Search for flavour-changing neutral current top-quark decays $t\to qZ$ in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

Abstract

A search for flavour-changing neutral-current processes in top-quark decays is presented. Data collected with the ATLAS detector from proton-proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb${}^{-1}$, are analysed. The search is performed using top-quark pair events, with one top quark decaying through the $t\to qZ$ $(q=u,c)$ flavour-changing neutral-current channel, and the other through the dominant Standard Model mode $t\to bW$. Only $Z$ boson decays into charged leptons and leptonic $W$ boson decays are considered as signal. Consequently, the final-state topology is characterized by the presence of three isolated charged leptons (electrons or muons) and at least two jets, one of the jets originating from a $b$-quark, and missing transverse momentum from the undetected neutrino. The data are consistent with Standard Model background contributions, and at 95% confidence level the search sets observed (expected) upper limits of $1.7\times 10^{-4}$ ($2.4\times 10^{-4}$) on the $t\to uZ$ branching ratio and $2.4\times 10^{-4}$ ($3.2\times 10^{-4}$) on the $t\to cZ$ branching ratio, constituting the most stringent limits to date.

42 pages in total, author list starting page 26, 4 figures, 11 tables, published in JHEP. All figures including auxiliary figures are available at https://atlas.web.cern.ch/Atlas/GROUPS/PHYSICS/PAPERS/TOPQ-2017-06

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