${{\mathit e}^{-}}$ MEAN LIFE $/$ BRANCHING FRACTION

A test of charge conservation. See the “Note on Testing Charge Conservation and the Pauli Exclusion Principle” following this section in our 1992 edition (Physical Review D45 S1 (1992), p.$~$VI.10).
Most of these experiments are one of three kinds: Attempts to observe (a)$~$the 255.5 keV gamma ray produced in ${{\mathit e}^{-}}$ $\rightarrow$ ${{\mathit \nu}_{{{e}}}}{{\mathit \gamma}}$, (b)$~$the (K)$~$shell x$~$ray produced when an electron decays without additional energy deposit, e.g., ${{\mathit e}^{-}}$ $\rightarrow$ ${{\mathit \nu}_{{{e}}}}{{\overline{\mathit \nu}}_{{{e}}}}{{\mathit \nu}_{{{e}}}}$ (``disappearance” experiments), and (c)$~$nuclear de-excitation gamma rays after the electron disappears from an atomic shell and the nucleus is left in an excited state. The last can include both weak boson and photon mediating processes. We use the best ${{\mathit e}^{-}}$ $\rightarrow$ ${{\mathit \nu}_{{{e}}}}{{\mathit \gamma}}$ limit for the Summary Tables.
Note that we use the mean life rather than the half life, which is often reported.

Disappearance and nuclear-de-excitation experiments

INSPIRE   PDGID:
S003TD
VALUE (yr) CL% DOCUMENT ID TECN  COMMENT
$\bf{>6.4 \times 10^{24}}$ 68 1
BELLI
1999B
DAMA De-excitation of ${}^{129}\mathrm {Xe}$
• • We do not use the following data for averages, fits, limits, etc. • •
$>1.2 \times 10^{24}$ 90
ABGRALL
2017
HPGE ${}^{}\mathrm {Ge}$ K-shell disappearance
$>4.2 \times 10^{24}$ 68
BELLI
1999
DAMA Iodine L-shell disappearance
$>2.4 \times 10^{23}$ 90 2
BELLI
1999D
DAMA De-excitation of ${}^{127}\mathrm {I}$ (in NaI)
$>4.3 \times 10^{23}$ 68
AHARONOV
1995B
CNTR ${}^{}\mathrm {Ge}$ K-shell disappearance
$>2.7 \times 10^{23}$ 68
REUSSER
1991
CNTR ${}^{}\mathrm {Ge}$ K-shell disappearance
$>2 \times 10^{22}$ 68
BELLOTTI
1983B
CNTR ${}^{}\mathrm {Ge}$ K-shell disappearance
1  BELLI 1999B limit on charge nonconserving ${{\mathit e}^{-}}$ capture involving excitation of the 236.1 keV nuclear state of ${}^{129}\mathrm {Xe}$; the 90$\%$ CL limit is $3.7 \times 10^{24}~$yr. Less stringent limits for other states are also given.
2  BELLI 1999D limit on charge nonconserving ${{\mathit e}^{-}}$ capture involving excitation of the 57.6 keV nuclear state of ${}^{127}\mathrm {I}$. Less stringent limits for the other states and for the state of ${}^{23}\mathrm {Na}$ are also given.
References