Search for Three-Jet Resonances in pp Collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A model-independent search for three-jet hadronic resonance production in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV has been conducted by the CMS Collaboration at the LHC, using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35 inverse picobarns. Events with high jet multiplicity and a large scalar sum of jet transverse momenta are analyzed. The number of expected standard model background events is found to be in good agreement with the observed events. Limits are set on a model describing the production of R-parity-violating supersymmetric gluino pairs, and gluino masses in the range of 200 to 280 GeV/c^2 are excluded at a 95% confidence level for the first time.