New fermions at e+e− colliders II. Signals and backgrounds

We discuss the production, at high-energye ⁺ e ^– linear colliders, of new heavy fermions predicted by extensions of the Standard Model. We analyze in great details the various signals and the corresponding backgrounds for both pair production and single production in association with ordinary fermions. Concentrating on new leptons, we use a model detector fore ⁺ e ^– collisions at a center of mass energy of 500 GeV, to illustrate the discovery potential of the next linear colliders.