String Theory at LHC Using Top Quarks From String Balls

TL;DR

This paper investigates how string theory predicts enhanced top quark production at LHC due to string balls, offering potential signatures of TeV-scale string physics through distinctive cross section and $p_T$ distribution patterns.

Contribution

It introduces a comparison between top quark production from string balls and standard model QCD, highlighting unique signatures of string theory at TeV energies.

Findings

Significant top quark production from string balls at LHC.

Top quark $p_T$ distribution from string balls remains relatively flat.

Enhanced top quark cross section as a signature of string physics.

Abstract

According to string theory, string ball is a highly excited long string which decays to standard model particles at the Hagedorn temperature with thermal spectrum. If there are extra dimensions, the string scale can be $\sim$ TeV, and we should produce string balls at CERN LHC. In this paper we study top quark production from string balls at LHC and compare with the parton fusion results at NNLO using pQCD. We find significant top quark production from string balls at LHC which is comparable to standard model pQCD results. We also find that $\frac{d\sigma}{dp_T}$ of top quarks from string balls does not decrease significantly with increase in $p_T$, whereas it deceases sharply in case of standard model pQCD scenario. Hence, in the absence of black hole production at LHC, an enhancement in top quark cross section and its abnormal $p_T$ distribution can be a signature of TeV scale string physics at LHC. String theory is also studied at LHC via string Regge excitations in the weak coupling limit in model independent framework. Since massive quark production amplitude is not available in string Regge excitations scenario, we compute massless quark production in string Regge excitations scenario and make a clear comparison with that produced from string balls at LHC for a given luminosity.