The measurement of the production of ${\rm f}_{0}(980)$ in inelastic pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 5.02$ TeV is presented. This is the first reported measurement of inclusive ${\rm f}_{0}(980)$ yield at LHC energies. The production is measured at midrapidity, $|y| < 0.5$, in a wide transverse momentum range, $0 < p_{\rm T} < 16$ GeV/$c$, by reconstructing the resonance in the ${\rm f}_{0}(980) \rightarrow \pi^{+}\pi^{-}$ hadronic decay channel using the ALICE detector. The $p_{\rm T}$-differential yields are compared to those of pions, protons and $\phi$ mesons as well as to predictions from the HERWIG 7.2 QCD-inspired Monte Carlo event generator and calculations from a coalescence model that uses the AMPT model as an input. The ratio of the $p_{\rm T}$-integrated yield of ${\rm f}_{0}(980)$ relative to pions is compared to measurements in ${\rm e}^{+}{\rm e}^{-}$ and pp collisions at lower energies and predictions from statistical hadronisation models and HERWIG 7.2. A mild collision energy dependence of the ${\rm f}_{0}(980)$ to pion production is observed in pp collisions from SPS to LHC energies. All considered models underpredict the $p_{\rm T}$-integrated $2{\rm f}_{0}(980)/(\pi^{+}+\pi^{-})$ ratio. The prediction from the canonical statistical hadronisation model assuming a zero total strangeness content of ${\rm f}_{0}(980)$ is consistent with the data within 1.9$\sigma$ and is the closest to the data. The results provide an essential reference for future measurements of the particle yield and nuclear modification in p$-$Pb and Pb$-$Pb collisions, which have been proposed to be instrumental to probe the elusive nature and quark composition of the ${\rm f}_{0}(980)$ scalar meson.

The production of K$^*$(892)$^\pm$ meson resonance is measured at midrapidity ($|y|<0.5$) in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=5.02$ TeV using the ALICE detector at the LHC. The resonance is reconstructed via its hadronic decay channel K$^*$(892)$^\pm \rightarrow \rm{K^0_S \pi^\pm}$. The transverse momentum distributions are obtained for various centrality intervals in the $p_{\rm T}$ range of 0.4-16 GeV/$c$. The reported measurements of integrated yields, mean transverse momenta, and particle yield ratios are consistent with previous ALICE measurements for K$^*$(892)$^0$. The $p_{\rm T}$-integrated yield ratio 2K$^*$(892)$^\pm$/($\rm{K^+ + K^-}$) in central Pb-Pb collisions shows a significant suppression (9.3$\sigma$) relative to pp collisions. Thermal model calculations overpredict the particle yield ratio. Although both simulations consider the hadronic phase, only HRG-PCE accurately represents the measurements, whereas MUSIC+SMASH tends to overpredict them. These observations, along with the kinetic freeze-out temperatures extracted from the yields of light-flavored hadrons using the HRG-PCE model, indicate a finite hadronic phase lifetime, which increases towards central collisions. The $p_{\rm T}$-differential yield ratios 2K$^*$(892)$^\pm$/($\rm{K^+ + K^-}$) and 2K$^*$(892)$^\pm$/($\rm{\pi^+ + \pi^-}$) are suppressed by up to a factor of five at $p_{\rm T}<2$ GeV/$c$ in central Pb-Pb collisions compared to pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 5.02 TeV. Both particle ratios and are qualitatively consistent with expectations for rescattering effects in the hadronic phase. The nuclear modification factor shows a smooth evolution with centrality and is below unity at $p_{\rm T}>8$ GeV/$c$, consistent with measurements for other light-flavored hadrons. The smallest values are observed in most central collisions, indicating larger energy loss of partons traversing the dense medium.

The first measurement of the production of pions, kaons, (anti-)protons and $\phi$ mesons at midrapidity in Xe-Xe collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 5.44$ TeV is presented. Transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) spectra and $p_{\rm T}$-integrated yields are extracted in several centrality intervals bridging from p-Pb to mid-central Pb-Pb collisions in terms of final-state multiplicity. The study of Xe-Xe and Pb-Pb collisions allows systems at similar charged-particle multiplicities but with different initial geometrical eccentricities to be investigated. A detailed comparison of the spectral shapes in the two systems reveals an opposite behaviour for radial and elliptic flow. In particular, this study shows that the radial flow does not depend on the colliding system when compared at similar charged-particle multiplicity. In terms of hadron chemistry, the previously observed smooth evolution of particle ratios with multiplicity from small to large collision systems is also found to hold in Xe-Xe. In addition, our results confirm that two remarkable features of particle production at LHC energies are also valid in the collision of medium-sized nuclei: the lower proton-to-pion ratio with respect to the thermal model expectations and the increase of the $\phi$-to-pion ratio with increasing final-state multiplicity.

