arXiv subjects

Tim Tait

Publications and source records attributed to Tim Tait.

15 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2018

Early Cosmological Period of QCD Confinement

If the strong coupling is promoted to a dynamical field-dependent quantity, it is possible that the strong force looked very different in the early Universe. We consider a scenario in which the dynamics is such that QCD confines at high temperatures with a large dynamical scale, relaxing back to ~1 GeV before big bang nucleosynthesis. We discuss the cosmological implications and explore potential applications, including fleshing out a new mechanism for baryogenesis which opens up if QCD confines before the electroweak phase transition of the Standard Model.

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arXiv2014

Erratum: Bounds on Invisible Higgs boson Decays from $t\bar{t}H$ Production

Bounds on invisible decays of the Higgs boson from $t\bar{t}H$ production were inferred from a CMS search for stop quarks decaying to $t\bar{t}$ and missing transverse momentum. Limits on the production of $t\bar{t}H$ relied on the efficiency of the CMS selection for $t\bar{t}H$, as measured in a simulated sample. An error in the generation of the simulated sample lead to a significant overestimate of the selection efficiency. Corrected results are presented.

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arXiv2013

The Pitfalls of Dark Crossings

We explore the connection between pair production of dark matter particles at collider experiments and annihilation of dark matter in the early and late universe, with a focus on the correlation between the two time-reversed processes. We consider both a model-independent effective theory framework, where the initial and final states are assumed to not change under time-reversal, and concrete UV-complete models within the framework of supersymmetric extensions to the Standard Model. Even within the effective theory framework (where crossing symmetry is in some sense assumed), we find that the predictions of that symmetry can vary by orders of magnitude depending on the details of the selected effective interaction. Within the supersymmetric models we consider, we find that there is an even wilder variation in the expectations one can derive for collider observables based on cross-symmetric processes such as having a thermal relic or given indirect dark matter detection rates. We also explore additional "pitfalls" where na\"ive crossing symmetry badly fails, including models with very light mediators leading to Sommerfeld enhancements and/or dark matter bound states.

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arXiv2011

Simplified Models for LHC New Physics Searches

This document proposes a collection of simplified models relevant to the design of new-physics searches at the LHC and the characterization of their results. Both ATLAS and CMS have already presented some results in terms of simplified models, and we encourage them to continue and expand this effort, which supplements both signature-based results and benchmark model interpretations. A simplified model is defined by an effective Lagrangian describing the interactions of a small number of new particles. Simplified models can equally well be described by a small number of masses and cross-sections. These parameters are directly related to collider physics observables, making simplified models a particularly effective framework for evaluating searches and a useful starting point for characterizing positive signals of new physics. This document serves as an official summary of the results from the "Topologies for Early LHC Searches" workshop, held at SLAC in September of 2010, the purpose of which was to develop a set of representative models that can be used to cover all relevant phase space in experimental searches. Particular emphasis is placed on searches relevant for the first ~50-500 pb-1 of data and those motivated by supersymmetric models. This note largely summarizes material posted at http://lhcnewphysics.org/, which includes simplified model definitions, Monte Carlo material, and supporting contacts within the theory community. We also comment on future developments that may be useful as more data is gathered and analyzed by the experiments.

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arXiv2007

Enhanced Rare Pion Decays from a Model of MeV Dark Matter

A model has been proposed in which neutral scalar particles chi, of mass 1-10 MeV, annihilate through the exchange of a light vector boson U, of mass 10-100 MeV, to produce the 511 keV line observed emanating from the center of the galaxy. The chi interacts weakly with normal matter and is a viable dark matter candidate. If the U-boson couples to quarks as well as to electrons, it could enhance the branching ratio for the rare decay pi0 -> e+e-. A recent measurement by the KTeV Collaboration lies three standard deviations above a prediction by Dorokhov and Ivanov, and we relate this excess to the couplings of the U-boson. The values are consistent with other constraints and considerations. We make some comments on possible improvements in the data.

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arXiv2003

Opaque Branes in Warped Backgrounds

We examine localized kinetic terms for gauge fields which can propagate into compact, warped extra dimensions. We show that these terms can have a relevant impact on the values of the Kaluza-Klein (KK) gauge field masses, wave functions, and couplings to brane and bulk matter. The resulting phenomenological implications are discussed. In particular, we show that the presence of opaque branes, with non-vanishing brane-localized gauge kinetic terms, allow much lower values of the lightest KK mode than in the case of transparent branes. Moreover, we show that if the large discrepancies among the different determinations of the weak mixing angle would be solved in favor of the value obtained from the lepton asymmetries, bulk electroweak gauge fields in warped-extra dimensions may lead to an improvement of the agreement of the fit to the electroweak precision data for a Higgs mass of the order of the weak scale and a mass of the first gauge boson KK excitation most likely within reach of the LHC.

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arXiv1999

Associated Production of Gauginos and Gluinos at Hadron Colliders in Next-to-Leading Order SUSY-QCD

We report a next-to-leading order (NLO) calculation of the production of gaugino-like charginos ($\chargino$) and neutralinos ($\neutralino$) in association with gluinos ($\gluino$) at hadron colliders, including the strong corrections from colored particles and sparticles. We predict inclusive cross sections at the Fermilab Tevatron and CERN LHC. The NLO cross sections are more stable against variations in the hard-scattering scale parameter and are greater than the LO values.

