- Open Access
Machine learning approaches to top quark flavor-changing four-fermion interactions in trilepton signals at the LHC
Phys. Rev. D 111, 112003 – Published 11 June, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/mk8x-nrpn
Abstract
We explore the top quark flavor-changing four-fermion interactions ( and ) with scalar, vector, and tensor structures using machine learning models to analyze trilepton processes at the LHC. The study is performed using and processes, where a top quark decays into . The analysis incorporates both reducible and irreducible backgrounds while accounting for realistic detector effects. The dominant backgrounds for these trilepton signatures arise from production, single top quark production in association with , and production (where , ). These backgrounds are significantly reduced using machine-learning-based classification models, which optimize event selection and improve signal sensitivity. For an integrated luminosity of at the LHC, we find that the expected 95% confidence level (CL) limits on the scale of four-fermion flavor-changing neutral current interactions reach for and for in the channel, and () and () in the channel. We also provide an interpretation of our EFT analysis in the context of a specific model, illustrating how the derived constraints translate into bounds on the parameter space of a heavy neutral gauge boson mediating flavor-changing interactions.
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