This paper presents a measurement of the $W$ boson production cross section and the $W^{+}/W^{-}$ cross-section ratio, both in association with jets, in proton--proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. The measurement is performed in final states containing one electron and missing transverse momentum using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20.2 fb$^{-1}$. Differential cross sections for events with one or two jets are presented for a range of observables, including jet transverse momenta and rapidities, the scalar sum of transverse momenta of the visible particles and the missing transverse momentum in the event, and the transverse momentum of the $W$ boson. For a subset of the observables, the differential cross sections of positively and negatively charged $W$ bosons are measured separately. In the cross-section ratio of $W^{+}/W^{-}$ the dominant systematic uncertainties cancel out, improving the measurement precision by up to a factor of nine. The observables and ratios selected for this paper provide valuable input for the up quark, down quark, and gluon parton distribution functions of the proton.
Cross section for the production of W bosons for different inclusive jet multiplicities.
Statistical correlation between bins in data for the cross section for the production of W bosons for different inclusive jet multiplicities.
Differential cross sections for the production of W<sup>+</sup> bosons, W<sup>-</sup> bosons and the W<sup>+</sup>/W<sup>-</sup> cross section ratio as a function of the inclusive jet multiplicity.
A $6.8 \ {\rm nb^{-1}}$ sample of $pp$ collision data collected under low-luminosity conditions at $\sqrt{s} = 7$ TeV by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider is used to study diffractive dijet production. Events containing at least two jets with $p_\mathrm{T} > 20$ GeV are selected and analysed in terms of variables which discriminate between diffractive and non-diffractive processes. Cross sections are measured differentially in $\Delta\eta^F$, the size of the observable forward region of pseudorapidity which is devoid of hadronic activity, and in an estimator, $\tilde{\xi}$, of the fractional momentum loss of the proton assuming single diffractive dissociation ($pp \rightarrow pX$). Model comparisons indicate a dominant non-diffractive contribution up to moderately large $\Delta\eta^F$ and small $\tilde{\xi}$, with a diffractive contribution which is significant at the highest $\Delta\eta^F$ and the lowest $\tilde{\xi}$. The rapidity-gap survival probability is estimated from comparisons of the data in this latter region with predictions based on diffractive parton distribution functions.
The cross section differential in the forward rapidity gap size, DELTA(C=RAPGAP), for events with at least two jets of pt > 20 GeV found by the anti-kt jet algorithm with R=0.6.
The cross section differential in the forward rapidity gap size, DELTA(C=RAPGAP), for events with at least two jets of pt > 20 GeV found by the anti-kt jet algorithm with R=0.4.
The cross section differential in the fraction of the proton four-momentum carried by the Pomeron, LOG10(C=XI), for events with at least two jets of pt > 20 GeV found by the anti-kt jet algorithm with R=0.6.
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