Determination of the quark coupling strength |Vub| using baryonic decays

In the Standard Model of particle physics, the strength of the couplings of the b quark to the u and c quarks, |Vub| and |Vcb|, are governed by the coupling of the quarks to the Higgs boson. Using data from the LHCb experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, the probability for the Λb0 baryon to decay into the p final state relative to the final state is measured. Combined with theoretical calculations of the strong interaction and a previously measured value of |Vcb|, the first |Vub| measurement to use a baryonic decay is performed. This measurement is consistent with previous determinations of |Vub| using B meson decays to specific final states and confirms the existing incompatibility with those using an inclusive sample of final states. The accurate determination of quark mixing parameters is essential for the understanding of the Standard Model. The LHCb collaboration now reports the coupling strength of the b quark to the u quark through the measurement of a baryonic decay mode.