A measurement of total and fiducial inclusive W and Z boson production cross sections in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 8 TeV is presented. Electron and muon final states are analyzed in a data sample collected with the CMS detector corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 18.2 +/- 0.5 inverse-picobarns. The measured total inclusive cross sections times branching fractions are $\sigma(pp \to WX) \times B(W \to l\nu)$ = 12.21 +/- 0.03 (stat) +/- 0.24 (syst) +/- 0.32 (lum) nb, and $\sigma(pp \to ZX) \times B(Z \to l^{+}l^{-})$ = 1.15 +/- 0.01 (stat) +/- 0.02 (syst) +/- 0.03 (lum) nb, for the dilepton mass in the range of 60 to 120 GeV. The measured values agree with next-to-next-to-leading-order QCD cross section calculations. Ratios of cross sections are reported with a precision of 2%. This is the first measurement of inclusive W and Z boson production in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 8 TeV.

The ratios of the production cross sections between the excited $\Upsilon$(2S) and $\Upsilon$(3S) mesons and the $\Upsilon$(1S) ground state, detected via their decay into two muons, are studied as a function of the number of charged particles in the event. The data are from proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 7 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.8 fb$^{-1}$, collected with the CMS detector at the LHC. Evidence of a decrease in these ratios as a function of the particle multiplicity is observed, more pronounced at low transverse momentum $p_\mathrm{T}^{\mu\mu}$. For $\Upsilon$(nS) mesons with $p_\mathrm{T}^{\mu\mu}$ $\gt$ 7 GeV, where most of the data were collected, the correlation with multiplicity is studied as a function of the underlying event transverse sphericity and the number of particles in a cone around the $\Upsilon$(nS) direction. The ratios are found to be multiplicity independent for jet-like events. The mean $p_\mathrm{T}^{\mu\mu}$ values for the $\Upsilon$(nS) states as a function of particle multiplicity are also measured and found to grow more steeply as their mass increases.

The dependence of the ratio between the B$_\mathrm{s}^0$ and B$^+$ hadron production fractions, $f_\mathrm{s} / f_\mathrm{u}$, on the transverse momentum ($p_\mathrm{T}$) and rapidity of the B mesons is studied using the decay channels B$_\mathrm{s}^0$$\to$ J$/\psi\,\phi$ and B$^+$$\to$ J$/\psi$ K$^+$. The analysis uses a data sample of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, collected by the CMS experiment in 2018 and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 61.6 fb$^{-1}$. The $f_\mathrm{s} / f_\mathrm{u}$ ratio is observed to depend on the B $p_\mathrm{T}$ and to be consistent with becoming asymptotically constant at large $p_\mathrm{T}$. No rapidity dependence is observed. The ratio of the B$^0$ to B$^+$ hadron production fractions, $f_\mathrm{d} / f_\mathrm{u}$, measured using the B$^0$$\to$ J$/\psi$ K$^{*0}$ decay channel, is found to be consistent with unity and independent of $p_\mathrm{T}$ and rapidity, as expected from isospin invariance.

A search is performed for the rare decay W$^\pm\to\pi^\pm\gamma$ in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV. Data corresponding to an on W integrated luminosity of 137 fb$^{-1}$ were collected during 2016 to 2018 with the CMS detector. This analysis exploits a novel search strategy based on W boson production in top quark pair events. An inclusive search for the W$^\pm\to\pi^\pm\gamma$ decay is not optimal at the LHC because of the high trigger thresholds. Instead, a trigger selection is exploited in which the W boson originating from one of the top quarks is used to tag the event in a leptonic decay. The W boson emerging from the other top quark is used to search for the W$^\pm\to\pi^\pm\gamma$ signature. Such decays are characterized by an isolated track pointing to a large energy deposit, and by an isolated photon of large transverse momentum. The presence of b quark jets reduces the background from the hadronization of light-flavor quarks and gluons. The W$^\pm\to\pi^\pm\gamma$ decay is not observed. An upper exclusion limit is set to this branching fraction, corresponding to 1.50 $\times$ 10$^{-5}$ at 95% confidence level, whereas the expected upper limit exclusion limit is 0.85 $^{+0.52}_{-0.29}$ $\times$ 10$^{-5}$.

The ratio of the top-quark branching fractions $R = B(t \to Wb)/B(t \to Wq)$, where the denominator includes the sum over all down-type quarks (q = b, s, d), is measured in the $t\bar{t}$ dilepton final state with proton-proton collision data at $\sqrt{s}$ = 8 TeV from an integrated luminosity of 19.7 inverse-femtobarns, collected with the CMS detector. In order to quantify the purity of the signal sample, the cross section is measured by fitting the observed jet multiplicity, thereby constraining the signal and background contributions. By counting the number of b jets per event, an unconstrained value of R = 1.014 $\pm$ 0.003 (stat) $\pm$ 0.032 (syst) is measured, in good agreement with the standard model prediction. A lower limit R greater than 0.955 at the 95% confidence level is obtained after requiring R lower than one, and a lower limit on the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |$V_tb$| greater than 0.975 is set at 95% confidence level. The result is combined with a previous CMS measurement of the t-channel single-top-quark cross section to determine the top-quark total decay width, $\Gamma_t$ = 1.36 $\pm$ 0.02 (stat)$^{+0.14}_{-0.11}$ (syst) GeV.

