Abstract: A search is performed for rare and forbidden charm decays of the form D+-> hl+l -/+, where h(+/-) is a pion or kaon and l((')+/-) is an electron or muon. The measurements are performed using proton-proton collision data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.6 fb(-1), collected by the LHCb experiment in 2016. No evidence is observed for the 25 decay modes that are investigated and 90 % confidence level limits on the branching fractions are set between 1.4 x 10(-8) and 6.4 x 10(-6). In most cases, these results represent an improvement on existing limits by one to two orders of magnitude.

Abstract: The multihadron decays Lambda(0)(b) -> D(+)p pi(-)pi(-) and Lambda(0 )(b)-> D-*+p pi(-)pi(-) are observed in data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3fb(-1), collected in proton-proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV by the LHCb detector. Using the decay Lambda(0)(b) -> Lambda(+)(c)pi(+)pi(-)pi(-) as a normalisation channel, the ratio of branching fractions is measured to be B(Lambda(0)(b) -> D(+)p pi(-)pi(-))/B(Lambda(0)(b) -> Lambda(+)(c)pi(+)pi(-)pi(-)) x B(D+ -> K-pi(+)pi(+))/B(Lambda(+)(c)-> pK(-)pi(+)) = (5.35 +/- 0.21 +/- 0.16) %, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic. The ratio of branching fractions for the Lambda(0)(b)-> D-*+p pi(-)pi(-) and Lambda(0)(b) -> D(+)p pi(-)pi(-) decays is found to be B(Lambda(0)(b)-> D-*+p pi(-)pi(-))/B(Lambda(0)(b) -> D(+)p pi(-)pi(-)) x (B(D-*+-> D+pi(0)) + B(D (*)+-> D- (+)gamma)) = (61.3 +/- 4.3 +/- 4.0) %.

Abstract: The Xi(++)(cc) -> Xi('+)(c)pi(+) decay is observed using proton-proton collisions collected by the LHCb experiment at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.4 fb(-1). The Xi(++)(cc) -> Xi('+)(c)pi(+) decay is reconstructed partially, where the photon from the Xi('+)(c) -> Xi(+)(c)gamma decay is not reconstructed and the pK(-)pi(+) final state of the Sc+ baryon is employed. The Xi(++)(cc) -> Xi('+)(c)pi(+) branching fraction relative to that of the Xi(++)(cc) -> Xi('+)(c)pi(+) decay is measured to be 1.41 +/- 0.17 +/- 0.10, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic.

Abstract: Motivated by the XENON1T excess in electron-recoil measurements, we investigate the prospects of probing axion-like particles (ALP) in lepton flavor violation experiments. In particular, we identify such ALP as a pseudo-Goldstone from the spontaneous breaking of the flavor symmetries that explain the mixing structure of the Standard Model leptons. We present the case of the flavor symmetries being a non-Abelian U(2) and the ALP originating from its U(1) subgroup, which is anomaly-free with the Standard Model group. We build two explicit realistic examples that reproduce leptonic masses and mixings and show that the ALP which is consistent with XENON1T anomaly could be probed by the proposed LFV experiments.

Abstract: We consider a type-I seesaw framework endowed with a flavour symmetry, belonging to the series of non-abelian groups increment (3 n(2)) and increment (6 n(2)), and a CP symmetry. Breaking these symmetries in a non-trivial way results in the right-handed neutrinos being degenerate in mass up to possible (further symmetry-breaking) splittings kappa and lambda, while the neutrino Yukawa coupling matrix encodes the entire flavour structure in the neutrino sector. For a fixed combination of flavour and CP symmetry and residual groups, this matrix contains five real free parameters. Four of them are determined by the light neutrino mass spectrum and by accommodating experimental data on lepton mixing well, while the angle theta(R) is related to right-handed neutrinos. We scrutinise for all four lepton mixing patterns, grouped into Case 1) through Case 3 b.1), the potential to generate the baryon asymmetry of the Universe through low-scale leptogenesis numerically and analytically. The main results are: a) the possible correlation of the baryon asymmetry and the Majorana phases, encoded in the Pontecorvo-Maki-Nakagawa-Sakata mixing matrix, in certain instances; b) the possibility to generate the correct amount of baryon asymmetry for vanishing splittings kappa and lambda among the right-handed neutrinos as well as for large kappa, depending on the case and the specific choice of group theory parameters; c) the chance to produce sufficient baryon asymmetry for large active-sterile mixing angles, enabling direct experimental tests at current and future facilities, if theta(R) is close to a special value, potentially protected by an enhanced residual symmetry. We elucidate these results with representative examples of flavour and CP symmetries, which all lead to a good agreement with the measured values of the lepton mixing angles and, possibly, the current indication of the CP phase delta. We identify the CP-violating combinations relevant for low-scale leptogenesis, and show that the parametric dependence of the baryon asymmetry found in the numerical study can be understood well with their help.