Angular correlations between unidentified charged trigger ($t$) and associated ($a$) particles are measured by the ALICE experiment in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=2.76$ TeV for transverse momenta $0.25 < p_{T}^{t,\, a} < 15$ GeV/$c$, where $p_{T}^t > p_{T}^a$. The shapes of the pair correlation distributions are studied in a variety of collision centrality classes between 0 and 50% of the total hadronic cross section for particles in the pseudorapidity interval $|\eta| < 1.0$. Distributions in relative azimuth $\Delta\phi \equiv \phi^t - \phi^a$ are analyzed for $|\Delta\eta| \equiv |\eta^t - \eta^a| > 0.8$, and are referred to as "long-range correlations". Fourier components $V_{n\Delta} \equiv \langle \cos(n\Delta\phi)\rangle$ are extracted from the long-range azimuthal correlation functions. If particle pairs are correlated to one another through their individual correlation to a common symmetry plane, then the pair anisotropy $V_{n\Delta}(p_{T}^t, p_{T}^a)$ is fully described in terms of single-particle anisotropies $v_n (p_{T})$ as $V_{n\Delta}(p_{T}^t, p_{T}^a) = v_n(p_{T}^t) \, v_n(p_{T}^a)$. This expectation is tested for $1 \leq n \leq 5$ by applying a global fit of all $V_{n\Delta} (p_{T}^t, p_{T}^a)$ to obtain the best values $v_{n}\{GF\} (p_{T})$. It is found that for $2 \leq n \leq 5$, the fit agrees well with data up to $p_T^a \sim 3$-4 GeV/$c$, with a trend of increasing deviation as $p_{T}^t$ and $p_{T}^a$ are increased or as collisions become more peripheral. This suggests that no pair correlation harmonic can be described over the full $0.25 < p_{T} < 15$ GeV/$c$ range using a single $v_n(p_T)$ curve; such a description is however approximately possible for $2 \leq n \leq 5$ when $p_T^a < 4$ GeV/$c$. For the $n=1$ harmonic, however, a single $v_1(p_T$ curve is not obtained even within the reduced range $p_T^a < 4$ GeV/$c$.
The ALICE Collaboration has measured inclusive J/psi production in pp collisions at a center of mass energy sqrt(s)=2.76 TeV at the LHC. The results presented in this Letter refer to the rapidity ranges |y|<0.9 and 2.5<y<4 and have been obtained by measuring the electron and muon pair decay channels, respectively. The integrated luminosities for the two channels are L^e_int=1.1 nb^-1 and L^mu_int=19.9 nb^-1, and the corresponding signal statistics are N_J/psi^e+e-=59 +/- 14 and N_J/psi^mu+mu-=1364 +/- 53. We present dsigma_J/psi/dy for the two rapidity regions under study and, for the forward-y range, d^2sigma_J/psi/dydp_t in the transverse momentum domain 0<p_t<8 GeV/c. The results are compared with previously published results at sqrt(s)=7 TeV and with theoretical calculations.
A measurement of the Z/gamma* transverse momentum (p_T^Z)) distribution in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV is presented using Z/gamma*->e+e- and Z/gamma*->mu+mu- decays collected with the ATLAS detector in data sets with integrated luminosities of 35 pb^-1 and 40 pb^-1, respectively. The normalized differential cross sections are measured separately for electron and muon decay channels as well as for their combination up to p_T^Z of 350 GeV for invariant dilepton masses 66 GeV<m_ll<116 GeV. The measurement is compared to predictions of perturbative QCD and various event generators. The prediction of resummed QCD combined with fixed order perturbative QCD is found to be in good agreement with the data.
A search for supersymmetry in the context of general gauge-mediated (GGM) breaking with the lightest neutralino as the next-to-lightest supersymmetric particle and the gravitino as the lightest is presented. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 36 inverse picobarns recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC. The search is performed using events containing two or more isolated photons, at least one hadronic jet, and significant missing transverse energy. No excess of events at high missing transverse energy is observed. Upper limits on the signal cross section for GGM supersymmetry between 0.3 and 1.1 pb at the 95% confidence level are determined for a range of squark, gluino, and neutralino masses, excluding supersymmetry parameter space that was inaccessible to previous experiments.
