This paper presents a measurement of the double-differential cross section for the Drell-Yan $Z/\gamma^{*} \rightarrow \ell^{+} \ell^{-}$ and photon-induced $\gamma\gamma \rightarrow \ell^{+} \ell^{-}$ processes where $\ell$ is an electron or muon. The measurement is performed for invariant masses of the lepton pairs, $m_{\ell\ell}$, between 116 GeV and 1500 GeV, using a sample of 20.3 fb$^{-1}$ of pp collisions data at centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 8 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC in 2012. The data are presented double differentially in invariant mass and absolute dilepton rapidity as well as in invariant mass and absolute pseudorapidity separation of the lepton pair. The single-differential cross section as a function of $m_{\ell\ell}$ is also reported. The electron and muon channel measurements are combined and a total experimental precision of better than 1% is achieved at low $m_{\ell\ell}$. A comparison to next-to-next-to-leading order perturbative QCD predictions using several recent parton distribution functions and including next-to-leading order electroweak effects indicates the potential of the data to constrain parton distribution functions. In particular, a large impact of the data on the photon PDF is demonstrated.

Measurements of normalized differential cross-sections of top quark pair ($t\bar t$) production are presented as a function of the mass, the transverse momentum and the rapidity of the $t\bar t$ system in proton-proton collisions at center-of-mass energies of $\sqrt{s}$ = 7 TeV and 8 TeV. The dataset corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 fb$^{-1}$ at 7 TeV and 20.2 fb$^{-1}$ at 8 TeV, recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Events with top quark pair signatures are selected in the dilepton final state, requiring exactly two charged leptons and at least two jets with at least one of the jets identified as likely to contain a $b$-hadron. The measured distributions are corrected for detector effects and selection efficiency to cross-sections at the parton level. The differential cross-sections are compared with different Monte Carlo generators and theoretical calculations of $t\bar t$ production. The results are consistent with the majority of predictions in a wide kinematic range.

The ATLAS experiment at the LHC has measured the production cross section of events with two isolated photons in the final state, in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV. The full data set collected in 2011, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.9 fb-1, is used. The amount of background, from hadronic jets and isolated electrons, is estimated with data-driven techniques and subtracted. The total cross section, for two isolated photons with transverse energies above 25 GeV and 22 GeV respectively, in the acceptance of the electromagnetic calorimeter (|eta|<1.37 and 1.52<|eta|<2.37) and with an angular separation Delta R>0.4, is 44.0 (+3.2) (-4.2) pb. The differential cross sections as a function of the di-photon invariant mass, transverse momentum, azimuthal separation, and cosine of the polar angle of the largest transverse energy photon in the Collins--Soper di-photon rest frame are also measured. The results are compared to the prediction of leading-order parton-shower and next-to-leading-order and next-to-next-to-leading-order parton-level generators.

Measurements of normalized differential cross-sections for top-quark pair production are presented as a~function of the top-quark transverse momentum, and of the mass, transverse momentum, and rapidity of the $t\bar{t}$ system, in proton--proton collisions at a~center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 7 TeV. The dataset corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 fb$^{-1}$, recorded in 2011 with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Events are selected in the lepton+jets channel, requiring exactly one lepton and at least four jets with at least one of the jets tagged as originating from a~$b$-quark. The measured spectra are corrected for detector efficiency and resolution effects and are compared to several Monte Carlo simulations and theory calculations. The results are in fair agreement with the predictions in a~wide kinematic range. Nevertheless, data distributions are softer than predicted for higher values of the mass of the $t\bar{t}$ system and of the top-quark transverse momentum. The measurements can also discriminate among different sets of parton distribution functions.

This Letter reports a measurement of the high-mass Drell-Yan differential cross-section in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV at the LHC. Based on an integrated luminosity of 4.9 /fb, the differential cross-section in the Z/gamma* to e+e- channel is measured with the ATLAS detector as a function of the invariant mass, Mee, in the range 116 < Mee < 1500 GeV, for a fiducial region in which both the electron and the positron have transverse momentum pT > 25 GeV and pseudorapidity eta < 2.5. A comparison is made to various event generators and to the predictions of perturbative QCD calculations at next-to-next-to-leading order.

