Detailed measurements of $t$-channel single top-quark production are presented. They use 20.2 fb$^{-1}$ of data collected by the ATLAS experiment in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV at the LHC. Total, fiducial and differential cross-sections are measured for both top-quark and top-antiquark production. The fiducial cross-section is measured with a precision of 5.8 % (top quark) and 7.8 % (top antiquark), respectively. The total cross-sections are measured to be $\sigma_{\mathrm{tot}}(tq) = 56.7^{+4.3}_{-3.8}\;$pb for top-quark production and $\sigma_{\mathrm{tot}}(\bar{t}q) = 32.9^{+3.0}_{-2.7}\;$pb for top-antiquark production, in agreement with the Standard Model prediction. In addition, the ratio of top-quark to top-antiquark production cross-sections is determined to be $R_t=1.72 \pm 0.09$, with an improved relative precision of 4.9 % since several systematic uncertainties cancel in the ratio. The differential cross-sections as a function of the transverse momentum and rapidity of both the top quark and the top antiquark are measured at both the parton and particle levels. The transverse momentum and rapidity differential cross-sections of the accompanying jet from the $t$-channel scattering are measured at particle level. All measurements are compared to various Monte Carlo predictions as well as to fixed-order QCD calculations where available.
Predicted and observed event yields for the signal region (SR). The multijet background prediction is obtained from a binned maximum-likelihood fit to the $E_{\mathrm{T}}^{\mathrm{miss}}$ distribution. All the other predictions are derived using theoretical cross-sections, given for the backgrounds in Sect. 6 and for the signal in Sect. 1. The quoted uncertainties are in the predicted cross-sections or in the number of multijet events, in case of the multijet process.
Predicted and observed event yields for the signal region (SR). The multijet background prediction is obtained from a binned maximum-likelihood fit to the $E_{\mathrm{T}}^{\mathrm{miss}}$ distribution. All the other predictions are derived using theoretical cross-sections, given for the backgrounds in Sect. 6 and for the signal in Sect. 1. The quoted uncertainties are in the predicted cross-sections or in the number of multijet events, in case of the multijet process.
Definition of the fiducial phase space.
This paper presents a search for direct electroweak gaugino or gluino pair production with a chargino nearly mass-degenerate with a stable neutralino. It is based on an integrated luminosity of 36.1 $\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ of $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. The final state of interest is a disappearing track accompanied by at least one jet with high transverse momentum from initial-state radiation or by four jets from the gluino decay chain. The use of short track segments reconstructed from the innermost tracking layers significantly improves the sensitivity to short chargino lifetimes. The results are found to be consistent with Standard Model predictions. Exclusion limits are set at 95% confidence level on the mass of charginos and gluinos for different chargino lifetimes. For a pure wino with a lifetime of about 0.2 ns, chargino masses up to 460 GeV are excluded. For the strong production channel, gluino masses up to 1.65 TeV are excluded assuming a chargino mass of 460 GeV and lifetime of 0.2 ns.
Expected exclusion limit at 95% CL obtained in the electroweak production channel in terms of the chargino lifetime ($\tau_{\tilde{\chi}_{1}^{\pm}}$) and mass ($m_{\tilde{\chi}_{1}^{\pm}}$).
Expected exclusion limit at 95% CL obtained in the electroweak production channel in terms of the chargino lifetime ($\tau_{\tilde{\chi}_{1}^{\pm}}$) and mass ($m_{\tilde{\chi}_{1}^{\pm}}$).
Expected exclusion limit at 95% CL obtained in the electroweak production channel in terms of the chargino lifetime ($\tau_{\tilde{\chi}_{1}^{\pm}}$) and mass ($m_{\tilde{\chi}_{1}^{\pm}}$).