The production of $\mathrm{K}^{*}(\mathrm{892})^{0}$ and $\mathrm{\phi(1020)}$ resonances has been measured in p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 8.16 TeV using the ALICE detector. Resonances are reconstructed via their hadronic decay channels in the rapidity interval $-$0.5 $<$$y$$<$ 0 and the transverse momentum spectra are measured for various multiplicity classes up to $p_{\rm T}$ = 20 GeV/$c$ for $\mathrm{K}^{*}(\mathrm{892})^{0}$ and $p_{\rm T}$ = 16 GeV/$c$ for $\mathrm{\phi(1020)}$. The $p_{\rm T}$ -integrated yields and mean transverse momenta are reported and compared with previous results in pp, p-Pb and Pb-Pb collisions. The $x_{\mathrm{T}}$ scaling for $\mathrm{K}^{*}(\mathrm{892})^{0}$ and $\mathrm{\phi(1020)}$ resonance production is newly tested in p-Pb collisions and found to hold in the high-$p_{\rm T}$ region at LHC energies. The nuclear modification factors ($R_{\rm pPb}$) as a function of $p_{\rm T}$ for $\mathrm{K}^{*0}$ and $\mathrm{\phi}$ at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 8.16 TeV are presented along with the new $R_{\rm pPb}$ measurements of $\mathrm{K}^{*0}$, $\mathrm{\phi}$ , $\Xi$, and $\Omega$ at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV. At intermediate $p_{\rm T}$ (2-8 GeV/$c$), $R_{\rm pPb}$ of $\Xi$, $\Omega$ show a Cronin-like enhancement, while $\mathrm{K}^{*0}$ and $\mathrm{\phi}$ show no or little nuclear modification. At high $p_{\rm T}$ ($>$ 8 GeV/$c$), the $R_{\rm pPb}$ values of all hadrons are consistent with unity within uncertainties. The $R_{\rm pPb}$ of $\mathrm{K}^{*}(\mathrm{892})^{0}$ and $\mathrm{\phi(1020)}$ at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 8.16 and 5.02 TeV show no significant energy dependence.

The production of K$^{*}(892)^{0}$ and $\phi(1020)$ mesons in proton-proton (pp) and lead-lead (Pb-Pb) collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} = 5.02$ TeV has been measured using the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The transverse momentum ($p_{\mathrm{T}}$) distributions of K$^{*}(892)^{0}$ and $\phi(1020)$ mesons have been measured at midrapidity $(|y|<0.5)$ up to $p_{\mathrm{T}} = 20$ GeV$/c$ in inelastic pp collisions and for several Pb-Pb collision centralities. The collision centrality and collision energy dependence of the average transverse momenta agree with the radial flow scenario observed with stable hadrons, showing that the effect is stronger for more central collisions and higher collision energies. The $\mathrm{K^{*0}/K}$ ratio is found to be suppressed in Pb-Pb collisions relative to pp collisions: this indicates a loss of the measured K$^{*}(892)^{0}$ signal due to rescattering of its decay products in the hadronic phase. In contrast, for the longer-lived $\phi(1020)$ mesons, no such suppression is observed. The nuclear modification factors ($R_{\rm AA}$) of K$^{*}(892)^{0}$ and $\phi(1020)$ mesons are calculated using pp reference spectra at the same collision energy. In central Pb-Pb collisions for $p_{\rm T} > 8$ GeV$/c$, the $R_{\rm AA}$ values of K$^{*}(892)^{0}$ and $\phi(1020)$ are below unity and observed to be similar to those of pions, kaons, and (anti)protons. The $R_{\rm AA}$ values at high $p_{\mathrm T}$ ($>$~8 GeV$/c$) for K$^{*}(892)^{0}$ and $\phi(1020)$ mesons are in agreement within uncertainties for $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} = 5.02$ and 2.76 TeV.

The production of $\Upsilon$ mesons in Pb-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5 TeV is measured with the muon spectrometer of the ALICE detector at the LHC. The yields as well as the nuclear modification factors are determined in the forward rapidity region $2.5<y<4.0$, as a function of rapidity, transverse momentum and collision centrality. The results show that the production of the $\Upsilon$(1S) meson is suppressed by a factor of about three with respect to the production in proton-proton collisions. For the first time, a significant signal for the $\Upsilon$(2S) meson is observed at forward rapidity, indicating a suppression stronger by about a factor 2-3 with respect to the ground state. The measurements are compared with transport, hydrodynamic, comover and statistical hadronisation model calculations.

The measurement of the production of charm jets, identified by the presence of a ${\rm D^0}$ meson in the jet constituents, is presented in proton-proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of $\sqrt{s}$ = 5.02 and 13 TeV with the ALICE detector at the CERN LHC. The ${\rm D^0}$ mesons were reconstructed from their hadronic decay ${\rm D^0} \rightarrow {\rm K^-}\pi^+$ and the respective charge conjugate. Jets were reconstructed from ${\rm D^0}$-meson candidates and charged particles using the anti-$k_{\rm T}$ algorithm, in the jet transverse momentum range $5<p_{\rm T;chjet}<50$ GeV/$c$, pseudorapidity $|\eta_{\rm jet}| <0.9-R$, and with the jet resolution parameters $R$ = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6. The distribution of the jet momentum fraction carried by a ${\rm D^0}$ meson along the jet axis ($z^{\rm ch}_{||}$) was measured in the range $0.4 < z^{\rm ch}_{||} < 1.0$ in four ranges of the jet transverse momentum. Comparisons of results for different collision energies and jet resolution parameters are also presented. The measurements are compared to predictions from Monte Carlo event generators based on leading-order and next-to-leading-order perturbative quantum chromodynamics calculations. A generally good description of the main features of the data is obtained in spite of a few discrepancies at low $p_{\rm T;chjet}$. Measurements were also done for $R = 0.3$ at $\sqrt{s}$ = 5.02 TeV and are shown along with their comparisons to theoretical predictions in an appendix to this paper.

