Searching for Confining Hidden Valleys at the LHC(b)

TL;DR

This paper proposes new search strategies at the LHC, especially LHCb, to detect Hidden Valley scenarios with confinement, soft displaced decays, and dark sector signals, which are challenging for traditional searches.

Contribution

It introduces optimized search techniques leveraging LHCb's capabilities and discusses modifications for ATLAS/CMS to improve sensitivity to hidden valley signals.

Findings

LHCb's low trigger thresholds enhance detection prospects.

Proposed searches can detect $Z'$ decays to dark sectors.

Potential to observe exotic Higgs decays in Twin Higgs models.

Abstract

We explore strategies for probing Hidden Valley scenarios exhibiting confinement. Such scenarios lead to a multiplicity of light hidden hadrons from showering processes. Their decays are typically soft and displaced, making them challenging to probe with traditional LHC searches. We show the low trigger thresholds and excellent track and vertex reconstruction at LHCb provide an ideal environment to search for such signals -- in both muonic and hadronic channels. We also explore the potential of ATLAS/CMS and discuss modifications to present searches that might make these experiments competitive with the LHCb reach. Our proposed searches can probe $Z^{\prime}$ models with dominant decays to dark sectors as well as exotic Higgs boson decays in Twin Higgs models.