The ALICE collaboration at the LHC reports measurement of the inclusive production cross section of electrons from semi-leptonic decays of beauty hadrons with rapidity $|y|<0.8$ and transverse momentum $1<p_{\mathrm{T}}<10$ GeV/$c$, in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} = $ 2.76 TeV. Electrons not originating from semi-electronic decay of beauty hadrons are suppressed using the impact parameter of the corresponding tracks. The production cross section of beauty decay electrons is compared to the result obtained with an alternative method which uses the distribution of the azimuthal angle between heavy-flavour decay electrons and charged hadrons. Perturbative QCD calculations agree with the measured cross section within the experimental and theoretical uncertainties. The integrated visible cross section, $\sigma_{\mathrm{b} \rightarrow \mathrm{e}} = 3.47\pm0.40(\mathrm{stat})^{+1.12}_{-1.33}(\mathrm{sys})\pm0.07(\mathrm{norm}) \mu$b, was extrapolated to full phase space using Fixed Order plus Next-to-Leading Log (FONLL) predictions to obtain the total b$\bar{\mathrm{b}}$ production cross section, $\sigma_{\mathrm{b\bar{b}}} = 130\pm15.1(\mathrm{stat})^{+42.1}_{-49.8}(\mathrm{sys})^{+3.4}_{-3.1}(\mathrm{extr})\pm2.5(\mathrm{norm})\pm4.4(\mathrm{BR}) \mu$b.

The production of (anti-)deuteron and (anti-)$^{3}$He nuclei in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV has been studied using the ALICE detector at the LHC. The spectra exhibit a significant hardening with increasing centrality. Combined blast-wave fits of several particles support the interpretation that this behavior is caused by an increase of radial flow. The integrated particle yields are discussed in the context of coalescence and thermal-statistical model expectations. The particle ratios, $^3$He/d and $^3$He/p, in Pb-Pb collisions are found to be in agreement with a common chemical freeze-out temperature of $T_{\rm chem} \approx 156$ MeV. These ratios do not vary with centrality which is in agreement with the thermal-statistical model. In a coalescence approach, it excludes models in which nucleus production is proportional to the particle multiplicity and favors those in which it is proportional to the particle density instead. In addition, the observation of 31 anti-tritons in Pb-Pb collisions is reported. For comparison, the deuteron spectrum in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 7$ TeV is also presented. While the p/$\pi$ ratio is similar in pp and Pb-Pb collisions, the d/p ratio in pp collisions is found to be lower by a factor of 2.2 than in Pb-Pb collisions.

We present measurements of two-particle correlations with neutral pion trigger particles of transverse momenta $8 < p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm trig} < 16~\mathrm{GeV}/c$ and associated charged particles of $0.5 < p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm assoc} < 10~\mathrm{GeV}/c$ versus the azimuthal angle difference $\Delta\varphi$ at midrapidity in pp and central Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}=2.76$ TeV with ALICE. The new measurements exploit associated charged hadrons down to $0.5~\mathrm{GeV}/c$, which significantly extends our previous measurement that only used charged hadrons above $3~\mathrm{GeV}/c$. After subtracting the contributions of the flow background, $v_2$ to $v_5$, the per-trigger yields are extracted for $|\Delta\varphi|<0.7$ on the near and for $|\Delta\varphi-\pi| < 1.1$ on the away side. The ratio of per-trigger yields in Pb--Pb to those in pp collisions, $I_{\mathrm{AA}}$, is measured on the near and away side for the $0$--$10$\% most central Pb--Pb collisions. On the away side, the per-trigger yields in Pb--Pb are strongly suppressed to the level of $I_{\mathrm{AA}} \approx 0.6$ for $p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm assoc} > 3~\mathrm{GeV}/c$, while with decreasing momenta an enhancement develops reaching about $5$ at low $p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm assoc}$. On the near side, an enhancement of $I_{\mathrm{AA}}$ between $1.2$ at the highest to $1.8$ at the lowest $p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm assoc}$ is observed. The data are compared to parton-energy-loss predictions of the JEWEL and AMPT event generators, as well as to a perturbative QCD calculation with medium-modified fragmentation functions. All calculations qualitatively describe the away-side suppression at high $p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm assoc}$. Only AMPT captures the enhancement at low $p_{\mathrm{T}}^{\rm assoc}$, both on the near and away side. However, it also underpredicts $I_{\mathrm{AA}}$ above $5$ GeV/$c$, in particular on the near-side.

The transverse momentum ($p_{\mathrm T}$) distribution of primary charged particles is measured at midrapidity in minimum-bias p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}=5.02$ TeV with the ALICE detector at the LHC in the range $0.15<p_{\mathrm T}<50$ GeV/$c$. The spectra are compared to the expectation based on binary collision scaling of particle production in pp collisions, leading to a nuclear modification factor consistent with unity for $p_{\mathrm T}$ larger than 2 GeV/$c$, with a weak indication of a Cronin-like enhancement for $p_{\rm T}$ around 4 GeV/$c$. The measurement is compared to theoretical calculations and to data in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}=2.76$ TeV.

The production of K$^{*}$(892)$^{0}$ and $\phi$(1020) mesons has been measured in p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}$ = 5.02 TeV. K$^{*0}$ and $\phi$ are reconstructed via their decay into charged hadrons with the ALICE detector in the rapidity range $-0.5 < y <0$. The transverse momentum spectra, measured as a function of the multiplicity, have p$_{\mathrm{T}}$ range from 0 to 15 GeV/$c$ for K$^{*0}$ and from 0.3 to 21 GeV/$c$ for $\phi$. Integrated yields, mean transverse momenta and particle ratios are reported and compared with results in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 7 TeV and Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}}$ = 2.76 TeV. In Pb-Pb and p-Pb collisions, K$^{*0}$ and $\phi$ probe the hadronic phase of the system and contribute to the study of particle formation mechanisms by comparison with other identified hadrons. For this purpose, the mean transverse momenta and the differential proton-to-$\phi$ ratio are discussed as a function of the multiplicity of the event. The short-lived K$^{*0}$ is measured to investigate re-scattering effects, believed to be related to the size of the system and to the lifetime of the hadronic phase.