The transverse-momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) spectra of ${\rm K}^*(892)^0$ and $\phi(1020)$ measured with the ALICE detector up to $p_{\rm T}$ = 16 GeV/$c$ in the rapidity range $-1.2 < y < 0.3$, in p-Pb collisions at the center-of-mass energy per nucleon-nucleon collision $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 5.02 TeV are presented as a function of charged particle multiplicity and rapidity. The measured $p_{\rm T}$ distributions show a dependence on both multiplicity and rapidity at low $p_{\rm T}$ whereas no significant dependence is observed at high $p_{\rm T}$. A rapidity dependence is observed in the $p_{\rm T}$-integrated yield (d$N$/d$y$), whereas the mean transverse momentum ($\left< p_{\rm T} \right>$) shows a flat behavior as a function of rapidity. The rapidity asymmetry ($Y_{\rm asym}$) at low $p_{\rm T}$ ( < 5 GeV/$c$) is more significant for higher multiplicity classes. At high $p_{\rm T}$, no significant rapidity asymmetry is observed in any of the multiplicity classes. Both ${\rm K}^*(892)^0$ and $\phi(1020)$ show similar $Y_{\rm asym}$. The nuclear modification factor ($Q_{\rm CP}$) as a function of $p_{\rm T}$ shows a Cronin-like enhancement at intermediate $p_{\rm T}$, which is more prominent at higher rapidities (Pb-going direction) and in higher multiplicity classes. At high $p_{\rm T}$ (> 5 GeV/$c$), the $Q_{\rm CP}$ values are greater than unity and no significant rapidity dependence is observed.

The production cross sections of the prompt charmed mesons D$^0$, D$^+$, D$^{*+}$ and D$_s$ were measured at mid-rapidity in p-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=5.02$ TeV with the ALICE detector at the LHC. D mesons were reconstructed from their decays D$^0\rightarrow{\rm K}^-\pi^+$, D$^+\rightarrow{\rm K}^-\pi^+\pi^+$, D$^{*+}\rightarrow D^0\pi^+$, D$_s^+\rightarrow\phi\pi^+\rightarrow{\rm K}^-{\rm K}^+\pi^+$, and their charge conjugates. The $p_{\rm T}$-differential production cross sections were measured at mid-rapidity in the interval $1<p_{\rm T}<24$ GeV/$c$ for D$^0$, D$^+$ and D$^{*+}$ mesons and in $2<p_{\rm T}<12$ GeV/$c$ for D$_s$ mesons, using an analysis method based on the selection of decay topologies displaced from the interaction vertex. The production cross sections of the D$^0$, D$^+$ and D$^{*+}$ mesons were also measured in three $p_{\rm T}$ intervals as a function of the rapidity $y_{\rm cms}$ in the centre-of-mass system in $-1.26<y_{\rm cms}<0.34$. In addition, the prompt D$^0$ cross section was measured in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}=7$ TeV and p-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=5.02$ TeV down to $p_{\rm T}=0$ using an analysis technique that is based on the estimation and subtraction of the combinatorial background, without reconstruction of the D$^0$ decay vertex. The nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm pPb}(p_{\rm T})$, defined as the ratio of the $p_{\rm T}$-differential D-meson cross section in p-Pb collisions and that in pp collisions scaled by the mass number of the Pb nucleus, was calculated for the four D-meson species and found to be compatible with unity within experimental uncertainties. The results are compared to theoretical calculations that include cold-nuclear-matter effects and to transport model calculations incorporating the interactions of charm quarks with an expanding deconfined medium.

The first evidence of spin alignment of vector mesons ($K^{*0}$ and $\phi$) in heavy-ion collisions at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is reported. The spin density matrix element $\rho_{00}$ is measured at midrapidity ($|y| <$ 0.5) in Pb-Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy ($\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$) of 2.76 TeV with the ALICE detector. $\rho_{00}$ values are found to be less than 1/3 (1/3 implies no spin alignment) at low transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T} <$ 2 GeV/$c$) for $K^{*0}$ and $\phi$ at a level of 3$\sigma$ and 2$\sigma$, respectively. No significant spin alignment is observed for the $K^0_S$ meson (spin = 0) in Pb-Pb collisions and for the vector mesons in $pp$ collisions. The measured spin alignment is unexpectedly large but qualitatively consistent with the expectation from models which attribute it to a polarization of quarks in the presence of angular momentum in heavy-ion collisions and a subsequent hadronization by the process of recombination.