A measurement of the underlying activity in scattering processes with a hard scale in the several GeV region is performed in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 0.9 and 7 TeV, using data collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. The production of charged particles with pseudorapidity |eta| < 2 and transverse momentum pT > 0.5 GeV/c is studied in the azimuthal region transverse to that of the leading set of charged particles forming a track-jet. A significant growth of the average multiplicity and scalar-pT sum of the particles in the transverse region is observed with increasing pT of the leading track-jet, followed by a much slower rise above a few GeV/c. For track-jet pT larger than a few GeV/c, the activity in the transverse region is approximately doubled with a centre-of-mass energy increase from 0.9 to 7 TeV. Predictions of several QCD-inspired models as implemented in PYTHIA are compared to the data.
The anisotropy of the azimuthal distributions of charged particles produced in PbPb collisions with a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of 2.76 TeV is studied with the CMS experiment at the LHC. The elliptic anisotropy parameter defined as the second coefficient in a Fourier expansion of the particle invariant yields, is extracted using the event-plane method, two- and four-particle cumulants, and Lee--Yang zeros. The anisotropy is presented as a function of transverse momentum (pt), pseudorapidity (eta) over a broad kinematic range: 0.3 < pt < 20 GeV, abs(eta) < 2.4, and in 12 classes of collision centrality from 0 to 80%. The results are compared to those obtained at lower center-of-mass energies, and various scaling behaviors are examined. When scaled by the geometric eccentricity of the collision zone, the elliptic anisotropy is found to obey a universal scaling with the transverse particle density for different collision systems and center-of-mass energies.
The results of a search for pair production of the lighter scalar partners of top quarks in 2.05 fb-1 of pp collisions at sqrt(s) =7 TeV using the ATLAS experiment at the LHC are reported. Scalar top quarks are searched for in events with two same flavour opposite-sign leptons (electrons or muons) with invariant mass consistent with the Z boson mass, large missing transverse momentum and jets in the final state. At least one of the jets is identified as originating from a b-quark. No excess over Standard Model expectations is found. The results are interpreted in the framework of R-parity conserving, gauge mediated Supersymmetry breaking `natural' scenarios, where the neutralino is the next-to-lightest supersymmetric particle. Scalar top quark masses up to 310 GeV are excluded for the lightest neutralino mass between 115 GeV and 230 GeV at 95% confidence level, reaching an exclusion of the scalar top quark mass of 330 GeV for the lightest neutralino mass of 190 GeV. Scalar top quark masses below 240 GeV are excluded for all values of the lightest neutralino mass above the Z boson mass.
A measurement of the t t-bar production cross section in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV is presented. The results are based on data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.3 inverse femtobarns collected by the CMS detector at the LHC. Selected events are required to have one isolated, high transverse momentum electron or muon, large missing transverse energy, and hadronic jets, at least one of which must be consistent with having originated from a b quark. The measured cross section is 158.1 +/- 2.1 (stat.) +/- 10.2 (syst.) +/- 3.5 (lum.) pb, in agreement with standard model predictions.
The angular distribution of the flavor-changing neutral current decay B$^+$$\to$ K$^+\mu^+\mu^-$ is studied in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 8 TeV. The analysis is based on data collected with the CMS detector at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20.5 fb$^{-1}$. The forward-backward asymmetry $A_{\mathrm{FB}}$ of the dimuon system and the contribution $F_{\mathrm{H}}$ from the pseudoscalar, scalar, and tensor amplitudes to the decay width are measured as a function of the dimuon mass squared. The measurements are consistent with the standard model expectations.
A measurement of the W boson pair production cross section in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 8 TeV is presented. The data collected with the CMS detector at the LHC correspond to an integrated luminosity of 19.4 inverse femtobarns. The W+W- candidates are selected from events with two charged leptons, electrons or muons, and large missing transverse energy. The measured W+W- cross section is 60.1 +/- 0.9 (stat) +/- 3.2 (exp) +/- 3.1 (theo) +/- 1.6 (lum) pb = 60.1 +/- 4.8 pb, consistent with the standard model prediction. The W+W- cross sections are also measured in two different fiducial phase space regions. The normalized differential cross section is measured as a function of kinematic variables of the final-state charged leptons and compared with several perturbative QCD predictions. Limits on anomalous gauge couplings associated with dimension-six operators are also given in the framework of an effective field theory. The corresponding 95% confidence level intervals are -5.7 < c[WWW]/Lambda^2 < 5.9 TeV^{-2}, -11.4 < c[W]/Lambda^2 < 5.4 TeV^{-2}, -29.2 < c[B]/Lambda^2 < 23.9 TeV^{-2}, in the HISZ basis.