A search is reported for heavy resonances decaying into e$\mu$ final states in proton-proton collisions recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC at $\sqrt{s}=$ 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$. The search focuses on resonance masses above 200 GeV. With no evidence found for physics beyond the standard model in the e$\mu$ mass spectrum, upper limits are set at 95% confidence level on the product of the cross section and branching fraction for this lepton-flavor violating signal. Based on these results, resonant $\tau$ sneutrino production in R-parity violating supersymmetric models is excluded for masses below 1.7 TeV, for couplings $\lambda_{132} = \lambda_{231} = \lambda'_{311} = 0.01$. Heavy Z$'$ gauge bosons with lepton-flavor violating transitions are excluded for masses up to 4.4 TeV. The e$\mu$ mass spectrum is also interpreted in terms of non-resonant contributions from quantum black-hole production in models with one to six extra spatial dimensions, and lower mass limits are found between 3.6 and 5.6 TeV. In all interpretations used in this analysis, the results of this search improve previous limits by about 1 TeV. These limits correspond to the most sensitive values obtained at colliders.
The relative modification of the prompt psi(2S) and J/psi yields from pp to PbPb collisions, at the center of mass energy of 5.02 TeV per nucleon pair, is presented. The analysis is based on pp and PbPb data samples collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2015, corresponding to integrated luminosities of 28.0 inverse picobarns and 464 inverse microbarns, respectively. The double ratio of measured yields of prompt charmonia reconstructed through their decays into muon pairs, (N[psi(2S)]/N[J/psi])[PbPb] / (N[psi(2S)]/N[J/psi])[pp], is determined as a function of PbPb collision centrality and charmonium transverse momentum pt, in two kinematic intervals: abs(y) < 1.6 covering 6.5 < pt < 30 GeV/c and 1.6 < abs(y) < 2.4 covering 3 < pt < 30 GeV/c. The centrality-integrated double ratios are 0.36 +/- 0.08 (stat) +/-0.05 (syst) in the first interval and 0.24 +/- 0.22 (stat) +/- 0.09 (syst) in the second. The double ratio is lower than unity in all the measured bins, suggesting that the psi(2S) yield is more suppressed than the J/psi yield in the explored phase space.
Ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions recreate in the laboratory the thermodynamical conditions prevailing in the early universe up to 10$^{-6}$ seconds, thereby allowing the study of the quark-gluon plasma (QGP), a state of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) matter with deconfined partons. The top quark, the heaviest elementary particle known, is accessible in nucleus-nucleus collisions at the CERN LHC, and constitutes a novel probe of the QGP. Here, we report the first-ever evidence for the production of top quarks in nucleus-nucleus collisions, using lead-lead collision data at a nucleon-nucleon centre-of-mass energy of 5.02 TeV recorded by the CMS experiment. Two methods are used to measure the cross section for top quark pair production ($\sigma_\mathrm{t\bar{t}}$) via the decay into charged leptons (electrons or muons) and bottom quarks. One method relies on the leptonic information alone, and the second one exploits, in addition, the presence of bottom quarks. The measured cross sections, $\sigma_\mathrm{t\bar{t}} = $ 2.54 $^{+0.84}_{-0.74}$ and 2.03 $^{+0.71}_{-0.64}$ $\mu$b, respectively, are compatible with expectations from scaled proton-proton data and QCD predictions.
A search for supersymmetry is presented based on multijet events with large missing transverse momentum produced in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of sqrt(s) = 13 TeV. The data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 inverse femtobarns, were collected with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC in 2016. The analysis utilizes four-dimensional exclusive search regions defined in terms of the number of jets, the number of tagged bottom quark jets, the scalar sum of jet transverse momenta, and the magnitude of the vector sum of jet transverse momenta. No evidence for a significant excess of events is observed relative to the expectation from the standard model. Limits on the cross sections for the pair production of gluinos and squarks are derived in the context of simplified models. Assuming the lightest supersymmetric particle to be a weakly interacting neutralino, 95% confidence level lower limits on the gluino mass as large as 1800 to 1960 GeV are derived, and on the squark mass as large as 960 to 1390 GeV, depending on the production and decay scenario.
The nuclear modification factor RAA and the azimuthal anisotropy coefficient v[2] of prompt and nonprompt (i.e. those from decays of b hadrons) J/psi mesons, measured from PbPb and pp collisions at sqrt(s[NN]) = 2.76 TeV at the LHC, are reported. The results are presented in several event centrality intervals and several kinematic regions, for transverse momenta pt > 6.5 GeV/c and rapidity abs(y) < 2.4, extending down to pt = 3 GeV/c in the 1.6 < abs(y) < 2.4 range. The v[2] of prompt J/psi is found to be nonzero, but with no strong dependence on centrality, rapidity, or pt over the full kinematic range studied. The measured v[2] of nonprompt J/psi is consistent with zero. The RAA of prompt J/psi exhibits a suppression that increases from peripheral to central collisions but does not vary as a function of either y or pt in the fiducial range. The nonprompt J/psi RAA shows a suppression which becomes stronger as rapidity or pt increase. The v[2] and nuclear suppression of open and hidden charm, and of open charm and beauty, are compared.
