $B\to \ddot{I}€\ddot{I}€$ decays. In $\hat{I}”S=1$ decays, the SU(2)${}_I$ EWP-tree relations are quite different from those of SU(3)${}_F$; when these are used to analyze the $B\to \ddot{I}€K$ puzzle, one now finds a 4-5$\ddot{I}ƒ$ discrepancy with the Standard Model, much larger than what was previously found. We argue that, if one analyzes a set of hadronic $B$ decays whose amplitudes are related by isospin, one must use the SU(2)${}_I$ EWP-tree relations for that set of decays in the analysis.

30 pages, typos corrected, added discussion on limits of EWP-Tree relations, results unchanged; version published in the Journal of High Energy Physics