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Three prong tau decays with charged kaons

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<mark>Journal publication date</mark>1998
<mark>Journal</mark>European Physical Journal C: Particles and Fields
Issue number1-2
Volume1
Number of pages15
Pages (from-to)65-79
Publication StatusPublished
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Abstract

Final states with charged kaons in three-prong τ decays are studied by exploiting the particle identification from the dE/dx measurement. The results are based on a sample of about 1.6 × 105 detected τ pairs collected with the ALEPH detector between 1991 and 1995 around the Z peak. The following branching ratios have been measured: B(τ- → K−K+π−ντ) = (1.63 ± 0.21 ± 0.17) × 10−3, B(τ− → K−π+π−ντ) = (2.14 ± 0.37 ± 0.29) × 10−3, B(τ− → K−K+π−π0ντ) = (0.75 ± 0.29 ± 0.15) × 10−3, and B(τ− → K−π+π−π0ντ) = (0.61 ± 0.39 ± 0.18) × 10−3. The first two measurements are more precise than the current world averages, while the last two channels are investigated for the first time. The 95% C.L. upper limit on the branching ratio for the decay τ− → K−K+K−ντ is 0.19 × 10−3. A study of intermediate states occurring in the K−K+π−ντ and K−π+π−ντ decays is also presented.