A search for top squarks with R-parity-violating decays to all-hadronic final states with the ATLAS detector in $\sqrt{s}$ = 8 TeV proton-proton collisions

TL;DR

This paper reports a search for top squarks decaying into all-hadronic final states with R-parity violation using ATLAS data at 8 TeV, setting mass exclusion limits between 100 and 315 GeV.

Contribution

It introduces a novel search strategy for R-parity-violating top squarks decaying into quark pairs using jet substructure and b-tagging techniques.

Findings

No significant excess observed over Standard Model background.

Top squarks with masses between 100 and 315 GeV are excluded at 95% confidence level.

Sensitivity to top squark masses as low as 100 GeV achieved.

Abstract

A search for the pair production of top squarks, each with R-parity-violating decays into two Standard Model quarks, is performed using 17.4 fb$^{-1}$ of $\sqrt{s}$ = 8 TeV proton-proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. Each top squark is assumed to decay to a b- and an s-quark, leading to four quarks in the final state. Background discrimination is achieved with the use of b-tagging and selections on the mass and substructure of large-radius jets, providing sensitivity to top squark masses as low as 100 GeV. No evidence of an excess beyond the Standard Model background prediction is observed and top squarks decaying to $\bar{b}\bar{s}$ are excluded for top squark masses in the range $100 \leq m_{\tilde{t}} \leq 315$ GeV at 95% confidence level.