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Precise theoretical prediction on branching fractions and polarizations of $D \to V V$ decays

Jing Ou-Yang¹, Hui Zheng¹, Run-Hui Li ¹, and Si-Hong Zhou ^1,2,*

¹Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Microscale Physics and Atom Manufacturing, School of Physical Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, China
²Center for Quantum Physics and Technologies, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, China

^*Contact author: shzhou@imu.edu.cn

Phys. Rev. D 114, 036006 – Published 10 August, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/jq2h-z79r

Abstract

We present a precise and systematic analysis of $D \to V V$ decays within the factorization-assisted topological-amplitude approach, where $D$ denotes the set ${D^{0}, D^{+}, D_{s}^{+}}$ and $V$ represents the vector mesons $ρ$ , $K^{*}$ , $ω$ , and $ϕ$ . Given the limited current experimental data, the factorization-assisted topological-amplitude approach serves as a available phenomenological framework for predicting charmed meson decays to both vector mesons. In this framework, incorporating flavor SU(3) symmetry-breaking effects, we can express nonfactorizable contributions of different modes as a minimal set of universal parameters globally fitted to experimental data. Utilizing 36 experimental data points for $D \to V V$ decays, we precisely extract ten nonfactorizable parameters associated with the $C$ and $E$ topological diagrams with $χ^{2} / d . o . f . = 8.43$ . We find that a large strong phase in the longitude $E$ amplitude causes strong destructive interference with the $C$ longitudinal component, yielding $f_{∥} > f_{L}$ , contrary to the naive factorization predictions. Additionally, for modes processing exclusively by the $E$ diagram, the amplitude hierarchy $| S | < | D |$ leads to a $D$ -wave branching fraction larger than that of the $S$ wave. This explains recent observations that contradict $S$ -wave dominance predictions. The predicted branching fractions and polarizations for 28 decay modes are consistent with existing experimental data. Unobserved modes, especially those with branching fractions of the order of $10^{- 3} - 10^{- 2}$ , the $D$ -wave-dominated modes, and modes exhibiting $f_{∥} > f_{L}$ , await measurement by BESIII, STCF, Belle II, and LHCb.

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Phys. Rev. D 114, 036006– Published 10 August, 2026

Vol. 114, Iss. 3 — 1 August 2026

Received 2 April 2026
Accepted 16 July 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/jq2h-z79r

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by SCOAP³.

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Precise theoretical prediction on branching fractions and polarizations of $D \to V V$ decays

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Precise theoretical prediction on branching fractions and polarizations of D→VV decays

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Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

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References (52)

Precise theoretical prediction on branching fractions and polarizations of $D \to V V$ decays