New measurement of the K±→π+π−e±ν(Ke4) decay branching ratio and hadronic form factors

Abstract

A sample of more than one million K±→π+π−e±ν (Ke4) decay candidates with less than one percent background contamination has been collected by the NA48/2 experiment at the CERN SPS in 2003–2004, allowing a detailed study of the decay properties. The branching ratio, inclusive of Ke4γ decays, is measured to be BR(Ke4)=(4.257±0.016exp±0.031ext)×10−5 with a total relative error of 0.8%. This measurement complements the study of S- and P-wave hadronic form factors by assigning absolute values to the relative hadronic form factors obtained earlier in a simultaneous analysis of the ππ scattering lengths conducted on the same data sample. The overall form factor normalization fs=5.705±0.017exp±0.031ext is obtained with a total relative precision of 0.6%