Top quark spin correlations at the Tevatron and the LHC

TL;DR

This paper proposes a new variable to detect top quark spin correlations with high significance in existing and future collider data, potentially confirming these correlations with relatively few events.

Contribution

It introduces a novel variable that could demonstrate top quark spin correlations with 3-4 sigma significance using current Tevatron data and upcoming LHC data.

Findings

Potential to observe spin correlations with existing Tevatron data.

Feasibility of detecting correlations at the LHC with modest luminosity.

Enhancement of experimental methods for top quark spin studies.

Abstract

Spin correlations of top quarks produced in hadron collisions have not been observed experimentally with large significance. In this Letter, we propose a new variable that may enable demonstration of the existence of spin correlations with 3-4 sigma significance using just a few hundred dilepton events both at the Tevatron and the LHC. Such number of dilepton events has been observed at the Tevatron. At the LHC, it will become available once integrated luminosity of a few hundred inverse picobarns is collected.