Abstract:

A search for the B0→K+K− decay is performed using pp-collision data collected by LHCb. The data set corresponds to integrated luminosities of 1.0 and 2.0  fb^−1 at center-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV, respectively. This decay is observed for the first time, with a significance of more than 5 standard deviations. The analysis also results in an improved measurement of the branching fraction for the B0s→π+π− decay. The measured branching fractions are B(B0→K+K-)=(7.80±1.27±0.81±0.21)×108 and B(B0sπ+π−)=(6.91±0.54±0.63±0.19±0.40)×10^−7. The first uncertainty is statistical, the second is systematic, the third is due to the uncertainty on the B0→K+π− branching fraction used as a normalization. For the B0s mode, the fourth accounts for the uncertainty on the ratio of the probabilities for b quarks to hadronize into B0s and B0 mesons.

Abstract:

Decays of the Ξ−b and Ω−b baryons to the charmless final states ph−h'−, where h(') denotes a kaon or pion, are searched for with the LHCb detector. The analysis is based on a sample of proton-proton collision data collected at center-of-mass energies √s=7 and 8 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3 fb^−1. The decay Ξ−b→pK−K− is observed with a significance of 8.7 standard deviations, and evidence at the level of 3.4 standard deviations is found for the Ξ−b→pK−π− decay. Results are reported, relative to the B−→K+K−K− normalization channel, for the products of branching fractions and b-hadron production fractions. The branching fractions of Ξ−b→pK−π− and Ξ−b→pπ−π− relative to Ξ−b→pK−K− decays are also measured.

Abstract:

TORCH is a large-area precision time-of-flight detector based on the DIRC principle. The DIRC bar boxes of the BaBar experiment at SLAC could possibly be reused to form a part of the TORCH detector time-of-flight wall area, proposed to provide positive particle identification of low momentum kaons in the LHCb experiment at CERN. For a potential integration of BaBar bar boxes into TORCH, new imaging readout optics are required. From the several designs of readout optics that have been considered, two are used in this paper to study the effect of BaBar bar optical imperfections on the detector reconstruction performance. The kaon-pion separation powers obtained from analysing simulated photon hit patterns show the performance reduction for a BaBar bar of non-square geometry compared to a perfectly rectangular cross section.

Abstract:

TORCH (Timing Of internally Reflected CHerenkov photons) is a time-of-flight detector for particle identification at low momentum. It has been originally proposed for the LHCb experiment upgrade. TORCH is using plates of quartz radiator in a modular design. A fraction of the Cherenkov photons produced by charged particles passing through this radiator propagate by total internal reflection, they emerge at the edges and are subsequently focused onto fast, position-sensitive single-photon detectors. The recorded position and arrival time of the photons are used to precisely reconstruct their trajectory and propagation time in the quartz. The on-going R & D programme aims at demonstrating the TORCH basic concept through the realization of a full detector module and has been organized on the following main development lines: micro-channel plate photon detectors featuring the required granularity and lifetime, dedicated fast front-end electronics preserving the picosecond timing information provided by single photons, and high-quality quartz radiator and focussing optics minimizing photon losses. The present paper reports on the TORCH results successfully achieved in the laboratory and in charged particle beam tests. It will also introduce the latest developments towards a final full-scale module prototype.

Abstract:

TORCH (Time Of internally Reflected CHerenkov light) is a novel time-of-flight detector, designed to provide π /K/p particle identification up to 0∼ 1 GeV/c momentum and beyond. To achieve this, a time resolution of ∼ 15 ps combining information from 0∼ 3 detected photons is required over a 10 m flight path. Large areas can be covered with TORCH, nominally up to 30 m 2 . One such application is for the LHCb experiment, to complement the particle identification capabilities of its RICH detectors. TORCH has a DIRC-like construction with 10 mm-thick synthetic amorphous fused-silica plates as a radiator. Cherenkov photons propagate by total internal reflection to the plate edges and there are focussed onto an array of position-sensitive photodetectors. Custom-built micro-channel plate photo-multipliers (MCP-PMTs) are being developed in collaboration with industry to provide the lifetime, granularity and time resolution to meet the TORCH specifications. In the present paper, laboratory tests of the MCP-PMTs developed for TORCH and its readout electronics are presented. Test beam measurements of a prototype TORCH detector in a low-momentum mixed beam of pions and protons are highlighted. Time resolutions for individual photons approaching 100 ps is achieved, after correction for dispersion effects in the quartz medium. In addition to the particle identification capabilities, the high-precision timing information that TORCH provides could be used at the high-luminosity LHC to associate high-energy photons with the correct primary interaction vertex amongst the many expected.