1201.5275 (Yael Shadmi)

Flavor and LHC Searches for New Physics    [PDF]

Yael Shadmi

Uncovering the physics of electroweak symmetry breaking (EWSB) is the
raison-d'etre of the LHC. Flavor questions, it would seem, are of minor
relevance for this quest, apart from their role in constraining the possible
structure of EWSB physics. In this short review article, we outline, using
flavor-dependent sleptons as an example, how flavor can affect both searches
for supersymmetry, and future measurements aimed at understanding the nature of
any new discoveries. If the production cross-sections for supersymmetry are
relatively low, as indicated by the fact that it has not revealed itself yet in
standard searches, the usual assumptions about the superpartner spectra need
re-thinking. Furthermore, one must consider more intricate searches, such as
lepton-based searches, which could be susceptible to flavor effects. We start
by reviewing the flavor structure of existing frameworks for mediating
supersymmetry breaking, emphasizing flavor-dependent models proposed recently.
We use the kinematic endpoints of invariant mass distributions to demonstrate
how flavor dependence can impact both searches for supersymmetry and the
Inverse Problem. We also discuss methods for measuring small-mass splittings
and mixings at the LHC, both in models with a neutralino LSP and in models with
a charged slepton (N)LSP.

View original: http://arxiv.org/abs/1201.5275