A search for pair production of bottom squarks in events with hadronically decaying $\tau$-leptons, $b$-tagged jets and large missing transverse momentum is presented. The analyzed dataset is based on proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded by the ATLAS detector from 2015 to 2018, and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$. The observed data are compatible with the expected Standard Model background. Results are interpreted in a simplified model where each bottom squark is assumed to decay into the second-lightest neutralino $\tilde \chi_2^0$ and a bottom quark, with $\tilde \chi_2^0$ decaying into a Higgs boson and the lightest neutralino $\tilde \chi_1^0$. The search focuses on final states where at least one Higgs boson decays into a pair of hadronically decaying $\tau$-leptons. This allows the acceptance and thus the sensitivity to be significantly improved relative to the previous results at low masses of the $\tilde \chi_2^0$, where bottom-squark masses up to 850 GeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level, assuming a mass difference of 130 GeV between $\tilde \chi_2^0$ and $\tilde \chi_1^0$. Model-independent upper limits are also set on the cross section of processes beyond the Standard Model.
A search for new heavy particles manifested as resonances in two-jet final states is presented. The data were produced in 7 TeV proton-proton collisions by the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 315 nb^-1 collected by the ATLAS detector. No resonances were observed. Upper limits were set on the product of cross section and signal acceptance for excited-quark (q*) production as a function of q* mass. These exclude at the 95% CL the q* mass interval 0.30 < mq* < 1.26 TeV, extending the reach of previous experiments.
The first measurements from proton-proton collisions recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC are presented. Data were collected in December 2009 using a minimum-bias trigger during collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 900 GeV. The charged-particle multiplicity, its dependence on transverse momentum and pseudorapidity, and the relationship between mean transverse momentum and charged-particle multiplicity are measured for events with at least one charged particle in the kinematic range |eta|<2.5 and pT>500 MeV. The measurements are compared to Monte Carlo models of proton-proton collisions and to results from other experiments at the same centre-of-mass energy. The charged-particle multiplicity per event and unit of pseudorapidity at eta = 0 is measured to be 1.333 +/- 0.003 (stat.) +/- 0.040 (syst.), which is 5-15% higher than the Monte Carlo models predict.
Measurements are presented from proton-proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of sqrt(s) = 0.9, 2.36 and 7 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events were collected using a single-arm minimum-bias trigger. The charged-particle multiplicity, its dependence on transverse momentum and pseudorapidity and the relationship between the mean transverse momentum and charged-particle multiplicity are measured. Measurements in different regions of phase-space are shown, providing diffraction-reduced measurements as well as more inclusive ones. The observed distributions are corrected to well-defined phase-space regions, using model-independent corrections. The results are compared to each other and to various Monte Carlo models, including a new AMBT1 PYTHIA 6 tune. In all the kinematic regions considered, the particle multiplicities are higher than predicted by the Monte Carlo models. The central charged-particle multiplicity per event and unit of pseudorapidity, for tracks with pT >100 MeV, is measured to be 3.483 +- 0.009 (stat) +- 0.106 (syst) at sqrt(s) = 0.9 TeV and 5.630 +- 0.003 (stat) +- 0.169 (syst) at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV.
This paper reports searches for heavy resonances decaying into $ZZ$ or $ZW$ using data from proton--proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV. The data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$, were recorded with the ATLAS detector in 2015 and 2016 at the Large Hadron Collider. The searches are performed in final states in which one $Z$ boson decays into either a pair of light charged leptons (electrons and muons) or a pair of neutrinos, and the associated $W$ boson or the other $Z$ boson decays hadronically. No evidence of the production of heavy resonances is observed. Upper bounds on the production cross sections of heavy resonances times their decay branching ratios to $ZZ$ or $ZW$ are derived in the mass range 300--5000 GeV within the context of Standard Model extensions with additional Higgs bosons, a heavy vector triplet or warped extra dimensions. Production through gluon--gluon fusion, Drell--Yan or vector-boson fusion are considered, depending on the assumed model.
Measurements of the variation of inclusive jet suppression as a function of relative azimuthal angle, Delta phi, with respect to the elliptic event plane provide insight into the path-length dependence of jet quenching. ATLAS has measured the Delta phi dependence of jet yields in 0.14 nb^-1 of sqrt(s(NN))= 2.76 TeV Pb+Pb collisions at the LHC for jet transverse momenta p_T > 45 GeV in different collision centrality bins using an underlying event subtraction procedure that accounts for elliptic flow. The variation of the jet yield with Delta phi was characterized by the parameter, v_2^jet, and the ratio of out-of-plane (Delta phi ~ pi/2) to in-plane (Delta phi ~ 0) yields. Non-zero v_2^jet values were measured in all centrality bins for p_T < 160 GeV. The jet yields are observed to vary by as much as 20% between in-plane and out-of-plane directions.
