Searching the Inclusive Lepton + Photon + Missing ET + b-quark Signature for Radiative Top Quark Decay and Non-Standard-Model Processes

Abstract

8 pages, 6 figuresIn a search for new phenomena in a signature suppressed in the standard model of elementary particles (SM), we compare the inclusive production of events containing a lepton, a photon, significant transverse momentum imbalance (MET), and a jet identified as containing a b-quark, to SM predictions. The search uses data produced in proton-antiproton collisions at 1.96 TeV corresponding to 1.9 fb-1 of integrated luminosity taken with the CDF detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. We find 28 lepton+photon+MET+b events versus an expectation of 31.0+4.1/-3.5 events. If we further require events to contain at least three jets and large total transverse energy, simulations predict that the largest SM source is top-quark pair production with an additional radiated photon, ttbar+photon. In the data we observe 16 ttbar+photon candidate events versus an expectation from SM sources of 11.2+2.3/-2.1. Assuming the difference between the observed number and the predicted non-top-quark total is due to SM top quark production, we estimate the ttg cross section to be 0.15 +- 0.08 pb.We compare the inclusive production of events containing a lepton (ℓ), a photon (γ), significant transverse momentum imbalance (E̸T), and a jet identified as containing a b-quark, to SM predictions. The search uses data produced in proton-antiproton collisions at √s=1.96  TeV corresponding to 1.9  fb-1 of integrated luminosity taken with the CDF detector. We find 28 ℓγbE̸T events versus an expectation of 31.0-3.5+4.1 events. If we further require events to contain at least three jets and large total transverse energy, the largest SM source is radiative top-quark pair production, tt̅ +γ. In the data we observe 16 tt̅ γ candidate events versus an expectation from SM sources of 11.2-2.1+2.3. Assuming the difference between the observed number and the predicted non-top-quark total of 6.8-2.0+2.2 is due to SM top-quark production, we estimate the tt̅ γ cross section to be 0.15±0.08  pb.Peer reviewe