Results of a search for new phenomena in events with an energetic photon and large missing transverse momentum with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider are reported. The data were collected in proton--proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 3.2 $\rm fb^{-1}$. The observed data are in agreement with the Standard Model expectations. Exclusion limits are presented in models of new phenomena including pair production of dark matter candidates or large extra spatial dimensions. In a simplified model of dark matter and an axial-vector mediator, the search excludes mediator masses of up to 710 GeV for dark matter candidate masses up to 150 GeV. In an effective theory of dark matter production, values of the suppression scale $M_*$ up to 570 GeV are excluded and the effect of truncation for various coupling values is reported. For the ADD large extra spatial dimension model the search places more stringent limits than earlier searches in the same event topology, excluding $M_{\rm D}$ up to about 2.3 (2.8) TeV for two (six) additional spatial dimensions; the limits are reduced by 20--40% depending on the number of additional spatial dimensions when applying a truncation procedure.

The $ZZ$ production cross section in proton-proton collisions at 13 TeV center-of-mass energy is measured using 3.2 fb$^{-1}$ of data recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The considered $Z$ boson candidates decay to an electron or muon pair of mass 66-116 GeV. The cross section is measured in a fiducial phase space reflecting the detector acceptance. It is also extrapolated to a total phase space for $Z$ bosons in the same mass range and of all decay modes, giving $16.7^{+2.2}_{-2.0}$(stat.)$^{+0.9}_{-0.7}$(syst.)$^{+1.0}_{-0.7}$(lumi.) pb. The results agree with standard model predictions.

The momentum-weighted sum of the charges of tracks associated to a jet is sensitive to the charge of the initiating quark or gluon. This paper presents a measurement of the distribution of momentum-weighted sums, called jet charge, in dijet events using 20.3 fb$^{-1}$ of data recorded with the ATLAS detector at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV in $pp$ collisions at the LHC. The jet charge distribution is unfolded to remove distortions from detector effects and the resulting particle-level distribution is compared with several models. The $p_T$-dependence of the jet charge distribution average and standard deviation are compared to predictions obtained with several LO and NLO parton distribution functions. The data are also compared to different Monte Carlo simulations of QCD dijet production using various settings of the free parameters within these models. The chosen value of the strong coupling constant used to calculate gluon radiation is found to have a significant impact on the predicted jet charge. There is evidence for a $p_{T}$-dependence of the jet charge distribution for a given jet flavor. In agreement with perturbative QCD predictions, the data show that the average jet charge of quark-initiated jets decreases in magnitude as the energy of the jet increases.

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.

This paper presents measurements of $W^\pm Z$ production in $pp$ collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 8 TeV. The gauge bosons are reconstructed using their leptonic decay modes into electrons and muons. The data were collected in 2012 by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 20.3 fb$^{-1}$. The measured inclusive cross section in the detector fiducial region is $\sigma_{W^\pm Z \rightarrow \ell^{'} \nu\ \ell \ell} = 35.1 \pm$ 0.9 (stat.) $\pm 0.8$ (sys.) $\pm 0.8$ (lumi.) fb, for one leptonic decay channel. In comparison, the next-to-leading-order Standard Model expectation is 30.0 $\pm$ 2.1 fb. Cross sections for $W^+Z$ and $W^-Z$ production and their ratio are presented as well as differential cross sections for several kinematic observables. Limits on anomalous triple gauge boson couplings are derived from the transverse mass spectrum of the $W^\pm Z$ system. From the analysis of events with a $W$ and a $Z$ boson associated with two or more forward jets an upper limit at 95% confidence level on the $W^\pm Z$ scattering cross section of 0.63 fb, for each leptonic decay channel, is established, while the Standard Model prediction at next-to-leading order is 0.13 fb. Limits on anomalous quartic gauge boson couplings are also extracted.

The dijet production cross section for jets containing a $b$-hadron ($b$-jets) has been measured in proton-proton collisions with a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s} = 7$ TeV, using the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The data used correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.2 fb$^{-1}$. The cross section is measured for events with two identified $b$-jets with a transverse momentum $p_T > 20$ GeV and a minimum separation in the $\eta$-$\phi$ plane of $\Delta R = 0.4$. At least one of the jets in the event is required to have $p_T > 270$ GeV. The cross section is measured differentially as a function of dijet invariant mass, dijet transverse momentum, boost of the dijet system, and the rapidity difference, azimuthal angle and angular distance between the $b$-jets. The results are compared to different predictions of leading order and next-to-leading order perturbative quantum chromodynamics matrix elements supplemented with models for parton-showers and hadronization.

Distributions sensitive to the underlying event in QCD jet events have been measured with the ATLAS detector at the LHC, based on 37/pb of proton-proton collision data collected at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV. Charged-particle mean $p_T$ and densities of all-particle $E_T$ and charged-particle multiplicity and $p_T$ have been measured in regions azimuthally transverse to the hardest jet in each event. These are presented both as one-dimensional distributions and with their mean values as functions of the leading-jet transverse momentum from 20 GeV to 800 GeV. The correlation of charged-particle mean $p_T$ with charged-particle multiplicity is also studied, and the $E_T$ densities include the forward rapidity region; these features provide extra data constraints for Monte Carlo modelling of colour reconnection and beam-remnant effects respectively. For the first time, underlying event observables have been computed separately for inclusive jet and exclusive dijet event selections, allowing more detailed study of the interplay of multiple partonic scattering and QCD radiation contributions to the underlying event. Comparisons to the predictions of different Monte Carlo models show a need for further model tuning, but the standard approach is found to generally reproduce the features of the underlying event in both types of event selection.

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider is used to search for high-mass resonances decaying to dielectron or dimuon final states. Results are presented from an analysis of proton-proton (pp) collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 8 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20.3 fb-1 in the dielectron channel and 20.5 fb-1 in the dimuon channel. A narrow resonance with Standard Model Z couplings to fermions is excluded at 95% confidence level for masses less than 2.79 TeV in the dielectron channel, 2.53 TeV in the dimuon channel, and 2.90 TeV in the two channels combined. Limits on other model interpretations are also presented, including a grand-unification model based on the E6 gauge group, Z* bosons, Minimal Z' Models, a spin-2 graviton excitation from Randall-Sundrum models, quantum black holes and a Minimal Walking Technicolor model with a composite Higgs boson.

A search for resonant WZ production in the lnul'l' (l, l'= e,mu) decay channel using 20.3 fb-1 of sqrt(s) = 8 TeV pp collision data collected by the ATLAS experiment at LHC is presented. No significant deviation from the Standard Model prediction is observed and upper limits on the production cross sections of WZ resonances from an extended gauge model W' and from a simplified model of heavy vector triplets are derived. A corresponding observed (expected) lower mass limit of 1.52 (1.49) TeV is derived for the W' at the 95% confidence level.

This paper presents a search for new particles in events with one lepton (electron or muon) and missing transverse momentum using 20.3 $fb^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. No significant excess beyond Standard Model expectations is observed. A $W'$ with Sequential Standard Model couplings is excluded at the 95% confidence level for masses up to 3.24 TeV. Excited chiral bosons ($W^{*}$) with equivalent coupling strengths are excluded for masses up to 3.21 TeV. In the framework of an effective field theory limits are also set on the dark matter-nucleon scattering cross-section as well as the mass scale $M_{*}$ of the unknown mediating interaction for dark matter pair production in association with a leptonically decaying $W$.