Kang-Kang Shao

Kang-Kang Shao

Visiting Researcher

Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST)

Advisors: Qin Qin, Fu-Sheng Yu

Research Interests

Heavy flavor physics
Inclusive charm decays
HQET and OPE
Heavy-flavor phenomenology

About

I am currently a visiting researcher at Huazhong University of Science and Technology.

My research lies in high-energy physics. Particle physics aims to understand the most fundamental constituents of matter and the laws governing their interactions. Since its establishment in the 1960s and 1970s, the Standard Model of particle physics has achieved remarkable success in describing and predicting a wide range of experimental phenomena. Nevertheless, for certain processes and observables, there remain deviations or unresolved issues between Standard Model predictions and experimental measurements that call for further clarification. Carrying out high-precision studies around these questions is one of the major directions in contemporary high-energy physics. In this context, weak decays of heavy-flavor hadrons contain rich dynamical information and provide a key platform for precision tests of the Standard Model.

My specific research focuses on inclusive semileptonic decays of heavy-flavor hadrons, especially D mesons and charmed baryons. Using the local operator product expansion based on heavy quark effective theory as the main theoretical framework, I study high-precision calculations of physical observables such as decay widths, lepton energy spectra, and moments. Based on these calculations, I connect theory with experimental data to extract nonperturbative parameters and Standard Model parameters such as CKM matrix elements. I also compare these results with those extracted from other inclusive decay channels, both to provide cross-checks for precision tests of the Standard Model and to examine, from a data-driven perspective, the applicability of the relevant theoretical framework in the charm sector. Inclusive semileptonic widths of heavy hadrons are indeed standard observables for HQE/OPE analyses and parameter extraction.

Recently, I have been particularly interested in several issues in inclusive semileptonic decays of charmed baryons, including higher-order power corrections and perturbative corrections to the electron energy spectrum and the lepton pair invariant-mass spectrum, as well as shape-function effects in the endpoint region of the electron energy spectrum. At the same time, I continue to work on heavy-quark mass schemes and on consistency checks in phenomenological analyses.

Selected Publications

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Bayesian Extraction of HQET Parameters from Inclusive Semi-Leptonic Decay of the Lambda_c+ Baryon

Dong Xiao, Kangkang Shao

Chinese Phys. C

Extraction of HQET parameters from inclusive semi-leptonic Lambda_c+ baryon decay.

Data determination of HQET parameters in inclusive charm decays

Kang-Kang Shao, Chun Huang, Qin Qin

Eur. Phys. J. C

Data-driven extraction of HQET parameters from inclusive charm decays using phenomenological analysis.

Inclusive weak-annihilation decays and lifetimes of beauty-charmed baryons

Guo-He Yang, En-Pei Liang, Qin Qin, Kang-Kang Shao

Phys. Rev. D

Study of inclusive weak-annihilation decays and lifetime structure in beauty-charmed baryons.

Open Questions

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2026-06-08

For large computational projects in theoretical physics, why is it necessary to spend time organizing data structures before pushing the physics calculation forward?

The risk in large calculations often comes not only from the formulas, but also from data organization, interface conventions, and traceability of intermediate results.

Answer· 2026-06-08

Spend one day structuring data, then ten days doing physics; on day eleven, you are still doing physics, not debugging.

theoretical computationdata structuresdebugging costproject workflow
2026-06-01

How can we quantify actual progress in learning and work, and build a unified metric system that evaluates task quality, time investment, and cognitive cost at the same time? On this basis, how can we identify and assess strategies that achieve optimal results with minimal input, thereby distilling a general scientific methodology for learning and work?

The goal is to make progress visible, compare task-completion strategies, and turn personal experience into a more systematic method.

progress metricslearning strategywork methodstask optimization

News

2026-06-09

Published the paper "Bayesian Extraction of HQET Parameters from Inclusive Semi-Leptonic Decay of the Lambda_c+ Baryon" in Chinese Physics C.

2026-04-27

Delivered a parallel-session oral presentation "Phenomenological study of inclusive charm-hadron decays" at the 8th National Workshop on Heavy Flavor Physics and QCD in Chongqing.

2025-11-23

Delivered an oral presentation "D meson inclusive decays" at The 7th International Workshop on Future Tau Charm Facilities in Huangshan.

2025-10-10

Delivered an oral presentation "Phenomenological study of inclusive charm-hadron decays" at the Workshop on the Structure of Heavy-flavor Hadrons in Xuzhou.

2025-09-17

Published the paper "Data determination of HQET parameters in inclusive charm decays" in Eur. Phys. J. C.

2025-08-05

Delivered an oral presentation "Phenomenological study on semi-leptonic inclusive decay of charm meson" at the 2025 BESIII Charm Hadron Physics Workshop.

2025-07-18

Delivered an oral presentation "Phenomenological study on semi-leptonic inclusive decay of charm meson" at the Workshop on High-precision Heavy-flavor Physics in Huai'an.

2024-11-30

Delivered an oral presentation "Charm inclusive decay" at the 2nd Wuhan Youth Forum on High Energy Physics.

2024-10-25

Delivered a plenary presentation "Charm Semi-Leptonic Inclusive Decay" at HFCPV 2024 in Hengyang.

2022-11-01

Published "Inclusive weak-annihilation decays and lifetimes of beauty-charmed baryons" in Physical Review D.