Decays Z_H → Z_γ and Z_H → ZZ in the littlest Higgs model

The study of the phenomenology of an extra neutral gauge boson, Z_H, can help us to unravel the underlying theory from which this particle arises. We study the decay of such a particle into two neutral gauge bosons, Z_H → Z_γ and Z_H → ZZ, in the littlest Higgs model. These decays are induced at the one-loop level by a fermion triangle and are interesting as they are strongly dependent on the mechanism of anomaly cancellation of the model. Other relevant tree-level two- and three-body Z_H decays are also calculated. It is found that the branching ratios for the Z_H → γZ decays can be as large as that of a tree-level three-body decay but the Z_H → ZZ decay is very suppressed. We also discuss the experimental prospects for detecting these decays at the LHC.