1 <chapter name="Particle Decays">
3 <h2>Particle Decays</h2>
5 The <code>ParticleDecays</code> class performs the sequential decays of
6 all unstable hadrons produced in the string fragmentation stage,
7 i.e. up to and including <ei>b</ei> hadrons and their decay products,
8 such as the <ei>tau</ei> lepton. It is not to be used for the decay of
9 more massive <aloc href="ResonanceDecays">resonances</aloc>, such as top,
10 <ei>Z^0</ei> or SUSY, where decays must be performed already at the
11 <code>ProcessLevel</code> of the event generation.
14 The decay description essentially copies the one present in
15 PYTHIA since many years, but with some improvements, e.g. in the decay
16 tables and the number of decay models available. Some issues may need
19 <h3>Variables determining whether a particle decays</h3>
21 Before a particle is actually decayed, a number of checks are made.
24 (i) Decay modes must have been defined for the particle kind;
25 tested by the <code>canDecay()</code> method of <code>Event</code>
26 (and <code>ParticleData</code>).
29 (ii) The main switch for allowing this particle kind to decay must
30 be on; tested by the <code>mayDecay()</code> method of <code>Event</code>
31 (and <code>ParticleData</code>).
34 (iii) Particles may be requested to have a nominal proper lifetime
35 <ei>tau0</ei> below a threshold.
37 <flag name="ParticleDecays:limitTau0" default="off">
38 When on, only particles with <ei>tau0 < tau0Max</ei> are decayed.
41 <parm name="ParticleDecays:tau0Max" default="1." min="0.">
42 The above <ei>tau0Max</ei>, expressed in mm/c.
46 (iv) Particles may be requested to have an actual proper lifetime
47 <ei>tau</ei> below a threshold.
49 <flag name="ParticleDecays:limitTau" default="off">
50 When on, only particles with <ei>tau < tauMax</ei> are decayed.
53 <parm name="ParticleDecays:tauMax" default="1." min="0.">
54 The above <ei>tauMax</ei>, expressed in mm/c.<br/>
55 In order for this and the subsequent tests to work, a <ei>tau</ei>
56 is selected and stored for each particle, whether in the end it
57 decays or not. (If each test would use a different temporary
58 <ei>tau</ei> it would lead to inconsistencies.)
62 (v) Particles may be requested to decay within a given distance
65 <flag name="ParticleDecays:limitRadius" default="off">
66 When on, only particles with a decay within a radius <ei>r < rMax</ei>
67 are decayed. There is assumed to be no magnetic field or other
71 <parm name="ParticleDecays:rMax" default="1." min="0.">
72 The above <ei>rMax</ei>, expressed in mm/c.
76 (vi) Particles may be requested to decay within a given cylidrical
77 volume around the origin.
79 <flag name="ParticleDecays:limitCylinder" default="off">
80 When on, only particles with a decay within a volume limited by
81 <ei>rho = sqrt(x^2 + y^2) < xyMax</ei> and <ei>|z| < zMax</ei>
82 are decayed. There is assumed to be no magnetic field or other
86 <parm name="ParticleDecays:xyMax" default="1." min="0.">
87 The above <ei>xyMax</ei>, expressed in mm/c.
90 <parm name="ParticleDecays:zMax" default="1." min="0.">
91 The above <ei>zMax</ei>, expressed in mm/c.
96 <flag name="ParticleDecays:mixB" default="on">
97 Allow or not <ei>B^0 - B^0bar</ei> and <ei>B_s^0 - B_s^0bar</ei> mixing.
100 <parm name="ParticleDecays:xBdMix" default="0.776" min="0.74" max="0.81">
101 The mixing parameter <ei>x_d = Delta(m_B^0)/Gamma_B^0</ei> in the
102 <ei>B^0 - B^0bar</ei> system. (Default from RPP2006.)
