Virtual Supersymmetric Corrections in e^+e^- Annihilation

Abstract

Depending on their masses, Supersymmetric particles can affect various measurements in Z decay. Among these are the total width (or consequent extracted value of $α_s$), enhancement or suppression of various flavors, and left-right and forward-backward asymmetries. The latter depend on squark mass splittings and are, therefore, a possible test of the Supergravity related predictions. We calculate leading order corrections for these quantities considering in particular the case of light photino and gluino where the SUSY effects are enhanced. In this limit the effect on $α_s$ is appreciable, the effect on $R_b$ is small, and the effect on the asymmetries is extremely small.