A search for Supersymmetry involving the pair production of gluinos decaying via third-generation squarks to the lightest neutralino is reported. It uses an LHC proton--proton dataset at a center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV with an integrated luminosity of 3.2 fb$^{-1}$ collected with the ATLAS detector in 2015. The signal is searched for in events containing several energetic jets, of which at least three must be identified as $b$-jets, large missing transverse momentum and, potentially, isolated electrons or muons. Large-radius jets with a high mass are also used to identify highly boosted top quarks. No excess is found above the predicted background. For neutralino masses below approximately 700 GeV, gluino masses of less than 1.78 TeV and 1.76 TeV are excluded at the 95% CL in simplified models of the pair production of gluinos decaying via sbottom and stop, respectively. These results significantly extend the exclusion limits obtained with the $\sqrt{s} = 8$ TeV dataset.
Acceptance times efficiency for the Gtt model in SR-Gtt-1L-A.
The result of a search for pair production of the supersymmetric partner of the Standard Model bottom quark ($\tilde{b}_1$) is reported. The search uses 3.2 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}=$13 TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider in 2015. Bottom squarks are searched for in events containing large missing transverse momentum and exactly two jets identified as originating from $b$-quarks. No excess above the expected Standard Model background yield is observed. Exclusion limits at 95% confidence level on the mass of the bottom squark are derived in phenomenological supersymmetric $R$-parity-conserving models in which the $\tilde{b}_1$ is the lightest squark and is assumed to decay exclusively via $\tilde{b}_1 \rightarrow b \tilde{\chi}_1^0$, where $\tilde{\chi}_1^0$ is the lightest neutralino. The limits significantly extend previous results; bottom squark masses up to 800 (840) GeV are excluded for the $\tilde{\chi}_1^0$ mass below 360 (100) GeV whilst differences in mass above 100 GeV between the $\tilde{b}_1$ and the $\tilde{\chi}_1^0$ are excluded up to a $\tilde{b}_1$ mass of 500 GeV.
Expected exclusion limit at 95% CL in the $m(\tilde b_1)$-$m(\tilde\chi^0_1)$ plane for the sbottom pair production scenario.
Observed exclusion limit at 95% CL in the $m(\tilde b_1)$-$m(\tilde\chi^0_1)$ plane for the sbottom pair production scenario.
Expected exclusion limit at 95% CL in the $m(\tilde b_1)$-$m(\tilde\chi^0_1)$ plane for the sbottom pair production scenario, for signal region SRA250.
Two searches for new phenomena in final states containing a same-flavour opposite-lepton (electron or muon) pair, jets, and large missing transverse momentum are presented. These searches make use of proton--proton collision data, collected during 2015 and 2016 at a centre-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider, which correspond to an integrated luminosity of 14.7 fb$^{-1}$. Both searches target the pair production of supersymmetric particles, squarks or gluinos, which decay to final states containing a same-flavour opposite-sign lepton pair via one of two mechanisms: a leptonically decaying Z boson in the final state, leading to a peak in the dilepton invariant-mass distribution around the Z boson mass; and decays of neutralinos (e.g. $\tilde{\chi}_2^0 \rightarrow \ell^+\ell^- \tilde{\chi}_1^0$), yielding a kinematic endpoint in the dilepton invariant-mass spectrum. The data are found to be consistent with the Standard Model expectation. Results are interpreted in simplified models of gluino-pair (squark-pair) production, and provide sensitivity to gluinos (squarks) with masses as large as 1.70 TeV (980 GeV).
Cutflow table for three benchmark signal points from the $\tilde{g}$--$\chi_{2}^{0}$ on-shell grid in SRZ for the $ee$ and $\mu\mu$ channels separately. The number of generated events is N RAW, while N WEIGHTED corresponds to the number of events expected in 14.7/fb, after all MC simulation corrections have been applied.
