A search for invisible decays of the Higgs boson as well as searches for dark matter candidates, produced together with a leptonically decaying $Z$ boson, are presented. The analysis is performed using proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, delivered by the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$ and recorded by the ATLAS experiment. Assuming Standard Model cross-sections for $ZH$ production, the observed (expected) upper limit on the branching ratio of the Higgs boson to invisible particles is found to be 19% (19%) at the 95% confidence level. Exclusion limits are also set for simplified dark matter models and two-Higgs-doublet models with an additional pseudoscalar mediator.
A direct search for Higgs bosons produced via vector-boson fusion and subsequently decaying into invisible particles is reported. The analysis uses 139 $\text{fb}^{-1}$ of $pp$ collision data at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$=13 $\text{TeV}$ recorded by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The observed numbers of events are found to be in agreement with the background expectation from Standard Model processes. For a scalar Higgs boson with a mass of 125 $\text{GeV}$ and a Standard Model production cross section, an observed upper limit of $0.145$ is placed on the branching fraction of its decay into invisible particles at 95% confidence level, with an expected limit of $0.103$. These results are interpreted in the context of models where the Higgs boson acts as a portal to dark matter, and limits are set on the scattering cross section of weakly interacting massive particles and nucleons. Invisible decays of additional scalar bosons with masses from 50 $\text{GeV}$ to 2 $\text{TeV}$ are also studied, and the derived upper limits on the cross section times branching fraction decrease with increasing mass from 1.0 $\text{pb}$ for a scalar boson mass of 50 $\text{GeV}$ to 0.1 $\text{pb}$ at a mass of 2 $\text{TeV}$.
A search for supersymmetry involving the pair production of gluinos decaying via off-shell third-generation squarks into the lightest neutralino ($\tilde\chi^0_1$) is reported. It exploits LHC proton$-$proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV with an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$ collected with the ATLAS detector from 2015 to 2018. The search uses events containing large missing transverse momentum, up to one electron or muon, and several energetic jets, at least three of which must be identified as containing $b$-hadrons. Both a simple kinematic event selection and an event selection based upon a deep neural-network are used. No significant excess above the predicted background is found. In simplified models involving the pair production of gluinos that decay via off-shell top (bottom) squarks, gluino masses less than 2.44 TeV (2.35 TeV) are excluded at 95% CL for a massless $\tilde\chi^0_1$. Limits are also set on the gluino mass in models with variable branching ratios for gluino decays to $b\bar{b}\tilde\chi^0_1$, $t\bar{t}\tilde\chi^0_1$ and $t\bar{b}\tilde\chi^-_1$ / $\bar{t}b\tilde\chi^+_1$.
A search for long-lived particles decaying into hadrons and at least one muon is presented. The analysis selects events that pass a muon or missing-transverse-momentum trigger and contain a displaced muon track and a displaced vertex. The analyzed dataset of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV was collected with the ATLAS detector and corresponds to 136 fb$^{-1}$. The search employs dedicated reconstruction techniques that significantly increase the sensitivity to long-lived particle decays that occur in the ATLAS inner detector. Background estimates for Standard Model processes and instrumental effects are extracted from data. The observed event yields are compatible with those expected from background processes. The results are presented as limits at 95% confidence level on model-independent cross sections for processes beyond the Standard Model, and interpreted as exclusion limits in scenarios with pair-production of long-lived top squarks that decay via a small $R$-parity-violating coupling into a quark and a muon. Top squarks with masses up to 1.7 TeV are excluded for a lifetime of 0.1 ns, and masses below 1.3 TeV are excluded for lifetimes between 0.01 ns and 30 ns.
A search for supersymmetric partners of gluons and quarks is presented, involving signatures with jets and either two isolated leptons (electrons or muons) with the same electric charge, or at least three isolated leptons. A data sample of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider between 2015 and 2018, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$, is used for the search. No significant excess over the Standard Model expectation is observed. The results are interpreted in simplified supersymmetric models featuring both R-parity conservation and R-parity violation, raising the exclusion limits beyond those of previous ATLAS searches to 1600 GeV for gluino masses and 750 GeV for bottom and top squark masses in these scenarios.
