Measurement of the $t\bar{t} production cross section in $p\bar{p}$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 1.8 TeV

TL;DR

This paper reports an updated measurement of the top-antitop quark pair production cross section at 1.8 TeV using the CDF detector, employing multiple decay channels and tagging methods, and combining results for a precise estimate.

Contribution

The study introduces an improved measurement of the $t\bar{t}$ production cross section at Fermilab Tevatron, utilizing multiple decay channels and advanced tagging techniques, with calibration and uncertainty evaluation.

Findings

Measured $\sigma_{t\bar{t}}$ as 5.1 ± 1.5 pb (secondary vertex)

Measured $\sigma_{t\bar{t}}$ as 9.2 ± 4.3 pb (lepton tagging)

Combined cross section is 6.5^{+1.7}_{-1.4} pb

Abstract

We update the measurement of the top production cross section using the CDF detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. This measurement uses $t\bar{t}$ decays to the final states $e+\nu$+jets and $\mu+\nu$+jets. We search for $b$ quarks from $t$ decays via secondary-vertex identification or the identification of semileptonic decays of the $b$ and cascade $c$ quarks. The background to the $t\bar{t}$ production is determined primarily through a Monte Carlo simulation. However, we calibrate the simulation and evaluate its uncertainty using several independent data samples. For a top mass of 175 $GeV/c^2$, we measure $\sigma_{t\bar{t}}=5.1 \pm 1.5$ pb and $\sigma_{t\bar{t}}=9.2 \pm 4.3$ pb using the secondary vertex and the lepton tagging algorithms, respectively. Finally, we combine these results with those from other $t\bar{t}$ decay channels and obtain $\sigma_{t\bar{t}} = 6.5^{+1.7}_{-1.4}$ pb.