The results of a search for direct pair production of heavy top-quark partners in 4.7 fb-1 of integrated luminosity from pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC are reported. Heavy top-quark partners decaying into a top quark and a neutral non-interacting particle are searched for in events with two leptons in the final state. No excess above the Standard Model expectation is observed. Limits are placed on the mass of a supersymmetric scalar top and of a spin-1/2 top-quark partner. A spin-1/2 top-quark partner with a mass between 300 GeV and 480 GeV, decaying to a top quark and a neutral non-interacting particle lighter than 100 GeV, is excluded at 95% confidence level.
(1) Number of generated MC events for the scalar top signal grid (2) Relative Cross section uncertainties for the scalar top signal grid.
(1) Acceptance of the same flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid (2) Selection efficiency of the same flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid (3) Product of the acceptance and efficiency of the same flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid (4) Relative experimental uncertainties on the acceptance times efficiency of the same flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid.
(1) Acceptance of the different flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid (2) Selection efficiency of the different flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid (3) Product of the acceptance and efficiency of the different flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid (4) Relative experimental uncertainties on the acceptance times efficiency of the different flavour selection for the scalar top signal grid.
A search for strongly produced supersymmetric particles is conducted using signatures involving multiple energetic jets and either two isolated leptons ($e$ or $\mu$) with the same electric charge or at least three isolated leptons. The search also utilises $b$-tagged jets, missing transverse momentum and other observables to extend its sensitivity. The analysis uses a data sample of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider in 2015 corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 3.2 fb$^{-1}$. No significant excess over the Standard Model expectation is observed. The results are interpreted in several simplified supersymmetric models and extend the exclusion limits from previous searches. In the context of exclusive production and simplified decay modes, gluino masses are excluded at 95% confidence level up to 1.1-1.3 TeV for light neutralinos (depending on the decay channel), and bottom squark masses are also excluded up to 540 GeV. In the former scenarios, neutralino masses are also excluded up to 550-850 GeV for gluino masses around 1 TeV.
Observed exclusion limits on the $\tilde g$ and $\tilde\chi_1^0$ masses in the context of SUSY scenarios with simplified mass spectra featuring $\tilde g\tilde g$ pair production with exclusive $\tilde g\to qq(\tilde\ell\ell/\tilde\nu\nu)$ decays. All limits are computed at 95% CL.
Expected exclusion limits on the $\tilde g$ and $\tilde\chi_1^0$ masses in the context of SUSY scenarios with simplified mass spectra featuring $\tilde g\tilde g$ pair production with exclusive $\tilde g\to qq(\tilde\ell\ell/\tilde\nu\nu)$ decays. All limits are computed at 95% CL.
Upper limits on signal cross-sections as function of the $\tilde g$ and $\tilde\chi_1^0$ masses in the context of SUSY scenarios with simplified mass spectra featuring $\tilde g\tilde g$ pair production with exclusive $\tilde g\to qq(\tilde\ell\ell/\tilde\nu\nu)$ decays, obtained using the signal efficiency and acceptance specific to each model. All limits are computed at 95% CL.
A search for $W^\prime$ bosons in events with one lepton (electron or muon) and missing transverse momentum is presented. The search uses 3.2 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collision data collected at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC in 2015. The transverse mass distribution is examined and no significant excess of events above the level expected from Standard Model processes is observed. Upper limits on the $W^\prime$ boson cross-section times branching ratio to leptons are set as a function of the $W^\prime$ mass. Assuming a $W^\prime$ boson as predicted by the Sequential Standard Model, $W^\prime$ masses below 4.07 TeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level. This extends the limit set using LHC data at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV by around 800 GeV.
Observed and predicted electron channel transverse mass (MT) distribution in the search region. The bin width is constant in log(MT).
Observed and predicted muon channel transverse mass (MT) distribution in the search region. The bin width is constant in log(MT).
Median expected and observed 95% CL upper limits on the cross-section times branching ratio (sigma*B) for W'_SSM production for the exclusive muon and electron channels, and for both channels combined.
