Searching for Quirks at LHCb

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Vidal, Xabier Cid, Gómez, Miguel Fernández, Low, Matthew, Cal, Alejandro Novo, Tsai, Yuhsin, Sierra, Carlos Vázquez
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
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author Vidal, Xabier Cid
Gómez, Miguel Fernández
Low, Matthew
Cal, Alejandro Novo
Tsai, Yuhsin
Sierra, Carlos Vázquez
author_facet Vidal, Xabier Cid
Gómez, Miguel Fernández
Low, Matthew
Cal, Alejandro Novo
Tsai, Yuhsin
Sierra, Carlos Vázquez
contents Quirks are heavy particles connected by a flux tube from a hidden confining force that remain weakly constrained in large regions of their parameter space. This flux tube acts as a string that, at short enough distance, stretches as the quirk pair separates, then pulls the pair back together leading to interesting dynamics. We propose a novel search using the LHCb Vertex Locator (VELO), whose forward geometry and software-based trigger are uniquely suited to detecting the characteristic back-to-back, planar hit patterns produced by quirk pairs with little transverse recoil. Using detailed simulations of the VELO geometry, together with simple geometric selections, we present different sensitivity projections, demonstrating that LHCb can probe parameter regions inaccessible to existing ATLAS and CMS searches and offering a powerful, complementary path toward discovering quirks.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_09023
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Searching for Quirks at LHCb
Vidal, Xabier Cid
Gómez, Miguel Fernández
Low, Matthew
Cal, Alejandro Novo
Tsai, Yuhsin
Sierra, Carlos Vázquez
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
High Energy Physics - Experiment
Quirks are heavy particles connected by a flux tube from a hidden confining force that remain weakly constrained in large regions of their parameter space. This flux tube acts as a string that, at short enough distance, stretches as the quirk pair separates, then pulls the pair back together leading to interesting dynamics. We propose a novel search using the LHCb Vertex Locator (VELO), whose forward geometry and software-based trigger are uniquely suited to detecting the characteristic back-to-back, planar hit patterns produced by quirk pairs with little transverse recoil. Using detailed simulations of the VELO geometry, together with simple geometric selections, we present different sensitivity projections, demonstrating that LHCb can probe parameter regions inaccessible to existing ATLAS and CMS searches and offering a powerful, complementary path toward discovering quirks.
title Searching for Quirks at LHCb
topic High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
High Energy Physics - Experiment
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.09023