While dual-phase xenon time projection chambers (TPCs) have driven the sensitivity towards weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) at the GeV/c^2 to TeV/c^2 mass scale, the scope for sub-GeV/c^2 dark matter particles is hindered by a limited nuclear recoil energy detection threshold. One approach to probe for lighter candidates is to consider cases where they have been boosted by collisions with cosmic rays in the Milky Way, such that the additional kinetic energy lifts their induced signatures above the nominal threshold. In this Letter, we report first results of a search for cosmic ray-boosted dark matter (CRDM) with a combined 4.2 tonne-year exposure from the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) experiment. We observe no excess above the expected backgrounds and establish world-leading constraints on the spin-independent CRDM-nucleon cross section as small as 3.9 * 10^{-33} cm^2 at 90% confidence level for sub-GeV/c^2 masses.
90% CL CRDM-nucleon cross sections
A measurement of the WZ$γ$ triboson production cross section is presented. The analysis is based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV recorded with the CMS detector at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$. The analysis focuses on the final state with three charged leptons, $\ell^\pmν\ell^+\ell^-$, where $\ell$ = e or $μ$, accompanied by an additional photon. The observed (expected) significance of the WZ$γ$ signal is 5.4 (3.8) standard deviations. The cross section is measured in a fiducial region, where events with an $\ell$ originating from a tau lepton decay are excluded, to be 5.48 $\pm$ 1.11 fb, which is compatible with the prediction of 3.69 $\pm$ 0.24 fb at next-to-leading order in quantum chromodynamics. Exclusion limits are set on anomalous quartic gauge couplings and on the production cross sections of massive axion-like particles.
The distributions of the variables used in the simultaneous fit for the nonprompt $l$ CR. The black points with error bars represent the data and their statistical uncertainties, whereas the shaded band represents the predicted uncertainties. The bottom panel in each figure shows the ratio of the number of events observed in data to that of the total SM prediction. The last bin of each plot has been extended to include the overflow contribution.
The distributions of the variables used in the simultaneous fit for the nonprompt $\gamma$ CR. The black points with error bars represent the data and their statistical uncertainties, whereas the shaded band represents the predicted uncertainties. The bottom panel in each figure shows the ratio of the number of events observed in data to that of the total SM prediction. The last bin of each plot has been extended to include the overflow contribution.
The distributions of the variables used in the simultaneous fit for the ZZ CR. The black points with error bars represent the data and their statistical uncertainties, whereas the shaded band represents the predicted uncertainties. The bottom panel in each figure shows the ratio of the number of events observed in data to that of the total SM prediction. The last bin of each plot has been extended to include the overflow contribution.
A combination of fifteen top quark mass measurements performed by the ATLAS and CMS experiments at the LHC is presented. The data sets used correspond to an integrated luminosity of up to 5 and 20$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at center-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV, respectively. The combination includes measurements in top quark pair events that exploit both the semileptonic and hadronic decays of the top quark, and a measurement using events enriched in single top quark production via the electroweak $t$-channel. The combination accounts for the correlations between measurements and achieves an improvement in the total uncertainty of 31% relative to the most precise input measurement. The result is $m_\mathrm{t}$ = 172.52 $\pm$ 0.14 (stat) $\pm$ 0.30 (syst) GeV, with a total uncertainty of 0.33 GeV.
Uncertainties on the $m_{t}$ values extracted in the LHC, ATLAS, and CMS combinations arising from the categories described in the text, sorted in order of decreasing value of the combined LHC uncertainty.
A search for the electroweak production of a vector-like quark T$'$, decaying to a top quark and a Higgs boson is presented. The search is based on a sample of proton-proton collision events recorded at the LHC at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$. This is the first T$'$ search that exploits the Higgs boson decay to a pair of photons. For narrow isospin singlet T$'$ states with masses up to 1.1 TeV, the excellent diphoton invariant mass resolution of 1-2% results in an increased sensitivity compared to previous searches based on the same production mechanism. The electroweak production of a T$'$ quark with mass up to 960 GeV is excluded at 95% confidence level, assuming a coupling strength $\kappa_\mathrm{T}$ = 0.25 and a relative decay width $\Gamma/M_{\mathrm{T}'}$ $\lt$ 5%.