105 <parm name="ParticleDecays:xBsMix" default="26.05" min="22.0" max="30.0">
106 The mixing parameter <ei>x_s = Delta(m_B_s^0)/Gamma_B_s^0</ei> in the
107 <ei>B_s^0 - B_s^0bar</ei> system. (Delta-m from CDF hep-ex-0609040,
111 <h3>Other variables</h3>
113 <parm name="ParticleDecays:mSafety" default="0.0005" min="0." max="0.01">
114 Minimum mass difference required between the decaying mother mass
115 and the sum of the daughter masses, kept as a safety margin to avoid
116 numerical problems in the decay generation.
119 <parm name="ParticleDecays:sigmaSoft" default="0.5" min="0.2" max="2.">
120 In semileptonic decays to more than one hadron, such as
121 <ei>B -> nu l D pi</ei>, decay products after the first three are
122 dampened in momentum by an explicit weight factor
123 <ei>exp(-p^2/sigmaSoft^2)</ei>, where <ei>p</ei> is the
124 three-momentum in the rest frame of the decaying particle.
125 This takes into account that such further particles come from the
126 fragmentation of the spectator parton and thus should be soft.
130 When a decay mode is defined in terms of a partonic content, a random
131 multiplicity (and a random flavour set) of hadrons is to be picked,
132 especially for some charm and bottom decays. This is done according to
133 a Poissonian distribution, for <ei>n_p</ei> normal particles and
134 <ei>n_q</ei> quarks the average value is chosen as
136 n_p/ 2 + n_q/4 + multIncrease * ln ( mDiff / multRefMass)
138 with <ei>mDiff</ei> the difference between the decaying particle mass
139 and the sum of the normal-particle masses and the constituent quark masses.
140 For gluonic systems <ei>multGoffset</ei> offers and optional additional
141 term to the multiplicity. The lowest possible multiplicity is
142 <ei>n_p + n_q/2</ei> (but at least 2) and the highest possible 10.
143 If the picked hadrons have a summed mass above that of the mother a
144 new try is made, including a new multiplicity. These constraints
145 imply that the actual average multiplicity does not quite agree with
148 <parm name="ParticleDecays:multIncrease" default="4.5" min="3." max="6.">
149 The above <ei>multIncrease</ei> parameter.
152 <parm name="ParticleDecays:multRefMass" default="0.7"min="0.2" max="2.0">
153 The above <ei>multRefMass</ei> parameter.
156 <parm name="ParticleDecays:multGoffset" default="0.5" min="0.0" max="2.0">
157 The above <ei>multGoffset</ei> parameter.
160 <parm name="ParticleDecays:colRearrange" default="0.5" min="0." max="1.0">
161 When a decay is given as a list of four partons to be turned into
162 hadrons (primarily for modes 41 - 80) it is assumed that they are
163 listed in pairs, as a first and a second colour singlet, which could
164 give rise to separate sets of hadrons. Here <ei>colRearrange</ei> is
165 the probability that this original assignment is not respected, and
166 default corresponds to no memory of this original colour topology.
169 <flag name="ParticleDecays:FSRinDecays" default="true">
170 When a particle decays to <ei>q qbar</ei>, <ei>g g</ei>, <ei>g g g</ei>
171 or <ei>gamma g g</ei>, with <code>meMode > 90</code>, allow or not a
172 shower to develop from it, before the partonic system is hadronized.
173 (The typical example is <ei>Upsilon</ei> decay.)
176 In addition, some variables defined for string fragmentation and for
177 flavour production are used also here.
179 <h3>Modes for Matrix Element Processing</h3>
181 Some decays can be treated better than what pure phase space allows,
182 by reweighting with appropriate matrix elements. In others a partonic
183 content has to be converted to a set of hadrons. The presence of such
184 corrections is signalled by a nonvanishing <code>meMode()</code> value
185 for a decay mode in the <aloc href="ParticleDataScheme">particle
186 data table</aloc>. The list of allowed possibilities almost agrees with the
187 PYTHIA 6 ones, but several obsolete choices have been removed,
188 a few new introduced, and most have been moved for better consistency.
