Searching for Axionlike Particles in Flavor-Changing Neutral Current Processes

Phys Rev Lett. 2017 Mar 17;118(11):111802. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.111802. Epub 2017 Mar 15.

Abstract

We propose new searches for axionlike particles (ALPs) produced in flavor-changing neutral current (FCNC) processes. This proposal exploits the often-overlooked coupling of ALPs to W^{±} bosons, leading to FCNC production of ALPs even in the absence of a direct coupling to fermions. Our proposed searches for resonant ALP production in decays such as B→K^{(*)}a, a→γγ, and K→πa, a→γγ could greatly improve upon the current sensitivity to ALP couplings to standard model particles. We also determine analogous constraints and discovery prospects for invisibly decaying ALPs.