Search for hidden-charm tetraquark with strangeness in $e^{+}e^{-}\rightarrow K^+ D_{s}^{*-} D^{*0}+c.c.$

TL;DR

This study searches for a potential hidden-charm, open-strange tetraquark partner of the $Z_{cs}(3985)^{-}$ in electron-positron collisions, finding a slight excess but no definitive evidence, and setting upper limits on production rates.

Contribution

First search for the $Z_{cs}^{ ewline -}$ tetraquark candidate in $e^+e^-$ collisions at BESIII, providing constraints on its production and decay properties.

Findings

Observed a 2.1σ excess at 4123.5 MeV/c².

Set 90% CL upper limits on cross section times branching fraction.

No definitive discovery of the $Z_{cs}^{ ewline -}$ state.

Abstract

We report a search for a heavier partner of the recently observed $Z_{cs}(3985)^{-}$ state, denoted as $Z_{cs}^{\prime -}$, in the process $e^{+} e^{-}\rightarrow K^{+}D_{s}^{*-}D^{* 0}+c.c.$, based on $e^+e^-$ collision data collected at the center-of-mass energies of $\sqrt{s}=4.661$, 4.682 and 4.699 GeV with the BESIII detector. The $Z_{cs}^{\prime -}$ is of interest as it is expected to be a candidate for a hidden-charm and open-strange tetraquark. A partial-reconstruction technique is used to isolate $K^+$ recoil-mass spectra, which are probed for a potential contribution from $Z_{cs}^{\prime -}\to D_{s}^{*-}D^{* 0}$ ($c.c.$). We find an excess of $Z_{cs}^{\prime -}\rightarrow D_{s}^{*-}D^{*0}$ ($c.c.$) candidates with a significance of $2.1\sigma$, after considering systematic uncertainties, at a mass of $(4123.5\pm0.7_\mathrm{stat.}\pm4.7_\mathrm{syst.})\ \mathrm{MeV}/c^{2}$. As the data set is limited in size, the upper limits are evaluated at the 90\% confidence level on the product of the Born cross sections ($\sigma^{\mathrm{Born}}$) and the branching fraction ($\mathcal{B}$) of $Z_{cs}^{\prime-}\rightarrow D_{s}^{*-}D^{* 0}$, under different assumptions of the $Z_{cs}^{\prime -}$ mass from 4.120 to 4.140 MeV and of the width from 10 to 50 MeV at the three center-of-mass energies. The upper limits of $\sigma^{\rm Born}\cdot\mathcal{B}$ are found to be at the level of $\mathcal{O}(1)$ pb at each energy. Larger data samples are needed to confirm the $Z_{cs}^{\prime -}$ state and clarify its nature in the coming years.