A search for direct pair production of scalar partners of the top quark (top squarks or scalar third-generation up-type leptoquarks) in the all-hadronic $t\bar{t}$ plus missing transverse momentum final state is presented. The analysis of 139 fb$^{-1}$ of ${\sqrt{s}=13}$ TeV proton-proton collision data collected using the ATLAS detector at the LHC yields no significant excess over the Standard Model background expectation. To interpret the results, a supersymmetric model is used where the top squark decays via $\tilde{t} \to t^{(*)} \tilde{\chi}^0_1$, with $t^{(*)}$ denoting an on-shell (off-shell) top quark and $\tilde{\chi}^0_1$ the lightest neutralino. Three specific event selections are optimised for the following scenarios. In the scenario where $m_{\tilde{t}}> m_t+m_{\tilde{\chi}^0_1}$, top squark masses are excluded in the range 400-1250 GeV for $\tilde{\chi}^0_1$ masses below $200$ GeV at 95 % confidence level. In the situation where $m_{\tilde{t}}\sim m_t+m_{\tilde{\chi}^0_1}$, top squark masses in the range 300-630 GeV are excluded, while in the case where $m_{\tilde{t}}< m_W+m_b+m_{\tilde{\chi}^0_1}$ (with $m_{\tilde{t}}-m_{\tilde{\chi}^0_1}\ge 5$ GeV), considered for the first time in an ATLAS all-hadronic search, top squark masses in the range 300-660 GeV are excluded. Limits are also set for scalar third-generation up-type leptoquarks, excluding leptoquarks with masses below $1240$ GeV when considering only leptoquark decays into a top quark and a neutrino.
A search for heavy charged long-lived particles is performed using a data sample of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. The search is based on observables related to ionization energy loss and time of flight, which are sensitive to the velocity of heavy charged particles traveling significantly slower than the speed of light. Multiple search strategies for a wide range of lifetimes, corresponding to path lengths of a few meters, are defined as model-independently as possible, by referencing several representative physics cases that yield long-lived particles within supersymmetric models, such as gluinos/squarks ($R$-hadrons), charginos and staus. No significant deviations from the expected Standard Model background are observed. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are provided on the production cross sections of long-lived $R$-hadrons as well as directly pair-produced staus and charginos. These results translate into lower limits on the masses of long-lived gluino, sbottom and stop $R$-hadrons, as well as staus and charginos of 2000 GeV, 1250 GeV, 1340 GeV, 430 GeV and 1090 GeV, respectively.
The results of a search for gluino and squark pair production with the pairs decaying via the lightest charginos into a final state consisting of two $W$ bosons, the lightest neutralinos ($\tilde\chi^0_1$), and quarks, are presented. The signal is characterised by the presence of a single charged lepton ($e^{\pm}$ or $\mu^{\pm}$) from a $W$ boson decay, jets, and missing transverse momentum. The analysis is performed using 139 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data taken at a centre-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded by the ATLAS experiment. No statistically significant excess of events above the Standard Model expectation is found. Limits are set on the direct production of squarks and gluinos in simplified models. Masses of gluino (squark) up to 2.2 TeV (1.4 TeV) are excluded at 95% confidence level for a light $\tilde\chi^0_1$.
Results of a search for new physics in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum are reported. The search uses proton-proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$ at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV collected in the period 2015-2018 with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Compared to previous publications, in addition to an increase of almost a factor of four in the data size, the analysis implements a number of improvements in the signal selection and the background determination leading to enhanced sensitivity. Events are required to have at least one jet with transverse momentum above 150 GeV and no reconstructed leptons ($e$, $\mu$ or $\tau$) or photons. Several signal regions are considered with increasing requirements on the missing transverse momentum starting at 200 GeV. Overall agreement is observed between the number of events in data and the Standard Model predictions. Model-independent $95%$ confidence-level limits on visible cross sections for new processes are obtained in the range between 736 fb and 0.3 fb. Results are also translated into improved exclusion limits in models with pair-produced weakly interacting dark-matter candidates, large extra spatial dimensions, supersymmetric particles in several compressed scenarios, axion-like particles, and new scalar particles in dark-energy-inspired models. In addition, the data are translated into bounds on the invisible branching ratio of the Higgs boson.
A search for chargino$-$neutralino pair production in three-lepton final states with missing transverse momentum is presented. The study is based on a dataset of $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV $pp$ collisions recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$. No significant excess relative to the Standard Model predictions is found in data. The results are interpreted in simplified models of supersymmetry, and statistically combined with results from a previous ATLAS search for compressed spectra in two-lepton final states. Various scenarios for the production and decay of charginos ($\tilde\chi^\pm_1$) and neutralinos ($\tilde\chi^0_2$) are considered. For pure higgsino $\tilde\chi^\pm_1\tilde\chi^0_2$ pair-production scenarios, exclusion limits at 95% confidence level are set on $\tilde\chi^0_2$ masses up to 210 GeV. Limits are also set for pure wino $\tilde\chi^\pm_1\tilde\chi^0_2$ pair production, on $\tilde\chi^0_2$ masses up to 640 GeV for decays via on-shell $W$ and $Z$ bosons, up to 300 GeV for decays via off-shell $W$ and $Z$ bosons, and up to 190 GeV for decays via $W$ and Standard Model Higgs bosons.
Forum