The combined, leptonic plus hadronic, expected (dotted black) and observed (solid black) upper limits at 95% CL on $\sigma_{T^\prime bq} \times \mathcal{B}_{T^\prime \rightarrow tH}$ displayed as a function of $\rm{M}_{T^\prime}$. The green (yellow) band represents the 68% (95%) of the limit values expected under the background-only hypothesis. The theoretical cross sections for the singlet $T^\prime$ production with representative $\kappa_T$-values fixed at 0.1, 0.15, 0.2 and 0.25 (for $\Gamma/\rm{M}_{T^\prime} < 5\%$) are shown as solid red lines. The theoretical cross sections for the singlet $T^\prime$ production with $\Gamma/\rm{M}_{T^\prime}$ = 1 and 5% are also shown in table.
The combined, leptonic plus hadronic, expected (dotted black) and observed (solid black) upper limits at 95% CL on the $T^\prime$ coupling to third-generation quarks, $\kappa_{T}$, under the narrow width approximation (NWA) displayed as a function of $\rm{M}_{T^\prime}$. The green (yellow) band represents the 68% (95%) of the limit values expected under the background-only hypothesis. The theoretical $\kappa_{T}$ values corresponding to the $\Gamma/\rm{M}_{T^\prime}$-values fixed at 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5% are shown as red dashed lines.
The expected (dotted black) and observed (solid black) upper limits at 95% CL on $\sigma_{T^\prime bq(T^\prime \rightarrow tH)}$ in the leptonic channel displayed as a function of $\rm{M}_{T^\prime}$. The green (yellow) band represents the 68% (95%) of the limit values expected under the background-only hypothesis. The theoretical cross sections for the singlet $T^\prime$ production with representative $\kappa_T$-values fixed at 0.1, 0.15, 0.2 and 0.25 (for $\Gamma/\rm{M}_{T^\prime} < 5\%$) are shown as solid red lines.
Measurements of the suppression and correlations of dijets is performed using 3 $\mu$b$^{-1}$ of Xe+Xe data at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}} = 5.44$ TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Dijets with jets reconstructed using the $R=0.4$ anti-$k_t$ algorithm are measured differentially in jet $p_{\text{T}}$ over the range of 32 GeV to 398 GeV and the centrality of the collisions. Significant dijet momentum imbalance is found in the most central Xe+Xe collisions, which decreases in more peripheral collisions. Results from the measurement of per-pair normalized and absolutely normalized dijet $p_{\text{T}}$ balance are compared with previous Pb+Pb measurements at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}} =5.02$ TeV. The differences between the dijet suppression in Xe+Xe and Pb+Pb are further quantified by the ratio of pair nuclear-modification factors. The results are found to be consistent with those measured in Pb+Pb data when compared in classes of the same event activity and when taking into account the difference between the center-of-mass energies of the initial parton scattering process in Xe+Xe and Pb+Pb collisions. These results should provide input for a better understanding of the role of energy density, system size, path length, and fluctuations in the parton energy loss.
The centrality intervals in Xe+Xe collisions and their corresponding TAA with absolute uncertainties.
The centrality intervals in Xe+Xe and Pb+Pb collisions for matching SUM ET FCAL intervals and respective TAA values for Xe+Xe collisions.
The performance of the jet energy scale (JES) for jets with $|y| < 2.1$ evaluated as a function of pT_truth in different centrality bins. Simulated hard scatter events were overlaid onto events from a dedicated sample of minimum-bias Xe+Xe data.
A search for the pair production of the lightest supersymmetric partner of the top quark, the top squark ($\tilde{\mathrm{t}}_1$), is presented. The search targets the four-body decay of the $\tilde{\mathrm{t}}_1$, which is preferred when the mass difference between the top squark and the lightest supersymmetric particle is smaller than the mass of the W boson. This decay mode consists of a bottom quark, two other fermions, and the lightest neutralino ($\tilde{\chi}^0_1$), which is assumed to be the lightest supersymmetric particle. The data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV collected by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC. Events are selected using the presence of a high-momentum jet, an electron or muon with low transverse momentum, and a significant missing transverse momentum. The signal is selected based on a multivariate approach that is optimized for the difference between $m(\tilde{\mathrm{t}}_1)$ and $m(\tilde{\chi}^0_1)$. The contribution from leading background processes is estimated from data. No significant excess is observed above the expectation from standard model processes. The results of this search exclude top squarks at 95% confidence level for masses up to 480 and 700 GeV for $m(\tilde{\mathrm{t}}_1) - m(\tilde{\chi}^0_1$) = 10 and 80 GeV, respectively.