A search for pair production of a scalar partner of the top quark in events with four or more jets plus missing transverse momentum is presented. An analysis of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of $\sqrt{s}$=13 TeV proton-proton collisions collected using the ATLAS detector at the LHC yields no significant excess over the expected Standard Model background. To interpret the results a simplified supersymmetric model is used where the top squark is assumed to decay via $\tilde{t}_1 \rightarrow t^{(*)} \tilde\chi^0_1$ and $\tilde{t}_1\rightarrow b\tilde\chi^\pm_1 \rightarrow b W^{(*)} \tilde\chi^0_1$, where $\tilde\chi^0_1$ ($\chi^\pm_1$) denotes the lightest neutralino (chargino). Exclusion limits are placed in terms of the top-squark and neutralino masses. Assuming a branching ratio of 100% to $t \tilde\chi^0_1$, top-squark masses in the range 450-950 GeV are excluded for $\tilde\chi^0_1$ masses below 160 GeV. In the case where $m_{\tilde{t}_1}\sim m_t+m_{\tilde\chi^0_1}$, top-squark masses in the range 235-590 GeV are excluded.
Results of the exclusion fits for top squark pair production in the case where both top squarks decay via $\tilde{t}\to t^{(*)} \tilde{\chi^{0}_{1}}$ from the combination of SRA, SRB, SRC, SRD and SRE, based on the best expected $CL_s$. The numbers centered on the grid points indicate which of the signal regions gave the best expected $CL_s$ (with 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 corresponding to SRA, SRB, SRC, SRD-low,SR D-high, SRE respectively).
Results of the exclusion fits for top squark pair production in the case where both top squarks decay via $\tilde{t}\to t^{(*)} \tilde{\chi^{0}_{1}}$ from the combination of SRA, SRB, SRC, SRD and SRE, based on the best expected $CL_s$. The numbers centered on the grid points indicate which of the signal regions gave the best expected $CL_s$ (with 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 corresponding to SRA, SRB, SRC, SRD-low,SR D-high, SRE respectively).
Results of the exclusion fits for top squark pair production in the case where both top squarks decay via $\tilde{t}\to t^{(*)} \tilde{\chi^{0}_{1}}$ from the combination of SRA, SRB, SRC, SRD and SRE, based on the best expected $CL_s$. The numbers centered on the grid points indicate which of the signal regions gave the best expected $CL_s$ (with 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 corresponding to SRA, SRB, SRC, SRD-low,SR D-high, SRE respectively).
The results of a search for the stop, the supersymmetric partner of the top quark, in final states with one isolated electron or muon, jets, and missing transverse momentum are reported. The search uses the 2015 LHC $pp$ collision data at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.2 fb${}^{-1}$. The analysis targets two types of signal models: gluino-mediated pair production of stops with a nearly mass-degenerate stop and neutralino; and direct pair production of stops, decaying to the top quark and the lightest neutralino. The experimental signature in both signal scenarios is similar to that of a top quark pair produced in association with large missing transverse momentum. No significant excess over the Standard Model background prediction is observed, and exclusion limits on gluino and stop masses are set at 95% confidence level. The results extend the LHC Run-1 exclusion limit on the gluino mass up to 1460 GeV in the gluino-mediated scenario in the high gluino and low stop mass region, and add an excluded stop mass region from 745 to 780 GeV for the direct stop model with a massless lightest neutralino. The results are also reinterpreted to set exclusion limits in a model of vector-like top quarks.
Expected (black dashed) 95% excluded regions in the plane of $m_{\tilde{g}}$ versus $m_{\tilde{t}_1}$ for gluino-mediated stop production.
Observed (red solid) 95% excluded regions in the plane of $m_{\tilde{g}}$ versus $m_{\tilde{t}_1}$ for gluino-mediated stop production.
Expected (black dashed) 95% excluded regions in the plane of $m_{\tilde{t}_1}$ versus $m_{\tilde{\chi}_1^0}$ for direct stop production.
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