Searches for New Physics: Les Houches Recommendations for the Presentation of LHC Results
S. Kraml, B. C. Allanach, M. Mangano, H. B. Prosper, S. Sekmen, C. Balazs, A. Barr, P. Bechtle, G. Belanger, A. Belyaev, K. Benslama, M. Campanelli, K. Cranmer, A. De Roeck, M. J. Dolan, T. Eifert, J. R. Ellis, M. Felcini, B. Fuks, D. Guadagnoli, J. F. Gunion, S. Heinemeyer, J. Hewett, A. Ismail, M. Kadastik, M. Kramer, J. Lykken, F. Mahmoudi, S. P. Martin, T. Rizzo, T. Robens, M. Tytgat, A. Weiler
TL;DR
The paper addresses the challenge of inconsistent and difficult-to-interpret LHC search results for new physics. It proposes a comprehensive set of Les Houches Recommendations that span analysis description, detector modeling, analysis dissemination, and interpretation, including dedicated guidance for Higgs searches and exclusive analysis design. Key contributions include explicit object and variable definitions, event-cutflow reporting, efficiency maps, public fast detector simulations, digitized final likelihoods, and channel-by-channel Higgs information to enable robust reinterpretations across models. The framework aims to enhance data preservation, cross-experiment combinations, and rapid feedback between theory and experiment through public archives and tooling, ultimately maximizing the LHC’s scientific potential.
Abstract
We present a set of recommendations for the presentation of LHC results on searches for new physics, which are aimed at providing a more efficient flow of scientific information between the experimental collaborations and the rest of the high energy physics community, and at facilitating the interpretation of the results in a wide class of models. Implementing these recommendations would aid the full exploitation of the physics potential of the LHC.