Measurements of the cross section and forward-backward asymmetry for the reaction e + e − → μ + μ − using the DELPHI detector at LEP are presented. The data come from a scan around the Z 0 peak at seven centre of mass energies, giving a sample of 3858 events in the polar angle region 22° < θ < 158°. From a fit to the cross section for 43° < θ < 137°, a polar angle region for which the absolute efficiency has been determined, the square root of the product of the Z 0 → e + e − and Z 0 → μ + μ − partial widths is determined to be (Γ e Γ μ ) 1 2 = 85.0 ± 0.9( stat. ) ± 0.8( syst. ) MeV . From this measurement of the partial width, the value of the effective weak mixing angle is determined to be sin 2 ( θ w ) = 0.2267 ± 0.0037 . The ratio of the hadronic to muon pair partial widths is found to be Γ h / Γ μ = 19.89 ± 0.40(stat.) ± 0.19(syst.). The forward-backward asymmetry at the resonance peak energy E CMS = 91.22 GeV is found to be A FB = 0.028 ± 0.020(stat.) ± 0.005(syst.). From a combined fit to the cross section and forward-backward asymmetry data, the products of the electron and muon vector and axial-vector coupling constants are determined to be V e V μ = 0.0024 ± 0.0015(stat.) ± 0.0004(syst.) and A e A μ = 0.253 ± 0.003(stat.) ± 0.003 (syst.). The results are in good agreement with the expectations of the minimal standard model.

Exclusive electroproduction of $\phi$ mesons has been studied in $e^\pm p$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}=318 \gev$ with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of 65.1 pb$^{-1}$. The $\gamma^*p$ cross section is presented in the kinematic range $2<Q^2<70 \gev^2$, $35<W<145 \gev$ and ${|t|}<0.6 \gev^2$. The cross sections as functions of $Q^2$, $W$, $t$ and helicity angle $\theta_h$ are compared to cross sections for other vector mesons. The ratios $R$ of the cross sections for longitudinally and transversely polarized virtual photons are presented as functions of $Q^2$ and $W$. The data are also compared to predictions from theoretical models.

Exclusive production of $\rho^0$ and $J/\psi$ mesons in e^+ p collisions has been studied with the ZEUS detector in the kinematic range $0.25 < Q^2 < 50 GeV^2, 20 < W < 167 GeV$ for the $\rho^0$ data and $2 < Q^2 < 40 GeV^2, 50 < W < 150 GeV$ for the $J/\psi$ data. Cross sections for exclusive $\rho^0$ and $J/\psi$ production have been measured as a function of $Q^2, W$ and $t$. The spin-density matrix elements $r^{04}_{00}, r^1_{1-1}$ and $Re r^{5}_{10}$ have been determined for exclusive $\rho^0$ production as well as $r^{04}_{00}$ and $r^{04}_{1-1}$ for exclusive $J/\psi$ production. The results are discussed in the context of theoretical models invoking soft and hard phenomena.

Exclusive rho^0 electroproduction at HERA has been studied with the ZEUS detector using 120 pb^{-1} of integrated luminosity collected during 1996-2000. The analysis was carried out in the kinematic range of photon virtuality 2 < Q^2 < 160 GeV$^2, and gamma^* p centre-of-mass energy 32 < W < 180 GeV. The results include the Q^2 and W dependence of the gamma^* p --> rho^0 p cross section and the distribution of the squared-four-momentum transfer to the proton. The helicity analysis of the decay-matrix elements of the rho^0 was used to study the ratio of the gamma^* p cross section for longitudinal and transverse photon as a function of Q^2 and W. Finally, an effective Pomeron trajectory was extracted. The results are compared to various theoretical predictions.

Invariant single-particle cross sections for pion and proton production in π ± p interactions at 8 and 16 GeV/ c are presented in terms of integrated distributions as functions of x , reduced rapidity ζ and p ⊥ 2 , and also in terms of double differential cross sections E d 2 σ /(d x d p ⊥ 2 ) and d ζ d p ⊥ 2 ). A comparison of π ± and π − induced reactions is made and the energy dependence is discussed. It is shown that the single-particle structure function cannot be factorized in its dependece on transverse and longitudinal momentum. For the beam-unlike pion, there is an indication for factorizability in terms of rapidity and transverse momentum in a small central region.

A first measurement of the inelastic cross-section is presented for proton-proton collisions at a center of mass energy sqrt{s}=7 TeV using the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. In a dataset corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20 mub-1, events are selected by requiring hits on scintillation counters mounted in the forward region of the detector. An inelastic cross-section of $60.3 +/- 2.1 mb is measured for xi > 5x10^-6, where xi=M_X^2/s is calculated from the invariant mass, M_X, of hadrons selected using the largest rapidity gap in the event. For diffractive events this corresponds to requiring at least one of the dissociation masses to be larger than 15.7 GeV.