189 Here is the list of currently allowed <code>meMode()</code> codes:
191 <li> 0 : pure phace space of produced particles ("default");
192 input of partons is allowed and then the partonic content is
193 converted into the minimal number of hadrons (i.e. one per
194 parton pair, but at least two particles in total)</li>
195 <li> 1 : <ei>omega</ei> and <ei>phi -> pi+ pi- pi0</ei></li>
196 <li> 2 : polarization in <ei>V -> PS + PS</ei> (<ei>V</ei> = vector,
197 <ei>PS</ei> = pseudoscalar), when <ei>V</ei> is produced by
198 <ei>PS -> PS + V</ei> or <ei>PS -> gamma + V</ei></li>
199 <li> 11 : Dalitz decay into one particle, in addition to the
200 lepton pair (also allowed to specify a quark-antiquark pair that
201 should collapse to a single hadron)</li>
202 <li> 12 : Dalitz decay into two or more particles in addition
203 to the lepton pair</li>
204 <li> 13 : double Dalitz decay into two lepton pairs</li>
205 <li> 21 : decay to phase space, but weight up <ei>neutrino_tau</ei> spectrum
206 in <ei>tau</ei> decay</li>
207 <li> 22 : weak decay; if there is a quark spectator system it collapses to
208 one hadron; for leptonic/semileptonic decays the <ei>V-A</ei> matrix element
209 is used, for hadronic decays simple phase space</li>
210 <li> 23 : as 22, but require at least three particles in decay</li>
211 <li> 31 : decays of type B -> gamma X, very primitive simulation where
212 X is given in terms of its flavour content, the X multiplicity is picked
213 according to a geometrical distribution with average number 2, and
214 the photon energy spectrum is weighted up relative to pure phase space</li>
215 <li> 42 - 50 : turn partons into a random number of hadrons, picked according
216 to a Poissonian with average value as described above, but at least
217 <code>code</code> - 40 and at most 10, and then distribute then in pure
218 phase space; make a new try with another multiplicity if the sum of daughter
219 masses exceed the mother one </li>
220 <li> 52 - 60 : as 42 - 50, with multiplicity between <code>code</code> - 50
221 and 10, but avoid already explicitly listed non-partonic channels</li>
222 <li> 62 - 70 : as 42 - 50, but fixed multiplicity <code>code</code> - 60</li>
223 <li> 72 - 80 : as 42 - 50, but fixed multiplicity <code>code</code> - 70,
224 and avoid already explicitly listed non-partonic channels</li>
225 <li> 91 : decay to <ei>q qbar</ei> or <ei>g g</ei>, which should shower
227 <li> 92 : decay onium to <ei>g g g</ei> or <ei>g g gamma</ei>
228 (with matrix element), which should shower and hadronize</li>
229 <li> 100 - : reserved for the description of partial widths of
230 <aloc href="ResonanceDecays">resonances</aloc></li>
233 Three special decay product identity codes are defined.
235 <li>81: remnant flavour. Used for weak decays of c and b hadrons, where the
236 c or b quark decays and the other quarks are considered as a spectator
237 remnant in this decay. In practice only used for baryons with multiple
238 c and b quarks, which presumably would never be used, but have simple
239 (copied) just-in-case decay tables. Assumed to be last decay product.</li>
240 <li>82: random flavour, picked by the standard fragmentation flavour
241 machinery, used to start a sequence of hadrons, for matrix element
242 codes in 41 - 80. Assumed to be first decay product, with -82 as second
243 and last. Where multiplicity is free to be picked it is selected as for
244 normal quarkonic systems. Currently unused.</li>
245 <li>83: as for 82, with matched pair 83, -83 of decay products. The
246 difference is that here the pair is supposed to come from a closed gluon
247 loop (e.g. <ei>eta_c -> g g</ei>) and so have a somewhat higher average
248 multiplicity than the simple string assumed for 82, see the
249 <code>ParticleDecays:multGoffset</code> parameter above.</li>
254 <!-- Copyright (C) 2008 Torbjorn Sjostrand -->