A search for high-mass dimuon resonance production in association with one or more b quark jets is presented. The study uses proton-proton collision data collected with the CMS detector at the LHC corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$ at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. Model-independent limits are derived on the number of signal events with exactly one or more than one b quark jet. Results are also interpreted in a lepton-flavor-universal model with Z$'$ boson couplings to a bb quark pair ($g_\mathrm{b}$), an sb quark pair ($g_\mathrm{b}\delta_\mathrm{bs}$), and any same-flavor charged lepton ($g_\ell$) or neutrino pair ($g_\nu$), with $\left|g_{\nu}\right| = \left|g_\ell\right|$. For a Z$'$ boson with a mass $m_{\mathrm{Z}'}$ = 350 GeV (2 TeV) and $\left|\delta_\mathrm{bs}\right|$$\lt$ 0.25, the majority of the parameter space with 0.0057 $\lt$$\left|g_\ell\right|$$\lt$ 0.35 (0.25 $\lt$$\left|g_\ell\right|$$\lt$ 0.43) and 0.0079 $\lt$$\left|g_\mathrm{b}\right|$$\lt$ 0.46 (0.34 $\lt$$\left|g_\mathrm{b}\right|$$\lt$ 0.57) is excluded at 95% confidence level. Finally, constraints are set on a Z$'$ model with parameters consistent with low-energy b $\to$ s$\ell\ell$ measurements. In this scenario, most of the allowed parameter space is excluded for a Z$'$ boson with 350 $\lt m_{\mathrm{Z}'}$ $\lt$ 500 GeV, while the constraints are less stringent for higher $m_{\mathrm{Z}'}$ hypotheses. This is the first dedicated search at the LHC for a high-mass dimuon resonance produced in association with multiple b quark jets, and the constraints obtained on models with this signature are the most stringent to date.

This paper presents a search for supersymmetric particles in models with highly compressed mass spectra, in events consistent with being produced through vector boson fusion. The search uses 140 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. Events containing at least two jets with a large gap in pseudorapidity, large missing transverse momentum, and no reconstructed leptons are selected. A boosted decision tree is used to separate events consistent with the production of supersymmetric particles from those due to Standard Model backgrounds. The data are found to be consistent with Standard Model predictions. The results are interpreted using simplified models of $R$-parity-conserving supersymmetry in which the lightest supersymmetric partner is a bino-like neutralino with a mass similar to that of the lightest chargino and second-to-lightest neutralino, both of which are wino-like. Lower limits at 95% confidence level on the masses of next-to-lightest supersymmetric partners in this simplified model are established between 117 and 120 GeV when the lightest supersymmetric partners are within 1 GeV in mass.

A search for decays of pair-produced neutral long-lived particles (LLPs) is presented using 139 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC in 2015-2018 at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. Dedicated techniques were developed for the reconstruction of displaced jets produced by LLPs decaying hadronically in the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter. Two search regions are defined for different LLP kinematic regimes. The observed numbers of events are consistent with the expected background, and limits for several benchmark signals are determined. For a SM Higgs boson with a mass of 125 GeV, branching ratios above 10% are excluded at 95% confidence level for values of $c$ times LLP mean proper lifetime in the range between 20 mm and 10 m depending on the model. Upper limits are also set on the cross-section times branching ratio for scalars with a mass of 60 GeV and for masses between 200 GeV and 1 TeV.

An inclusive search for nonresonant signatures of beyond the standard model (SM) phenomena in events with three or more charged leptons, including hadronically decaying $\tau$ leptons, is presented. The analysis is based on a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV, collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2016-2018. Events are categorized based on the lepton and b-tagged jet multiplicities and various kinematic variables. Three scenarios of physics beyond the SM are probed, and signal-specific boosted decision trees are used for enhancing sensitivity. No significant deviations from the background expectations are observed. Lower limits are set at 95% confidence level on the mass of type-III seesaw heavy fermions in the range 845-1065 GeV for various decay branching fraction combinations to SM leptons. Doublet and singlet vector-like $\tau$ lepton extensions of the SM are excluded for masses below 1045 GeV and in the mass range 125-150 GeV, respectively. Scalar leptoquarks decaying exclusively to a top quark and a lepton are excluded below 1.12-1.42 TeV, depending on the lepton flavor. For the type-III seesaw as well as the vector-like doublet model, these constraints are the most stringent to date. For the vector-like singlet model, these are the first constraints from the LHC experiments. Detailed results are also presented to facilitate alternative theoretical interpretations.

A search for heavy neutral gauge bosons (Z') decaying into a pair of tau leptons is performed in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV at the CERN LHC. The data were collected with the CMS detector and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$. The observations are found to be in agreement with the expectation from standard model processes. Limits at 95% confidence level are set on the product of the Z' production cross section and its branching fraction to tau lepton pairs for a range of Z' boson masses. For a narrow resonance in the sequential standard model scenario, a Z' boson with a mass below 3.5 TeV is excluded. This is the most stringent limit to date from this type of search.