During the LEP running periods in 1990 and 1991 DELPHI has accumulated approximately 450 000 Z 0 decays into hadrons and charged leptons. The increased event statistics coupled with improved analysis techniques and improved knowledge of the LEP beam energies permit significantly better measurements of the mass and width of the Z 0 resonance. Model independent fits to the cross sections and leptonic forward- backward asymmetries yield the following Z 0 parameters: the mass and total width M Z = 91.187 ± 0.009 GeV, Γ Z = 2.486 ± 0.012 GeV, the hadronicf and leptonic partials widths Γ had = 1.725 ± 0.012 GeV, Γ ℓ = 83.01 ± 0.52 MeV, the invisible width Γ inv = 512 ± 10 MeV, the ratio of hadronic to leptonic partial widths R ℓ = 20.78 ± 0.15, and the Born level hadronic peak cross section σ 0 = 40.90 ± 0.28 nb. Using these results and the value of α s determined from DELPHI data, the number of light neutrino species is determined to be 3.08 ± 0.05. The individual leptonic widths are found to be: Γ e = 82.93 ± 0.70 MeV, Γ μ = 83.20 ± 1.11 MeV and Γ τ = 82.89 ± 1.31 MeV. Using the measured leptonic forward-backward asymmetries and assuming lepton universality, the squared vector and axial-vector couplings of the Z 0 to charged leptons are found to be g V ℓ 2 = (1.47 ± 0.51) × 10 −3 and g A ℓ 2 = 0.2483 ± 0.0016. A full Standard Model fit to the data yields a value of the top mass m t = 115 −82 +52 (expt.) −24 +52 (Higgs) GeV, corresponding to a value of the weak mixing angle sin 2 θ eff lept = 0.2339±0.0015 (expt.) −0.0004 +0.0001 (Higgs). Values are obtained for the variables S and T , or ϵ 1 and ϵ 3 which parameterize electroweak loop effects.

We employ data taken by the JADE and OPAL experiments for an integrated QCD study in hadronic e+e- annihilations at c.m.s. energies ranging from 35 GeV through 189 GeV. The study is based on jet-multiplicity related observables. The observables are obtained to high jet resolution scales with the JADE, Durham, Cambridge and cone jet finders, and compared with the predictions of various QCD and Monte Carlo models. The strong coupling strength, alpha_s, is determined at each energy by fits of O(alpha_s^2) calculations, as well as matched O(alpha_s^2) and NLLA predictions, to the data. Matching schemes are compared, and the dependence of the results on the choice of the renormalization scale is investigated. The combination of the results using matched predictions gives alpha_s(MZ)=0.1187+{0.0034}-{0.0019}. The strong coupling is also obtained, at lower precision, from O(alpha_s^2) fits of the c.m.s. energy evolution of some of the observables. A qualitative comparison is made between the data and a recent MLLA prediction for mean jet multiplicities.

A search for heavy neutral Higgs bosons is performed using the LHC Run 2 data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector. The search for heavy resonances is performed over the mass range 0.2-2.5 TeV for the $\tau^+\tau^-$ decay with at least one $\tau$-lepton decaying into final states with hadrons. The data are in good agreement with the background prediction of the Standard Model. In the $M_{h}^{125}$ scenario of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model, values of $\tan\beta>8$ and $\tan\beta>21$ are excluded at the 95% confidence level for neutral Higgs boson masses of 1.0 TeV and 1.5 TeV, respectively, where $\tan\beta$ is the ratio of the vacuum expectation values of the two Higgs doublets.

Deep inelastic scattering and its diffractive component, ep -> e'gamma*p ->e'XN, have been studied at HERA with the ZEUS detector using an integrated luminosity of 4.2 pb-1. The measurement covers a wide range in the gamma*p c.m. energy W (37 - 245 GeV), photon virtuality Q2 (2.2 - 80 GeV2) and mass Mx. The diffractive cross section for Mx > 2 GeV rises strongly with W: the rise is steeper with increasing Q2. The latter observation excludes the description of diffractive deep inelastic scattering in terms of the exchange of a single Pomeron. The ratio of diffractive to total cross section is constant as a function of W, in contradiction to the expectation of Regge phenomenology combined with a naive extension of the optical theorem to gamma*p scattering. Above Mx of 8 GeV, the ratio is flat with Q2, indicating a leading-twist behaviour of the diffractive cross section. The data are also presented in terms of the diffractive structure function, F2D(3)(beta,xpom,Q2), of the proton. For fixed beta, the Q2 dependence of xpom F2D(3) changes with xpom in violation of Regge factorisation. For fixed xpom, xpom F2D(3) rises as beta -> 0, the rise accelerating with increasing Q2. These positive scaling violations suggest substantial contributions of perturbative effects in the diffractive DIS cross section.