Cross sections for the production of two isolated muons up to high di-muon masses are measured in ep collisions at HERA with the H1 detector in a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 71 pb^-1 at a centre of mass energy of sqrt{s} = 319 GeV. The results are in good agreement with Standard Model predictions, the dominant process being photon-photon interactions. Additional muons or electrons are searched for in events with two high transverse momentum muons using the full data sample corresponding to 114 pb^-1, where data at sqrt{s} = 301 GeV and sqrt{s} = 319 GeV are combined. Both the di-lepton sample and the tri-lepton sample agree well with the predictions.

Cross-sections for the production of a $Z$ boson in association with two photons are measured in proton$-$proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The data used correspond to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb$^{-1}$ recorded by the ATLAS experiment during Run 2 of the LHC. The measurements use the electron and muon decay channels of the $Z$ boson, and a fiducial phase-space region where the photons are not radiated from the leptons. The integrated $Z(\rightarrow\ell\ell)\gamma\gamma$ cross-section is measured with a precision of 12% and differential cross-sections are measured as a function of six kinematic variables of the $Z\gamma\gamma$ system. The data are compared with predictions from MC event generators which are accurate to up to next-to-leading order in QCD. The cross-section measurements are used to set limits on the coupling strengths of dimension-8 operators in the framework of an effective field theory.

A measurement of the ZZ production cross section in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV using data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider is presented. In a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 fb-1 collected in 2011, events are selected that are consistent either with two Z bosons decaying to electrons or muons or with one Z boson decaying to electrons or muons and a second Z boson decaying to neutrinos. The ZZ*->llll and ZZ->llnunu cross sections are measured in restricted phase-space regions. These results are then used to derive the total cross section for ZZ events produced with both Z bosons in the mass range 66 to 116 GeV, sigmaZZtot = 6.7 +-0.7 +0.4-0.3 +-0.3 pb, which is consistent with the Standard Model prediction of 5.89+0.22-0.18 pb calculated at next-to-leading order in QCD. The normalized differential cross sections in bins of various kinematic variables are presented. Finally, the differential event yield as a function of the transverse momentum of the leading Z boson is used to set limits on anomalous neutral triple gauge boson couplings in ZZ production.

Measurements of differential production cross-sections of a $Z$ boson in association with $b$-jets in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}=7$ TeV are reported. The data analysed correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 fb$^{-1}$ recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Particle-level cross-sections are determined for events with a $Z$ boson decaying into an electron or muon pair, and containing $b$-jets. For events with at least one $b$-jet, the cross-section is presented as a function of the $Z$ boson transverse momentum and rapidity, together with the inclusive $b$-jet cross-section as a function of $b$-jet transverse momentum, rapidity and angular separations between the $b$-jet and the $Z$ boson. For events with at least two $b$-jets, the cross-section is determined as a function of the invariant mass and angular separation of the two highest transverse momentum $b$-jets, and as a function of the $Z$ boson transverse momentum and rapidity. Results are compared to leading-order and next-to-leading-order perturbative QCD calculations.

Measurements are presented of single and double-differential dijet cross sections in diffractive photoproduction based on a data sample with an integrated luminosity of 47 pb^-1. The events are of the type ep -> eXY, where the hadronic system X contains at least two jets and is separated by a large rapidity gap from the system Y, which consists of a leading proton or low-mass proton excitation. The dijet cross sections are compared with QCD calculations at next-to-leading order and with a Monte Carlo model based on leading order matrix elements with parton showers. The measured cross sections are smaller than those obtained from the next-to-leading order calculations by a factor of about 0.6. This suppression factor has no significant dependence on the fraction x_gamma of the photon four-momentum entering the hard subprocess. Ratios of the diffractive to the inclusive dijet cross sections are measured for the first time and are compared with Monte Carlo models.