Distribution of $p_{T}(l)$ after the preselection from 2017 data (black points) and simulation (colored lines). The simulated distribution of two signal points are represented by colored lines, while not being stacked on the background distributions: $(m(\mathrm{\widetilde{t}}_{1}),m(\widetilde{\chi}^{0}_{1}))$ = (500, 490) and (500, 420) GeV. The last bin includes the overflow events.
The ratio of data to the sum of the SM backgrounds. The uncertainties of simulated data are only the statistical unvertainty in the simulation predictions.
Distribution of $p_{T}(l)$ after the preselection from 2018 data (black points) and simulation (colored lines). The simulated distribution of two signal points are represented by colored lines, while not being stacked on the background distributions: $(m(\mathrm{\widetilde{t}}_{1}),m(\widetilde{\chi}^{0}_{1}))$ = (500, 490) and (500, 420) GeV. The last bin includes the overflow events.
A search for physics beyond the standard model (SM) in the final state with a hadron- ically decaying tau lepton and a neutrino is presented. This analysis is based on data recorded by the CMS experiment from proton-proton collisions at a center-of- mass energy of 13 TeV at the LHC, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 138 fb−1. The transverse mass spectrum is analyzed for the presence of new physics. No significant deviation from the SM prediction is observed. Limits are set on the production cross section of a W′ boson decaying into a tau lepton and a neutrino. Lower limits are set on the mass of the sequential SM-like heavy charged vector bo- son and the mass of a quantum black hole. Upper limits are placed on the couplings of a new boson to the SM fermions. Constraints are put on a nonuniversal gauge interaction model and an effective field theory model. For the first time, upper lim- its on the cross section of t-channel leptoquark (LQ) exchange are presented. These limits are translated into exclusion limits on the LQ mass and on its coupling in the t-channel. The sensitivity of this analysis extends into the parameter space of LQ models that attempt to explain the anomalies observed in B meson decays. The limits presented for the various interpretations are the most stringent to date. Additionally, a model-independent limit is provided.
The transverse mass distribution of $ au$ leptons and missing transverse momentum observed in the Run-2 data (black dots with statistical uncertainty) as well as the expectation from SM processes (stacked histograms). Different signal hypotheses normalized to 10 fb$^{-1}$ are illustrated as dashed lines for exemplary SSM W$\prime$ boson, QBH and EFT signal hypotheses. The ratios of the background-subtracted data yields to the expected background yields are presented in the lower panel. The combined statistical and systematic uncertainties in the background are represented by the grey shaded band in the ratio panel.
Bayesian upper exclusion limits at 95% CL on the product of the cross section and branching fraction of a W$\prime$ boson decaying to a $\tau$ lepton and a neutrino in the SSM model. For this model, W$\prime$ boson masses of up to 4.8 TeV can be excluded. The limit is given by the intersection of the observed (solid) limit and the theoretical cross section (blue dotted curve). The 68 and 95% quantiles of the limits are represented by the green and yellow bands, respectively. The $\sigma \mathcal{B}$ for an SSM W' boson, along with its associated uncertainty, calculated at NNLO precision in QCD is shown.
Bayesian 95% CL model-independent upper limit on the product of signal cross sections and branching fraction for the $\tau+\nu$ decay for a back-to-back $\tau$ lepton plus $p_{T}^{miss}$ topology. To calculate this limit, all events for signal, background, and data are summed starting from a minimum $m_{T}$ threshold and then divided by the total number of events. No assumption on signal shape is included in this limit. The expected (dashed line) and observed (solid line) limits are shown as well as the 68% and 95% CL uncertainty bands (green and yellow, respectively).
A search is performed for exclusive high-mass $\gamma\gamma$$\to$ WW and $\gamma\gamma$$\to$ ZZ production in proton-proton collisions using intact forward protons reconstructed in near-beam detectors, with both weak bosons decaying into boosted and merged jets. The analysis is based on a sample of proton-proton collisions collected by the CMS and TOTEM experiments at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 100 fb$^{-1}$. No excess above the standard model background prediction is observed, and upper limits are set on the pp $\to$ pWWp and pp $\to$ pZZp cross sections in a fiducial region defined by the diboson invariant mass $m$(VV) $\lt$ 1 TeV (with V = W, Z) and proton fractional momentum loss 0.04 $\lt$$\xi$$\lt$ 0.20. The results are interpreted as new limits on dimension-6 and dimension-8 anomalous quartic gauge couplings.
