arXiv subjects

Lydia Beresford

Publications and source records attributed to Lydia Beresford.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

Strategy to measure tau $g-2$ via photon fusion in LHC proton collisions

Measuring the tau-lepton ($\tau$) anomalous magnetic moment $a_\tau = (g_\tau -2)/2$ in photon fusion production ($\gamma\gamma\to\tau\tau$) tests foundational Standard Model principles. However, $\gamma\gamma\to\tau\tau$ eludes observation in LHC proton collisions (pp) despite enhanced new physics sensitivity from higher-mass reach than existing probes. We propose a novel strategy to measure $\text{pp} \to \text{p}(\gamma\gamma\to\tau\tau)\text{p}$ by introducing the overlooked electron-muon signature with vertex isolation for signal extraction. Applying the effective field theory of dipole moments, we estimate 95% CL sensitivity of $-0.0092 < a_\tau < 0.011$ assuming 300 fb$^{-1}$ luminosity and 5% systematics. This fourfold improvement beyond existing constraints opens a crucial path to unveiling new physics imprinted in tau-lepton dipoles.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2020

Higgs self-coupling measurements using deep learning in the $b\bar{b}b\bar{b}$ final state

Measuring the Higgs trilinear self-coupling $λ_{hhh}$ is experimentally demanding but fundamental for understanding the shape of the Higgs potential. We present a comprehensive analysis strategy for the HL-LHC using di-Higgs events in the four $b$-quark channel ($hh \to 4b$), extending current methods in several directions. We perform deep learning to suppress the formidable multijet background with dedicated optimisation for BSM $λ_{hhh}$ scenarios. We compare the $λ_{hhh}$ constraining power of events using different multiplicities of large radius jets with a two-prong structure that reconstruct boosted $h \to bb$ decays. We show that current uncertainties in the SM top Yukawa coupling $y_t$ can modify $λ_{hhh}$ constraints by $\sim 20\%$. For SM $y_t$, we find prospects of $-0.8 < λ_{hhh} / λ_{hhh}^\text{SM} < 6.6$ at 68% CL under simplified assumptions for 3000~fb$^{-1}$ of HL-LHC data. Our results provide a careful assessment of di-Higgs identification and machine learning techniques for all-hadronic measurements of the Higgs self-coupling and sharpens the requirements for future improvement.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2019

New physics and tau $g-2$ using LHC heavy ion collisions

The anomalous magnetic moment of the tau lepton $a_τ= (g_τ-2)/2$ strikingly evades measurement, but is highly sensitive to new physics such as compositeness or supersymmetry. We propose using ultraperipheral heavy ion collisions at the LHC to probe modified magnetic $δa_τ$ and electric dipole moments $δd_τ$. We introduce a suite of one electron/muon plus track(s) analyses, leveraging the exceptionally clean photon fusion $γγ\to ττ$ events to reconstruct both leptonic and hadronic tau decays sensitive to $δa_τ, δd_τ$. Assuming 10% systematic uncertainties, the current 2 nb$^{-1}$ lead-lead dataset could already provide constraints of $-0.0080 < a_τ< 0.0046$ at 68% CL. This surpasses 15 year old lepton collider precision by a factor of three while opening novel avenues to new physics.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2018

Photon collider search strategy for sleptons and dark matter at the LHC

We propose a search strategy using the LHC as a photon collider to open sensitivity to scalar lepton (slepton $\tilde{\ell}$) production with masses around 15 to 60 GeV above that of neutralino dark matter $\tildeχ^0_1$. This region is favored by relic abundance and muon $(g-2)_μ$ arguments. However, conventional searches are hindered by the irreducible diboson background. We overcome this obstruction by measuring initial state kinematics and the missing momentum four-vector in proton-tagged ultraperipheral collisions using forward detectors. We demonstrate sensitivity beyond LEP for slepton masses of up to 220 GeV for $ 15 \lesssim Δm(\tilde{\ell}, \tildeχ^0_1) \lesssim 60$ GeV with 100 fb$^{-1}$ of 13 TeV proton collisions. We encourage the LHC collaborations to open this forward frontier for discovering new physics.

hep-ph↗