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Search for a time-dependent Z′ resonance in the dimuon channel

Marlon P. Brade1,2,3,*, Jeremiah Juevesano2,4,3, Venus Abbegaile S. Carbonel2,3, Karen E. Bustamante2,3, Dennis C. Arogancia2, and Jan Mickelle V. Maratas2,3

  • *Contact author: marlon.brade@g.msuiit.edu.ph
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Phys. Rev. D 114, 075033 – Published 27 October, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/w7cw-b316

Abstract

We present a time-domain search strategy for resonances with periodically varying masses in high-energy collider data. Conventional resonance searches rely on time-integrated event samples and are therefore insensitive to signals whose properties evolve during data taking. To address this limitation, we developed a two-dimensional unbinned likelihood framework in invariant mass and event time, allowing time-dependent resonances to be identified through characteristic trajectories in the (m,t) plane rather than as stationary peaks in the invariant-mass distribution. As a benchmark scenario, we consider a Z′ boson arising from a gauged U(1)B−L extension of the Standard Model and introduce a phenomenological model in which the mediator mass undergoes periodic temporal modulation. The resulting signal produces distinctive correlations between invariant mass and event time that are not accessible to conventional time-integrated analyses. The method is applied to dimuon events from the CMS Open Data corresponding to the Run G data-taking period at s=13  TeV, with an integrated luminosity of 7.54  fb−1. No statistically significant excess above the background-only hypothesis is observed for any of the benchmark time-dependent signal scenarios considered. Accordingly, 95% confidence level upper limits are derived on the signal production cross section and the corresponding gauge coupling gZ′ as a function of the Z′ mass for several benchmark values of the modulation amplitude. The resulting limits demonstrate that incorporating temporal information can enhance sensitivity relative to conventional time-integrated searches, particularly in the low- and intermediate-mass regions where sufficient signal statistics are available.

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Phys. Rev. D 114, 075033– Published 27 October, 2026
  • Received 16 June 2026
  • Accepted 25 September 2026
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