A measurement of the cross section for the inclusive production of isolated prompt photons in pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy sqrt(s) = 7TeV is presented. The measurement covers the pseudorapidity ranges |eta|<1.37 and 1.52<|eta|<1.81 in the transverse energy range 15 < E_T <100 GeV. The results are based on an integrated luminosity of 880 nb-1, collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Photon candidates are identified by combining information from the calorimeters and from the inner tracker. Residual background in the selected sample is estimated from data based on the observed distribution of the transverse isolation energy in a narrow cone around the photon candidate. The results are compared to predictions from next-to-leading order perturbative QCD calculations.
Measurements of two-particle correlation functions and the first five azimuthal harmonics, $v_1$ to $v_5$, are presented, using 28 $\mathrm{nb}^{-1}$ of $p$+Pb collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}=5.02$ TeV measured with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Significant long-range "ridge-like" correlations are observed for pairs with small relative azimuthal angle ($|\Delta\phi|<\pi/3$) and back-to-back pairs ($|\Delta\phi| > 2\pi/3$) over the transverse momentum range $0.4 < p_{\rm T} < 12$ GeV and in different intervals of event activity. The event activity is defined by either the number of reconstructed tracks or the total transverse energy on the Pb-fragmentation side. The azimuthal structure of such long-range correlations is Fourier decomposed to obtain the harmonics $v_n$ as a function of $p_{\rm T}$ and event activity. The extracted $v_n$ values for $n=2$ to 5 decrease with $n$. The $v_2$ and $v_3$ values are found to be positive in the measured $p_{\rm T}$ range. The $v_1$ is also measured as a function of $p_{\rm T}$ and is observed to change sign around $p_{\rm T}\approx 1.5$-2.0 GeV and then increase to about 0.1 for $p_{\rm T}>4$ GeV. The $v_2(p_{\rm T})$, $v_3(p_{\rm T})$ and $v_4(p_{\rm T})$ are compared to the $v_n$ coefficients in Pb+Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}} =2.76$ TeV with similar event multiplicities. Reasonable agreement is observed after accounting for the difference in the average $p_{\rm T}$ of particles produced in the two collision systems.
The ATLAS experiment at the LHC has measured the centrality dependence of charged particle pseudorapidity distributions over |eta| < 2 in lead-lead collisions at a nucleon-nucleon centre-of-mass energy of sqrt(s_NN) = 2.76 TeV. In order to include particles with transverse momentum as low as 30 MeV, the data were recorded with the central solenoid magnet off. Charged particles were reconstructed with two algorithms (2-point 'tracklets' and full tracks) using information from the pixel detector only. The lead-lead collision centrality was characterized by the total transverse energy in the forward calorimeter in the range 3.2 < |eta| < 4.9. Measurements are presented of the per-event charged particle density distribution, dN_ch/deta, and the average charged particle multiplicity in the pseudorapidity interval |eta|<0.5 in several intervals of collision centrality. The results are compared to previous mid-rapidity measurements at the LHC and RHIC. The variation of the mid-rapidity charged particle yield per colliding nucleon pair with the number of participants is consistent with the lower sqrt(s_NN) results. The shape of the dN_ch/deta distribution is found to be independent of centrality within the systematic uncertainties of the measurement.
This Letter presents the first search for a heavy particle decaying into an e\mu final state in sqrt(s)=7 TeV pp collisions at the LHC. The data were recorded by the ATLAS detector during 2010 and correspond to a total integrated luminosity of 35/pb. No excess above the Standard Model background expectation is observed. Exclusions at 95% confidence level are placed on two representative models. In an R-parity violating supersymmetric model, tau sneutrinos with a mass below 0.75 TeV are excluded, assuming single coupling dominance and the couplings lambda'_{311}=0.11, lambda_{312}=0.07. In a lepton flavor violating model, a Z'-like vector boson with masses of 0.70 to 1.00 TeV and corresponding cross sections times branching ratios of 0.175 to 0.183 pb is excluded. These results extend to higher mass RPV sneutrinos and LFV Z's than previous constraints from the Tevatron.
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