Physics Letters B (Feb 2022)
Type-III see-saw: Search for triplet fermions in final states with multiple leptons and fat-jets at 13 TeV LHC
Abstract
The type-III see-saw model holding out a riveting rationale for the minuscule neutrino masses caters for a well-to-do phenomenology at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Several searches targetting the triplet fermions have been performed at the LHC. Not only are the signals for the leptonic final states considered in these searches suppressed by the branching fractions of the Standard Model (SM) bosons, but they are also beset with considerably large SM backgrounds. Thus, these searches are deemed not to be sensitive enough in probing the triplet fermions much heavier than 1 TeV. To this end, we perform a search for the triplet fermions in final states with multiple leptons and fat-jets that are cleaner than the usual LHC searches and allow kinematic reconstruction of the triplets. After performing a systematic and comprehensive analysis with seven distinct final states, we project the required luminosities for both 3σ and 5σ discoveries of the triplet fermions as a function of their mass. The triplet fermions with mass as large as 1265 (1380) and 1480 (1600) GeV could be discovered with 5σ (3σ) significance at 500 and 3000 fb−1 luminosities, respectively.