3:30 pm MCP 201
Searching for Supersymmetry at the Large Hadron Collider: A Tale from the Trenches
Supersymmetry (SUSY) has the potential to resolve deep questions about the nature of reality while paving the way to a Grand Unified Theory. I'll share a personal perspective on the search for SUSY at the CMS and ATLAS experiments at the Large Hadron Collider. From the early days of broad, inclusive searches to optimized strategies targeting well-motivated scenarios using machine learning and other sophisticated analysis techniques, I'll discuss the search strategies, what they've uncovered, and some unexpected twists along the way. Emphasis will be placed on my own work in dilepton final states as well as recent advances in searches for long-lived particles that exploit upgrades to the ATLAS trigger system. I will also discuss the recent possible observation of "toponium", the bound-state of two top quarks that would represent the heaviest particle ever observed, in a SUSY-like final state in CMS data. Looking ahead, I’ll discuss how we can optimize future LHC searches and next-generation colliders to discover SUSY or chart new paths in its absence.