π0→e+e- and η→μ+μ- decays reexamined

The rare π0→e+e- and η→μ+μ- decays are calculated in different schemes, which are seen to be essentially equivalent to and produce the same results as conventional vector-meson dominance. We obtain the theoretical predictions B(π0→e+e-)=(6.41±0.19)×10-8 and B(η→μ+μ-)=(1.14-0.03+0.07)×10-5, where B(P→l+l-)=Γ(P→l+l-)Γ(P→γγ), in reasonable agreement with recent experimental data. © 1993 The American Physical Society.