Measurement of the $\tau$-lepton lifetime at Belle

Abstract

The lifetime of the $\tau$-lepton is measured using the process $e^+e^-\rightarrow\tau^+\tau^-$, where both $\tau$-leptons decay to $3\pi\nu_\tau$. The result for the mean lifetime, based on $711\,\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ of data collected with the Belle detector at the $\Upsilon(4S)$ resonance and $60\,\mathrm{MeV}$ below, is $\tau = (290.17 \pm 0.53(\mathrm{stat.}) \pm 0.33(\mathrm{syst.}))\cdot10^{-15}\,\mathrm{s}$. The first measurement of the lifetime difference between $\tau^+$ and $\tau^-$ is performed. The upper limit on the relative lifetime difference between positive and negative $\tau$-leptons is $|\Delta\tau| / \tau < 7.0 \times 10^{-3}$ at 90% CL.