Abstract:We calculate the main observables in B u,d → (ρ, ω, K * )γ and B s → (K * , φ)γ decays, i.e. branching ratios and CP and isospin asymmetries. We include QCD factorisation results and also the dominant contributions beyond QCD factorisation, namely longdistance photon emission and soft-gluon emission from quark loops. All contributions beyond QCD factorisation are estimated from light-cone sum rules. We devise in particular a method for calculating soft-gluon emission, building on earlier ideas developed for analogous contributions in non-leptonic decays. Our results are relevant for new-physics searches at the B factories, the LHC and a future super-flavour factory. Using current experimental data, we also extract |V td /V ts | and the angle γ of the unitarity triangle. We give detailed tables of theoretical uncertainties of the relevant quantities which facilitates future determinations of these CKM parameters from updated experimental results.

We present a systematic study of twist-3 light-cone distribution amplitudes of K * and φ mesons in QCD. The structure of SU(3)-breaking corrections is studied in detail. Nonperturbative input parameters are estimated from QCD sum rules. As a by-product, we update the parameters describing the twist-3 distribution amplitudes of the ρ meson. We also review and update predictions for the twist-2 distribution amplitudes of ρ, K * and φ.

We calculate the semileptonic form factors f B→η + (q 2 ) and f B→η ′ + (q 2 ) from QCD sum rules on the light-cone (LCSRs), to NLO in QCD, and for small to moderate q 2 , 0 ≤ q 2 ≤ 16 GeV 2 . We include in particular the so-called singlet contribution, i.e. weak annihilation of the B meson with the emission of two gluons which, thanks to the U(1) A anomaly, couple directly to η (′) . This effect is included to leading-twist accuracy. This contribution has been neglected in previous calculations of the form factors from LCSRs. We find that the singlet contribution to f B→η ′ + can be up to 20%, while that to f B→η + is, as expected, much smaller and below 3%. We also suggest to measure the ratio B(B → η ′ eν)/B(B → ηeν) to better constrain the size of the singlet contribution. * Patricia.Ball@durham.ac.uk † G.W.Jones@durham.ac.uk

To achieve high-spectral-resolution multiplex coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS), one typically uses a narrowband pump pulse and a broadband Stokes pulse. This is to ensure a correspondence between anti-Stokes and vibrational frequencies. We obtain high-resolution CARS spectra of isopropanol, using a broadband chirped pump pulse and a broadband Stokes pulse, by detecting the anti-Stokes pulse with spectral interferometry. With the temporally resolved anti-Stokes signal, we can remove the chirp of the anti-Stokes pulse and restore high spectral resolution while also rejecting nonresonant scattering.

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