Abstract: We measure the mass difference, Delta m(0), between the D*(2010)(+) and the D-0 and the natural linewidth, Gamma, of the transition D*(2010)(+) -> D-0 pi(+). The data were recorded with the BABAR detector at center-of-mass energies at and near the Upsilon(4S) resonance, and correspond to an integrated luminosity of approximately 477 fb(-1). The D-0 is reconstructed in the decay modes D-0 -> K-pi(+) and D-0 -> K-pi(+)pi(-)pi(+). For the decay mode D-0 -> K-pi(+) we obtain Gamma = (83.4 +/- 1.7 +/- 1.5) keV and Delta m(0) = (145425.6 +/- 0.6 +/- 1.8) keV, where the quoted errors are statistical and systematic, respectively. For the D-0 -> K-pi(+)pi(-)pi(+) mode we obtain Gamma = (83.2 +/- 1.5 +/- 2.6) keV and Delta m(0) = (145426.6 +/- 0.5 +/- 2.0) keV. The combined measurements yield Gamma = (83.3 +/- 1.2 +/- 1.4) keV and Delta m(0) = (145425.9 +/- 0.4 +/- 1.7) keV; the width is a factor of approximately 12 times more precise than the previous value, while the mass difference is a factor of approximately 6 times more precise.

Abstract: We present here bounds on neutrino masses from the combination of recent Planck cosmic microwave background (CMB) measurements and galaxy clustering information from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey, part of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-III. We use the full shape of either the photometric angular clustering (Data Release 8) or the 3D spectroscopic clustering (Data Release 9) power spectrum in different cosmological scenarios. In the Lambda CDM scenario, spectroscopic galaxy clustering measurements improve significantly the existing neutrino mass bounds from Planck data. We find Sigma m(v) < 0.39 eV at 95% confidence level for the combination of the 3D power spectrum with Planck CMB data (wi lensing included) and Wilkinson Microwave Anisoptropy Probe 9-year polarization measurements. Therefore, robust neutrino mass constraints can be obtained without the addition of the prior on the Hubble constant from Hubble Space Telescope. In extended cosmological scenarios with a dark energy fluid or with nonflat geometries, galaxy clustering measurements are essential to pin down the neutrino mass bounds, providing in the majority of cases better results than those obtained from the associated measurement of the baryon acoustic oscillation scale only. In the presence of a freely varying (constant) dark energy equation of state, we find Sigma m(v) < 0.49 eV at 95% confidence level for the combination of the 3D power spectrum with Planck CMB data (with lensing included) and Wilkinson Microwave Anisoptropy Probe 9-year polarization measurements. This same data combination in nonflat geometries provides the neutrino mass bound Sigma m(v) < 0.35 eV at 95% confidence level.

Abstract: The pion mass dependence of the nucleon mass within the covariant SU(2) baryon chiral perturbation theory both without and with explicit Delta(1232) degrees of freedom up to order p(4) is investigated. By fitting to a comprehensive set of lattice QCD data in 2 and 2 + 1 flavors from several collaborations, for pion masses M-pi < 420 MeV, we obtain low energy constants of natural size that are compatible with pion-nucleon scattering data. Our results are consistent with the rather linear pion mass dependence showed by lattice QCD. In the 2 flavor case we have also performed simultaneous fits to nucleon mass and sigma(pi N) data. As a result of our analysis, which encompasses the study of finite volume corrections and discretization effects, we report a value of sigma(pi N) = 41(5)(4) MeV in the 2 flavor case and sigma(pi N) = 52(3)(8) MeV for 2 + 1 flavors, where the inclusion of the Delta(1232) resonance changes the results by around 9 MeV. In the 2 flavor case we are able to set independently the scale for lattice QCD data, given by a Sommer scale of r(0) = 0.493(23) fm.