On the Use of Subtraction Fields and the Lifetimes of Some Types of Meson Decay

The method of subtraction fields in current meson perturbation theory is described, and it is shown that it leads to finite results in all processes. The method is, however, not without ambiguities, and these are stated. It is then applied to the following problems in meson decay: Decay of a neutral meson into two and three $\gamma$-rays, into a positron-electron pair, and into another neutral meson and photon; decay of a charged meson into another charged meson and a photon, and into an electron (or $\mu$-meson) and neutrino. The lifetimes are tabulated in Tables I, II and III. The results are quite different from those of previous calculations, in all those cases in which divergent and conditionally4 convergent integrals occur before subtraction, but identical whenever divergences are absent. The results are discussed in the light of recent experimental evidence.