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arXiv1999

SUSY Production Cross Sections

We summarize the status of next-to-leading order perturbative quantum chromodynamics (pQCD) calculations of the cross sections for the production of squarks, gluinos, neutralinos, charginos, and sleptons as a function of the produced sparticle masses in proton-antiproton collisions at the hadronic center-of-mass energy 2 TeV.

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arXiv1999

Scale Dependence of Squark and Gluino Production Cross Sections

We investigate the choice of the renormalization and factorization scales for the production of squarks and gluinos at the Fermilab Tevatron collider as a function of the produced sparticle masses. We determine a scale to be used in leading-order perturbative QCD calculations optimized such that the normalization of the next-to-leading order cross section is reproduced. Use of this optimal scale permits at least a partial implementation of next-to-leading order contributions in leading order Monte Carlo simulations. We provide next-to-leading order predictions of the production cross sections for pairs of supersymmetric particles at the hadronic center-of-mass energy 2 TeV.

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arXiv1998

Higgs Boson with Large Bottom Yukawa Coupling at Tevatron and LHC

We study the discovery reach of the Tevatron and the LHC for detecting a Higgs boson (h), predicted in composite models of the electroweak symmetry breaking or in supersymmetric theories, with an enhanced b-quark Yukawa coupling via p \bar{p} / p p \to b \bbar h (\to b \bbar) + X. Our analysis shows that studying this process at the Tevatron Run II or the LHC can provide strong constraints on these models.

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arXiv1997

The Phenomenology of Single Top Quark Production at the Fermilab Tevatron

Single top quark production at the Fermilab Tevatron Run II (a p \bar{p} collider with \sqrt{S} = 2 TeV) proceeds dominantly via two sub-processes, a t-channel W-gluon fusion process, and an s-channel W^* process. We show that these two sub-processes have different sensitivities to new physics effects in the top quark's electro-weak interactions. The W^* process is sensitive to new heavy charged resonances, such as a W' boson, while the W-gluon fusion process is more sensitive to modifications to the top's interaction, including flavor-changing neutral currents involving the top quark. We examine the implications of these results on our ability to measure V_{tb} with confidence, and propose a quantity R = \sigma_{Wg} / \sigma_{W^*}, which may be studied in order to characterize the confidence one may place upon a given measurement of V_{tb} from single top production.

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arXiv1997

Anomalous W^+ W^- t {\bar t} Couplings at the e^+ e^- Linear Collider

We study production of t {\bar t} via W^+ W^- fusion, including the relevant backgrounds at the proposed Linear Collider (an e^+ e^- collider with \sqrt{S} = 1.5 TeV) in the context of a Higssless Standard Model (SM), i.e. a nonlinear SU(2)_L \times U(1)_Y chiral Lagrangian, including dimension five W^+ W^- t {\bar t} interactions. Deviation from the SM total cross section can be used to constrain the coefficients of these operators to an order of 2 \times 10^{-1} (divided by the cut-off scale Λ= 3.1 TeV) with a 95% C.L.. However, there are three ways in which this sensitivity can be improved by a factor of two. First, by studying the deviation of the t {\bar t} kinematics from what is predicted by the SM; second, by polarizing the collider electron beam; and third, by studying the polarization of the produced top quarks. In this way, we show that it is also possible to attempt to dis-entangle the contributions from different anomalous operators, isolating the form of new physics contributions.

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arXiv1996

Anomalous t-c-g coupling: The connection between single top production and top decay

Continuing earlier work, we examine the constraint on an anomalous t-c-g coupling from top quark decay. We find that from current CDF measurements of the branching ratio $t \rightarrow W b$, the minimum scale at which new physics can strongly modify the t-c-g coupling is \Ltcg $\geq$ about 950 GeV. At the upgraded Tevatron, single top production can constrain \Ltcg $\geq$ 4.5 TeV. The connection between t-c production and the decay $t \rightarrow c g$ is examined, showing how constraints on one lead to a constraint on the other.

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arXiv1996

Top-Charm Strong Flavor-Changing Neutral Currents at the Tevatron

The possibility of an anomalous coupling between the top and charm quarks and the gluon field is explored in a model-independent way using an effective Lagrangian that is gauge-invariant under a non-linear realization of SU(3)$_{C} \times$ SU(2$)_{L} \times$ U(1$)_{Y}$. Even for the current 200 $pb^{-1}$ of integrated luminosity at the Tevatron, the new physics scale that strongly modifies the coupling of t-c-g must be larger than about 2.5 TeV if no signal is found within a 3$σ$ confidence limit. For 1 $fb^{-1}$ of data, this constraint can be pushed up to 3.8 TeV.

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arXiv1996

A Model of Strong Flavor Dynamics for the Top Quark

We discuss a model in which the third generation fermions undergo a different $SU(2)$ weak interaction from the first two generation fermions. In general, a flavor changing neutral current interaction is expected. Constrained by the precision low energy data, the mass ($M_{Z'}=M_{W'}$) of the heavy gauge bosons is bounded from below to be about $1.1$ TeV for $α_s=0.125$ and about $1.3$ TeV for $α_s=0.115$, at the $3σ$ level. This model favors a larger $R_b$ and a smaller $R_c$ as compared with the Standard Model, but it does not explain the $R_c$ data. If one takes the $R_b$ data seriously, then $M_{Z'}$ is bounded, at the $3σ$ level, to be $462$ GeV $< M_{Z^{\prime}} \cosϕ< 1481\,\, {\rm{GeV}}$, where $\cosϕ$ is the mixing angle between the two $SU(2)$'s in the model. Effects predicted for high energy experiments at the Tevatron, LEP140, LEP-II, LHC, and future linear colliders are also discussed.

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