Calculation of $B^0 \to K^{*0} μ^+ μ^-$ and $B_s^0 \to φμ^+ μ^-$ observables using form factors from lattice QCD

Ronald R. Horgan, Zhaofeng Liu, Stefan Meinel, Matthew Wingate

Published 2013-10-15, updated 2014-05-07Version 3

We calculate the differential branching fractions and angular distributions of the rare decays $B^0 \to K^{*0} \mu^+ \mu^-$ and $B_s^0 \to \phi \mu^+ \mu^-$, using for the first time form factors from unquenched lattice QCD. We focus on the kinematic region where the $K^*$ or $\phi$ recoils softly; there the newly available form factors are most precise and the nonlocal matrix elements can be included via an operator product expansion. Our results for the differential branching fractions calculated in the Standard Model are higher than the experimental data. We consider the possibility that the deviations are caused by new physics, and perform a fit of the Wilson coefficients $C_9$ and $C_9^\prime$ to the experimental data for multiple $B^0 \to K^{*0} \mu^+ \mu^-$ and $B_s^0 \to \phi \mu^+ \mu^-$ observables. In agreement with recent results from complementary studies, we obtain $C_9-C_9^{SM} = -1.0 \pm 0.6$ and $C_9^\prime = 1.2 \pm 1.0$, whose deviations from zero would indicate the presence of non-standard fundamental interactions.