D+ -> K- pi+ pi+ : heavy meson decays and final state interactions

We show that final state interactions are important in shaping Dalitz plots for the decay $D^+ \rar K^- \p^+ \p^+$. The theoretical treatment of this reaction requires a blend of several weak and hadronic processes and hence it is necessarily involved. In this talk we present results from a calculation which is still in progress, but has already unveiled the role of important dynamical mechanisms. We do not consider explicit quark degrees of freedom and our study is performed within an effective hadronic framework. In spite of the relatively wide window of energies available in the Dalitz plot for the $D^+$ decay, we depart from $SU(3)\times SU(3)$ chiral perturbation theory and extend its range by means of unitarization. Our present results, which concentrate on the vector weak vertex, describe qualitative features of the modulus of the decay amplitude and agrees well with its phase in the elastic region.