Expected and observed upper limits on the AQGC operators $a^W_0/\Lambda^2$, with no unitarization. The $y$ axis shows the limit on the ratio of the observed cross section to the cross section predicted for each anomalous coupling value ($\sigma_\mathrm{AQGC}$).
Expected and observed upper limits on the AQGC operators $a^W_C/\Lambda^2$, with no unitarization. The $y$ axis shows the limit on the ratio of the observed cross section to the cross section predicted for each anomalous coupling value ($\sigma_\mathrm{AQGC}$).
Expected and observed upper limits on the AQGC operators $a^Z_0/\Lambda^2$, with no unitarization. The $y$ axis shows the limit on the ratio of the observed cross section to the cross section predicted for each anomalous coupling value ($\sigma_\mathrm{AQGC}$).
The path-length dependent parton energy loss within the dense partonic medium created in lead-lead collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV is studied by determining the azimuthal anisotropies for dijets with high transverse momentum. The data were collected by the CMS experiment in 2018 and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 1.69 nb$^{-1}$. For events containing back-to-back jets, correlations in relative azimuthal angle and pseudorapidity ($\eta$) between jets and hadrons, and between two hadrons, are constructed. The anisotropies are expressed as the Fourier expansion coefficients $v_n$, $n = $ 2-4 of these azimuthal distributions. The dijet $v_n$ values are extracted from long-range (1.5 $\lt$$\vert\Delta\eta\vert$$\lt$ 2.5) components of these correlations, which suppresses the background contributions from jet fragmentation processes. Positive dijet $v_2$ values are observed which increase from central to more peripheral events, while the $v_3$ and $v_4$ values are consistent with zero within experimental uncertainties.
The dijet $v_{n}$ data points factorized using different associated hadron pT bins for 0-10 % centrality bin. The data points are corrected for the jet reconstruction bias effects.
The dijet $v_{n}$ data points factorized using different associated hadron pT bins for 10-30 % centrality bin. The data points are corrected for the jet reconstruction bias effects.
The dijet $v_{n}$ data points factorized using different associated hadron pT bins for 30-50 % centrality bin. The data points are corrected for the jet reconstruction bias effects.
A search is presented for vector-like T and B quark-antiquark pairs produced in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. Data were collected by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC in 2016-2018, with an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$. Events are separated into single-lepton, same-sign charge dilepton, and multilepton channels. In the analysis of the single-lepton channel a multilayer neural network and jet identification techniques are employed to select signal events, while the same-sign dilepton and multilepton channels rely on the high-energy signature of the signal to distinguish it from standard model backgrounds. The data are consistent with standard model background predictions, and the production of vector-like quark pairs is excluded at 95% confidence level for T quark masses up to 1.54 TeV and B quark masses up to 1.56 TeV, depending on the branching fractions assumed, with maximal sensitivity to decay modes that include multiple top quarks. The limits obtained in this search are the strongest limits to date for $\mathrm{T\overline{T}}$ production, excluding masses below 1.48 TeV for all decays to third generation quarks, and are the strongest limits to date for $\mathrm{B\overline{B}}$ production with B quark decays to tW.
Distribution of ST in the training region for the $T\overline{T}$ MLP. The observed data are shown along with the predicted $T\overline{T}$ signal with mass of 1.2 (1.5) TeV in the singlet scenario and the background. Statistical and systematic uncertainties in the background prediction before performing the fit to data are also shown. The signal predictions of 1.2 TeV and 1.5 TeV signals have been scaled by factors of x300 and x600, respectively, for visibility.
Distribution of the leading jet’s DEEPAK8 light quark or gluon score in the training region for the $T\overline{T}$ MLP. The observed data are shown along with the predicted $T\overline{T}$ signal with mass of 1.2 (1.5) TeV in the singlet scenario and the background. Statistical and systematic uncertainties in the background prediction before performing the fit to data are also shown. The signal predictions of 1.2 TeV and 1.5 TeV signals have been scaled by factors of x300 and x600, respectively, for visibility.
Distribution of the MLP T quark score in the SR for the $T\overline{T}$ search. The observed data, predicted $T\overline{T}$ signal with mass of 1.2 (1.5) TeV in the singlet scenario, and the background are all shown. Statistical and systematic uncertainties in the background prediction before performing the fit to data are also shown. The signal predictions of 1.2 TeV and 1.5 TeV signals have been scaled by factors of x10 and x20, respectively, for visibility.
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