Search for the top → τνq channel in top dilepton



Authors

S.Tourneur, A.Savoy-Navarro


CNRS/IN2P3 & University of Paris 6, France



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Public presentations and papers

Read the public note

 

Presentation at the international conference of the American Physical Society, at Dallas, April 22nd 2006 (10 minutes talk)

 


Summary

 

We are looking for a first observation of top pair production in the τ+l (l = e or μ) channel where the tau decays semihadronically. This channel is interesting as a signal yet to be observed, but also as a background for new physics. The main backgrounds are events with wrongly identified taus (W+jets, ttbar, QCD) and Z→ττ+jets.

Using 350 pb-1 of collected data, we observe 5 events against 2.7±0.4 background  events expected. The probability for the background alone to fluctuate to 5 or more events is 15%. This gives a 1 sigma evidence for the top tau dilepton signal.

The 5 events observed are in perfect agreement with the standard model prediction for signal+background, so that no indication for new physics is observed in this top pair lepton+tau channel.


 

 

 
350 pb-1 goal and strategy

With 350 pb-1 of data collected at CDF from 2001 to September 2004, the physics goal is still the mere observation of the signal.

Fot this, we need to compute the standard model expectations for the backgrounds and compare to the observation. For this “search-like” analysis, the quantity to be optimized is S/√B.

Event selection:

·        1 central isolated lepton (e or μ) with a transverse energy greater than 20 GeV

·        1 central isolated tau decaying into hadrons with a transverse energy greater than 15 GeV. The identification looks for a narrow cone containing the 1 or 3 charged hadrons of the tau decay.

·        2 jets : the leading one has Et > 25 GeV and the second one Et > 15 GeV

·        Missing transverse energy (>20 GeV) to account for the 3 neutrinos in the signal

·        High activity (Ht > 205 GeV) to account for the high top mass

·        Passes a veto against Z→ττ+2 jets

 


 

 

 
Results

CDF Run II preliminary

electron + tau (360 pb-1)

muon + tau (340 pb-1)

jetτ fakes

0.91 ± 0.29

0.92 ± 0.29

eτ fakes

0.10 ± 0.025

0.05 ± 0.012

Z → ττ + 2 jets

0.39 ± 0.13

0.32 ± 0.10

WW + 2 jets

0.034 ± 0.011

0.027 ± 0.008

Total background

1.43 ± 0.31

1.32 ± 0.30

SIGNAL (ttbarl+τ)

1.32 ± 0.05stat only

0.92 ± 0.05stat only

 

Nb observed events

2

3

 

 


Background prediction method

The Z→ττ + 2 jets background is estimated using Monte-Carlo (Pythia, Alpgen) corrected to agree with data in Z→μμ + 2 jets.

The most important and trickiest background comes from events where the tau is misidentified. W→lν+ 3 jets and ttbar→lνbjjb can end this way into the signal region.  The  probability for a generic central jet to be misidentified as a tau is determined to vary between 0.3 and 1% depending on the jet Et and activity in the event. This background is determined this way:

1.     apply full signal selection to the data sample but the tau identification : 1 lepton, missing Et, >=2 jets, Ht>205 GeV, Z veto

2.     Ask for a central loose tau instead of the final tau identification : the tau candidate is not required to be isolated and to have a mass < 1.8 GeV

3.     weight the event by the probability for the loose tau(s) to be isolated and to pass the mass cut*

*The probability for a loose tau to be isolated and to pass the mass cut (fake rate) is computed from multijet events and lies between 3 and 10%. This is parametrized with the jet Et, the sum of transverse energies deposited in the event, and the number of jets in the event. This fake rate is checked to make good predictions in a W+3 jets sample, with a conservative uncertainty of 30%.


 

Control regions

Control regions are defined close enough to the final signal region to constitute a valuable check, but far enough to keep enough data in for statistical relevance.

We defined 4 control regions:

 (to be compared with signal region : 1 identified electron or muon + missing Et > 20 GeV + >= 2 jets, Ht > 205 GeV, Z veto)

·        1 identified electron + missing Et > 20 GeV + >= 0 jet

·        1 identified electron + missing Et > 20 GeV + >= 1 jet

·        1 identified muon + missing Et > 20 GeV + >= 0 jet

·        1 identified muon + missing Et > 20 GeV + >= 1 jet

For each of them several distributions are checked:

Electrons:

>=0 jet:

>=1 jet:

>=0 jet:

>= 1 jet:

>=0 jet:

>=1 jet:

>=1 jet:

 

Muons:

>= 0 jet:

>=1 jet:

>=0 jet:

>=1 jet:

>=0 jet:

 

>= 1 jet:

>=1 jet:



Kinematical characteristics of the 5 observed events

CDF RunII preliminary

Event 1 (electron)

Event 2 (electron)

Event 3 (muon)

Event 4 (muon)

Event 5 (muon)

Missing Et (GeV)

71.9

53.5

99.8

29.2

35.9

Missing Et Φ (rad)

-1.52

-1.42

1.46

0.89

0.76

Tau Et (GeV)

19.7

39.6

43.7

44.4

30.9

Tau pseudorapidity

-0.43

-0.95

0.02

0.62

-0.35

Tau Φ (rad)

3.80

3.75

2.05

3.10

5.60

Tau z0 (cm)

-51.1

3.7

-22.8

7.9

41.3

Tau N tracks

3

1

3

3

3

Lepton Et (GeV)

67.7

41.9

41.6

29.4

53.1

Lepton pseudorapidity

-0.79

-0.27

-0.80

-0.23

0.07

Lepton Φ (rad)

1.71

1.06

5.99

1.20

2.93

Lepton z0 (cm)

-51.3

-3.35

-23.0

9.4

41.3

Number of  jets

2

3

2

4

2

1st jet Et (GeV)

35.3

69.3

61.9

101.8

48.6

1st jet pseudorapidity

-0.74

-0.25

-0.61

1.93

0.38

1st jet Φ (rad)

1.25

2.89

0.82

5.64

1.06

2nd jet Et (GeV)

33.2

39.8

55.0

96.2

47.7

2nd jet pseudorapidity

0.52

-1.49

-1.20

0.41

0.95

2nd jet Φ (rad)

5.00

0.22

2.65

2.29

4.44

Ht (GeV)

228

244

302

301

216

 

6 distributions of the 5 events compared with Standard Model expectations:

Ht :

= lepton Et + tau Et + 1st jet Et + 2nd jet Et + missing Et

(strongly correlated with the high top mass)

 

Missing Transverse Energy:

Lepton (e or μ) transverse energy:

Tau transverse energy:

Leading jet transverse energy:

2nd jet transverse energy:

 


Last modified 2006-06-10  : added link to a preliminary public note, commenting text, updated the histograms for predictions of the final candidate events, added number of tracks in the 5 tau candidates