The quark-gluon plasma is studied via medium-induced changes to correlations between jets and charged particles in PbPb collisions compared to pp reference data. This analysis uses data sets from PbPb and pp collisions with integrated luminosities of 166 inverse microbarns and 5.3 inverse picobarns, respectively, collected at sqrt(s[NN]) = 2.76 TeV. The angular distributions of charged particles are studied as a function of relative pseudorapidity (Delta eta) and relative azimuthal angle (Delta phi) with respect to reconstructed jet directions. Charged particles are correlated with all jets with transverse momentum (pt) above 120 GeV, and with the leading and subleading jets (the highest and second-highest in pt, respectively) in a selection of back-to-back dijet events. Modifications in PbPb data relative to pp reference data are characterized as a function of PbPb collision centrality and charged particle pt. A centrality-dependent excess of low-pt particles is present for all jets studied, and is most pronounced in the most central events. This excess of low-pt particles follows a Gaussian-like distribution around the jet axis, and extends to large relative angles of Delta eta approximately 1 and Delta phi approximately 1.
The cross sections for $\Upsilon$(1S), $\Upsilon$(2S), and $\Upsilon$(3S) production in lead-lead (PbPb) and proton-proton (pp) collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_\mathrm{NN}}} =$ 5.02 TeV have been measured using the CMS detector at the LHC. The nuclear modification factors, R$_\mathrm{AA}$, derived from the PbPb-to-pp ratio of yields for each state, are studied as functions of meson rapidity and transverse momentum, as well as PbPb collision centrality. The yields of all three states are found to be significantly suppressed, and compatible with a sequential ordering of the suppression, R$_\mathrm{AA}$($\Upsilon$(1S)) $>$ R$_\mathrm{AA}$($\Upsilon$(2S)) $>$ R$_\mathrm{AA}$($\Upsilon$(3S)) . The suppression of $\Upsilon$(1S) is larger than that seen at $\sqrt{s_{_\mathrm{NN}}} =$ 2.76 TeV, although the two are compatible within uncertainties. The upper limit on the R$_\mathrm{AA}$ of $\Upsilon$(3S) integrated over $p_\mathrm{T}$ and rapidity is 0.094 at 95% confidence level, which is the strongest suppression observed for any hadron species in heavy ion collisions to date.
A search is described for a Higgs boson decaying into two photons, one of which has an internal conversion to a muon or an electron pair (ll gamma). The analysis is performed using proton-proton collision data recorded with the CMS detector at the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.7 inverse femtobarns. The events selected have an opposite-sign muon or electron pair and a high transverse momentum photon. No excess above background has been found in the three-body invariant mass range 120 < m[ll gamma] < 150 GeV, and limits have been derived for the Higgs boson production cross section times branching fraction for the decay H to gamma* gamma to ll gamma, where the dilepton invariant mass is less than 20 GeV. For a Higgs boson with m[H] = 125 GeV, a 95% confidence level (CL) exclusion observed (expected) limit is 6.7 (5.9 +2.8/-1.8) times the standard model prediction. Additionally, an upper limit at 95% CL on the branching fraction of H to J/Psi gamma for the 125 GeV Higgs boson is set at 1.5E-3.
A search for heavy neutral leptons (HNLs) decaying in the CMS muon system is presented. A data sample is used corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV, recorded at the CERN LHC in 2016-2018. Decay products of long-lived HNLs could interact with the shielding materials in the CMS muon system and create hadronic and electromagnetic showers detected in the muon chambers. This distinctive signature provides a unique handle to search for HNLs with masses below 4 GeV and proper decay lengths of the order of meters. The signature is sensitive to HNL couplings to all three generations of leptons. Candidate events are required to contain a prompt electron or muon originating from a vertex on the beam axis and a displaced shower in the muon chambers. No significant deviations from the standard model background expectation are observed. In the electron (muon) channel, the most stringent limits to date are set for HNLs in the mass range of 2.1-3.0 (1.9-3.3) GeV, reaching mixing matrix element squared values as low as 8.6 (4.6) $\times$ 10$^{-6}$.
The jet axis decorrelation in inclusive jets is studied using lead-lead (PbPb) collisions at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair of 5.02 TeV. The jet axis decorrelation is defined as the angular difference between two definitions of the jet axis. It is obtained by applying two recombination schemes on all the constituents of a given jet reconstructed by the anti-$k_\mathrm{T}$ sequential algorithm with a distance parameter of $R$ = 0.4. The data set, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 0.66 nb$^{-1}$, was collected in 2018 with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC. The jet axis decorrelations are examined across collision centrality selections and intervals of jet transverse momentum. A centrality dependent evolution of the measured distributions is observed, with a progressive narrowing seen in more central events. This narrowing could result from medium-induced modification of the internal jet structure or reflect color charge effects in energy loss. This new measurement probes jet substructure in previously unexplored kinematic domains and show great promise for providing new insights on the color charge dependence of energy loss to jet-quenching models.
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