High precision measurements of flow coefficients $v_{n}$ ($n = 1 - 4$) for protons, deuterons and tritons relative to the first-order spectator plane have been performed in Au+Au collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 2.4$ GeV with the High-Acceptance Di-Electron Spectrometer (HADES) at the SIS18/GSI. Flow coefficients are studied as a function of transverse momentum $p_{t}$ and rapidity $y_{cm}$ over a large region of phase space and for several classes of collision centrality. A clear mass hierarchy is found for the slope of $v_{1}$, $d v_{1}/d y^{\prime}|_{y^{\prime} = 0}$ where $y^{\prime}$ is the scaled rapidity, and for $v_{2}$ at mid-rapidity. Scaling with the number of nucleons is observed for the $p_{t}$ dependence of $v_{2}$ and $v_{4}$ at mid-rapidity, which is indicative for nuclear coalescence as the main process responsible for light nuclei formation. $v_{2}$ is found to scale with the initial eccentricity $\langle \epsilon_{2} \rangle$, while $v_{4}$ scales with $\langle \epsilon_{2} \rangle^{2}$ and $\langle \epsilon_{4} \rangle$. The multi-differential high-precision data on $v_{1}$, $v_{2}$, $v_{3}$, and $v_{4}$ provides important constraints on the equation-of-state of compressed baryonic matter.

A search is presented for the pair production of higgsinos $\tilde{\chi}$ in gauge-mediated supersymmetry models, where the lightest neutralinos $\tilde{\chi}_1^0$ decay into a light gravitino $\tilde{G}$ in association with either a Higgs $h$ or a $Z$ boson. The search is performed with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider using 139 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV. It targets final states in which a Higgs boson decays into a photon pair, while the other Higgs or $Z$ boson decays into a $b\bar{b}$ pair, with missing transverse momentum associated with the two gravitinos. Search regions dependent on the amount of missing transverse momentum are defined by the requirements that the diphoton mass should be consistent with the mass of the Higgs boson, and the $b\bar{b}$ mass with the mass of the Higgs or $Z$ boson. The main backgrounds are estimated with data-driven methods using the sidebands of the diphoton mass distribution. No excesses beyond Standard Model expectations are observed and higgsinos with masses up to 320 GeV are excluded, assuming a branching fraction of 100% for $\tilde{\chi}_1^0\rightarrow h\tilde{G}$. This analysis excludes higgsinos with masses of 130 GeV for branching fractions to $h\tilde{G}$ as low as 36%, thus providing complementarity to previous ATLAS searches in final states with multiple leptons or multiple $b$-jets, targeting different decays of the electroweak bosons.

This paper presents a model-agnostic search for narrow resonances in the dijet final state in the mass range 1.8-6 TeV. The signal is assumed to produce jets with substructure atypical of jets initiated by light quarks or gluons, with minimal additional assumptions. Search regions are obtained by utilizing multivariate machine-learning methods to select jets with anomalous substructure. A collection of complementary anomaly detection methods - based on unsupervised, weakly supervised, and semisupervised algorithms - are used in order to maximize the sensitivity to unknown new physics signatures. These algorithms are applied to data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$, recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC, at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. No significant excesses above background expectations are seen. Exclusion limits are derived on the production cross section of benchmark signal models varying in resonance mass, jet mass, and jet substructure. Many of these signatures have not been previously sought, making several of the limits reported on the corresponding benchmark models the first ever. When compared to benchmark inclusive and substructure-based search strategies, the anomaly detection methods are found to significantly enhance the sensitivity to a variety of models.

A search for supersymmetry targeting the direct production of winos and higgsinos is conducted in final states with either two leptons ($e$ or $\mu$) with the same electric charge, or three leptons. The analysis uses 139 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collision data at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV collected with the ATLAS detector during Run 2 of the Large Hadron Collider. No significant excess over the Standard Model expectation is observed. Simplified and complete models with and without $R$-parity conservation are considered. In topologies with intermediate states including either $Wh$ or $WZ$ pairs, wino masses up to 525 GeV and 250 GeV are excluded, respectively, for a bino of vanishing mass. Higgsino masses smaller than 440 GeV are excluded in a natural $R$-parity-violating model with bilinear terms. Upper limits on the production cross section of generic events beyond the Standard Model as low as 40 ab are obtained in signal regions optimised for these models and also for an $R$-parity-violating scenario with baryon-number-violating higgsino decays into top quarks and jets. The analysis significantly improves sensitivity to supersymmetric models and other processes beyond the Standard Model that may contribute to the considered final states.

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 $t\bar{b}\tilde\chi^-_1$ / $\bar{t}b\tilde\chi^+_1$.