Leptoquarks (LQs) are hypothetical particles that appear in various
extensions of the Standard Model (SM) that can explain observed differences
between SM theory predictions and experimental results. The production of these
particles has been widely studied at various experiments, most recently at the
Large Hadron Collider (LHC), and stringent bounds have been placed on their
masses and couplings, assuming the simplest beyond-SM (BSM) hypotheses.
However, the limits are significantly weaker for LQ models with family
non-universal couplings containing enhanced couplings to third-generation
fermions. We present a new study on the production of a LQ at the LHC, with
preferential couplings to third-generation fermions, considering proton-proton
collisions at s=13TeV and s=13.6TeV. Such a hypothesis is well motivated theoretically and it can
explain the recent anomalies in the precision measurements of
B-meson decay rates, specifically the RD(∗) ratios. Under a
simplified model where the LQ masses and couplings are free parameters, we
focus on cases where the LQ decays to a τ lepton and a b quark,
and study how the results are affected by different assumptions about chiral
currents and interference effects with other BSM processes with the same final
states, such as diagrams with a heavy vector boson, Z′. The
analysis is performed using machine learning techniques, resulting in an
increased discovery reach at the LHC and allowing us to probe the entirety of
the new physics phase space which addresses the B-meson anomalies,
for LQ masses up to 2.25 TeV.Comment: 26 pages, 13 figure