Work

Collider event distances from the phase space sphere

Year: 2026

Type: preprint

Abstract: Can the distribution of collider events in phase space be used to distinguish the processes that produced them? We present a distance-based classification method that uses the global topology of Lorentz-invariant phase space and retains reconstructed masses. To tackle particularly challenging classification tasks that may benefit from higher event resolution, we develop a polynomial-time approximation to compute the distances. The resulting classifiers achieve strong discrimination across several simulated benchmarks, including fully hadronic four-top production against $t\bar t+\text{jets}$.

Source: arXiv (Cornell University)

DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2610.24319

Authors: Craig, Nathaniel, Henning, Brian, Larkoski, Andrew J., Lombera, Iñigo Valenzuela

Institutions: University of California, Santa Barbara, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, University of Hawaii System, American Physical Society

Language: English

Topic: Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies

Subfield: Nuclear and High Energy Physics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Science Foundation, University of California, Santa Barbara, Division of Materials Research, California NanoSystems Institute

Awards: G1141670404, G2232042528, G2760720504, Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at UCSB, G3400352658, G401861217, MRI: Acquisition of a High Performance Central Computing Facility at University of California Santa Barbara

OpenAlex ID: W7223031713

Cites: 8

Cited by:

Related to: 10