Search for RS gravitons via $W_L W_L$ decays

TL;DR

This paper investigates the potential to detect Randall-Sundrum Kaluza-Klein gravitons at the LHC through their decay into W boson pairs, proposing specific search strategies for masses up to 3.5 TeV.

Contribution

It extends previous studies by analyzing the $W_L W_L$ decay channel of KK gravitons, offering new methods for mass reconstruction and distinguishing decay modes at the LHC.

Findings

Semileptonic mode allows detection of gravitons below 3-3.5 TeV with 300 fb$^{-1}$ data.

Mass reconstruction techniques improve identification of KK graviton signals.

Lepton energy analysis helps differentiate between longitudinal and transverse W decays.

Abstract

The original Randall-Sundrum (RS) model with a warped extra dimension along with extensions provides the possibility for a simultaneous solution to Planck-weak hierarchy problem as well as the flavor puzzle in the Standard Model (SM). The most distinctive feature of this scenario is the existence of Kaluza-Klein (KK) gravitons whose masses and couplings to the SM fields are set by the TeV scale. In some realistic versions of this framework, the largest coupling of the gravitons to the observed particles is to the top quark and unphysical Higgses ($W^{\pm}_L$ and $Z_L$) with the KK graviton (G) masses predicted to be $\gsim$ 4 TeV. We extend earlier works on the KK graviton decays to the $t\bar{t}$ final state and to the ``gold-plated'' $Z_L Z_L$ modes (with each Z decaying to $e^+ e^-$ or to $\mu^+ \mu^-$) by studying the resonant production of the gravitons and their subsequent decay to $W_L W_L$ pair. We find that with 300 $fb^{-1}$ integrated luminosity of data the semileptonic $G \to W (\to l \nu_l) W(\to 2 jets)$ mode offers a good opportunity to search for the RS KK graviton mode with mass lighter than $\sim$ 3-3.5 TeV at the CERN LHC. Efficient WW mass reconstruction in the semileptonic mode combined with an analysis of dilepton mass distribution in the purely leptonic channel, $pp \to W (\to l \nu_l) W(\to l^\prime \nu_{l^\prime})$ may help to observe KK $Z^\prime$ and KK graviton separately. Suitably defined average energy of the charged lepton in the semileptonic mode may be used to distinguish decays from longitudinal versus transverse W-bosons.