{
  "id": "hep-ph/0005095",
  "version": "v2",
  "published": "2000-05-10T20:20:57.000Z",
  "updated": "2000-05-25T22:35:40.000Z",
  "title": "Discovery of Proton Decay: A Must for Theory, a Challenge for Experiment",
  "authors": [
    "Jogesh C. Pati"
  ],
  "comment": "LaTex file 29 pages, no figures. Minor corrections",
  "doi": "10.1063/1.1361722",
  "categories": [
    "hep-ph",
    "hep-th"
  ],
  "abstract": "It is noted that, but for one missing piece -- proton decay -- the evidence in support of grand unification is now strong. It includes: (i) the observed family-structure, (ii) the meeting of the gauge couplings, (iii) neutrino-oscillations, (iv) the intricate pattern of the masses and mixings of all fermions, including the neutrinos, and (v) the need for $B-L$ as a generator, to implement baryogenesis. Taken together, these not only favor grand unification but in fact select out a particular route to such unification, based on the ideas of supersymmetry, SU(4)-color and left-right symmetry. Thus they point to the relevance of an effective string-unified G(224) or SO(10)-symmetry. A concrete proposal is presented, within a predictive SO(10)/G(224)-framework, that successfully describes the masses and mixings of all fermions, including the neutrinos - with eight predictions, all in agreement with observation. Within this framework, a systematic study of proton decay is carried out, which pays special attention to its dependence on the fermion masses, including the superheavy Majorana masses of the right-handed neutrinos. The study shows that a conservative upper limit on the proton lifetime is about (1/2 - 1)$\\times10^{34}$ yrs, with $\\overline{\\nu}K^{+}$ being the dominant decay mode, and as a distinctive feature, $\\mu^{+}K^{0}$ being prominent. This in turn strongly suggests that an improvement in the current sensitivity by a factor of five to ten (compared to SuperK) ought to reveal proton decay. Otherwise some promising and remarkably successful ideas on unification would suffer a major setback.",
  "revisions": [
    {
      "version": "v2",
      "updated": "2000-05-25T22:35:40.000Z"
    }
  ],
  "analyses": {
    "keywords": [
      "experiment",
      "favor grand unification",
      "pays special attention",
      "superheavy majorana masses",
      "dominant decay mode"
    ],
    "tags": [
      "journal article"
    ],
    "note": {
      "typesetting": "LaTeX",
      "pages": 29,
      "language": "en",
      "license": "arXiv",
      "status": "editable",
      "inspire": 527056
    }
  }
}