Strong tW scattering at the LHC
Deviations of the top electroweak couplings from their Standard Model values imply that certain amplitudes for the scattering of third generation fermions and longitudinally polarized vector bosons or Higgses diverge quadratically with momenta. This high-energy growth is a genuine signal of models where the top quark is strongly coupled to the sector responsible for electroweak symmetry breaking. We propose to profit from the high energies accessible at the LHC to enhance the sensitivity to non-standard top-Z couplings, which are currently very weakly constrained. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach, we perform a detailed analysis of tW → tW scattering, which can be probed at the LHC via pp→$$t\bar{t}$$Wj. By recasting a CMS analysis at 8 TeV, we derive the strongest direct bounds to date on the Ztt couplings. We also design a dedicated search at 13 TeV that exploits the distinctive features of the $$t\bar{t}$$Wj signal. Lastly, we present other scattering processes in the same class that could provide further tests of the top-Higgs sector.
- Authors:
-
[1]
; [2]
; [3]
; [4]
- Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States)
- Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States); Rutgers Univ., Piscataway, NJ (United States)
- Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)
- Univ. di Padova and INFN, Padova (Italy); European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Geneva (Switzerland)
- Publication Date:
- Grant/Contract Number:
- SC0003883
- Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Journal of High Energy Physics (Online)
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: Journal of High Energy Physics (Online); Journal Volume: 2016; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 1029-8479
- Publisher:
- Springer Berlin
- Research Org:
- Rutgers Univ., Piscataway, NJ (United States)
- Sponsoring Org:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS; Beyond Standard Model; heavy quark physics
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1327317
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript (DOE)
- Publisher's Version of Record
- https://doi.org/10.1007/JHEP01(2016)071