Recently, the standard model predictions for the $B$-meson hadronic decays, ${\overline{B}}^0\to D^{(*)+}{K}^{-}$ and ${\overline{B}}_s^0\to D_s^{(*)+}{\pi }^{-}$, have been updated based on the QCD factorization approach. This improvement sheds light on a novel puzzle in the $B$-meson hadronic decays: there are mild but universal tensions between data and the predicted branching ratios. Assuming the higher-order QCD corrections are not huge enough to solve the tension, we examine several new physics interpretations of this puzzle. We find that the tension can be partially explained by a left-handed $W^{\prime }$ model, which can be compatible with other flavor observables and collider bounds.

• Received 16 August 2020
• Accepted 28 September 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.102.071701

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Published by the American Physical Society