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ATLAS Collaboration

Publications and source records attributed to ATLAS Collaboration.

At least 721 records · Page 40Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Measurements of gluon-gluon fusion and vector-boson fusion Higgs boson production cross-sections in the $H \to WW^{\ast} \to eνμν$ decay channel in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

Higgs boson production cross-sections in proton-proton collisions are measured in the $H \to WW^{\ast} \to eνμν$ decay channel. The proton-proton collision data were produced at the Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV and recorded by the ATLAS detector in 2015 and 2016, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$. The product of the $H \to WW^{\ast}$ branching fraction times the gluon-gluon fusion and vector-boson fusion cross-sections are measured to be $11.4 ^{+1.2}_{-1.1} (\mathrm{stat.}) ^{+1.8}_{-1.7}(\mathrm{syst.})$ $\mathrm{pb}$ and $0.50 ^{+0.24}_{-0.22} (\mathrm{stat.}) \pm 0.17(\mathrm{syst.})$ $\mathrm{pb}$, respectively, in agreement with the Standard Model predictions.

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arXiv2019

Correlated long-range mixed-harmonic fluctuations measured in $pp$, $p$+Pb and low-multiplicity Pb+Pb collisions with the ATLAS detector

Correlations of two flow harmonics $v_n$ and $v_m$ via three- and four-particle cumulants are measured in 13 TeV $pp$, 5.02 TeV $p$+Pb, and 2.76 TeV peripheral Pb+Pb collisions with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The goal is to understand the multi-particle nature of the long-range collective phenomenon in these collision systems. The large non-flow background from dijet production present in the standard cumulant method is suppressed using a method of subevent cumulants involving two, three and four subevents separated in pseudorapidity. The results show a negative correlation between $v_2$ and $v_3$ and a positive correlation between $v_2$ and $v_4$ for all collision systems and over the full multiplicity range. However, the magnitudes of the correlations are found to depend strongly on the event multiplicity, the choice of transverse momentum range and collision system. The relative correlation strength, obtained by normalisation of the cumulants with the $\langle v_n^2\rangle$ from a two-particle correlation analysis, is similar in the three collision systems and depends weakly on the event multiplicity and transverse momentum. These results based on the subevent methods provide strong evidence of a similar long-range multi-particle collectivity in $pp$, $p$+Pb and peripheral Pb+Pb collisions.

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arXiv2019

Measurements of Higgs boson properties in the diphoton decay channel with 36 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collision data at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

Properties of the Higgs boson are measured in the two-photon final state using 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data recorded at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. Cross-section measurements for the production of a Higgs boson through gluon-gluon fusion, vector-boson fusion, and in association with a vector bosonor a top-quark pair are reported. The signal strength, defined as the ratio of the observed to the expected signal yield, is measured for each of these production processes as well as inclusively. The global signal strength measurement of $0.99 \pm 0.14$ improves on the precision of the ATLAS measurement at $\sqrt{s} = 7$ and 8 TeV by a factor of two. Measurements of gluon-gluon fusion and vector-boson fusion productions yield signal strengths compatible with the Standard Model prediction. Measurements of simplified template cross sections, designed to quantify the different Higgs boson production processes in specific regions of phase space, are reported. The cross section for the production of the Higgs boson decaying to two isolated photons in a fiducial region closely matching the experimental selection of the photons is measured to be $55 \pm 10$ fb, which is in good agreement with the Standard Model prediction of $64 \pm 2$ fb. Furthermore, cross sections in fiducial regions enriched in Higgs boson production in vector-boson fusion or in association with large missing transverse momentum, leptons or top-quark pairs are reported. Differential and double-differential measurements are performed for several variables related to the diphoton kinematics as well as the kinematics and multiplicity of the jets produced in association with a Higgs boson. No significant deviations from a wide array of Standard Model predictions are observed.

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arXiv2019

Search for electroweak production of supersymmetric particles in final states with two or three leptons at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for the electroweak production of charginos, neutralinos and sleptons decaying into final states involving two or three electrons or muons is presented. The analysis is based on 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV proton-proton collisions recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Several scenarios based on simplified models are considered. These include the associated production of the next-to-lightest neutralino and the lightest chargino, followed by their decays into final states with leptons and the lightest neutralino via either sleptons or Standard Model gauge bosons; direct production of chargino pairs, which in turn decay into leptons and the lightest neutralino via intermediate sleptons; and slepton pair production, where each slepton decays directly into the lightest neutralino and a lepton. No significant deviations from the Standard Model expectation are observed and stringent limits at 95% confidence level are placed on the masses of relevant supersymmetric particles in each of these scenarios. For a massless lightest neutralino, masses up to 580 GeV are excluded for the associated production of the next-to-lightest neutralino and the lightest chargino, assuming gauge-boson mediated decays, whereas for slepton-pair production masses up to 500 GeV are excluded assuming three generations of mass-degenerate sleptons.

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arXiv2018

Search for pair and single production of vectorlike quarks in final states with at least one $Z$ boson decaying into a pair of electrons or muons in $pp$ collision data collected with the ATLAS detector at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV

A search for vectorlike quarks is presented, which targets their decay into a $Z$ boson and a third-generation Standard Model quark. In the case of a vectorlike quark $T$ ($B$) with charge $+2/3e$ ($-1/3e$), the decay searched for is $T \rightarrow Zt$ ($B \rightarrow Zb$). Data for this analysis were taken during 2015 and 2016 with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV. The final state used is characterized by the presence of $b$-tagged jets, as well as a $Z$ boson with high transverse momentum, which is reconstructed from a pair of opposite-sign same-flavor leptons. Pair and single production of vectorlike quarks are both taken into account and are each searched for using optimized dileptonic exclusive and trileptonic inclusive event selections. In these selections, the high scalar sum of jet transverse momenta, the presence of high-transverse-momentum large-radius jets, as well as - in the case of the single-production selections - the presence of forward jets are used. No significant excess over the background-only hypothesis is found and exclusion limits at 95% confidence level allow masses of vectorlike quarks of $m_T > 1030$ GeV ($m_T > 1210$ GeV) and $m_B > 1010$ GeV ($m_B > 1140$ GeV) in the singlet (doublet) model. In the case of 100% branching ratio for $T\rightarrow Zt$ ($B\rightarrow Zb$), the limits are $m_T > 1340$ GeV ($m_B > 1220$ GeV). Limits at 95% confidence level are also set on the coupling to Standard Model quarks for given vectorlike quark masses.

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arXiv2018

Properties of $g\rightarrow b\bar{b}$ at small opening angles in $pp$ collisions with the ATLAS detector at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV

The fragmentation of high-energy gluons at small opening angles is largely unconstrained by present measurements. Gluon splitting to $b$-quark pairs is a unique probe into the properties of gluon fragmentation because identified $b$-tagged jets provide a proxy for the quark daughters of the initial gluon. In this study, key differential distributions related to the $g\rightarrow b\bar{b}$ process are measured using 33 fb$^{-1}$ of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV $pp$ collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC in 2016. Jets constructed from charged-particle tracks, clustered with the anti-$k_t$ jet algorithm with radius parameter $R = 0.2$, are used to probe angular scales below the $R=0.4$ jet radius. The observables are unfolded to particle level in order to facilitate direct comparisons with predictions from present and future simulations. Multiple significant differences are observed between the data and parton shower Monte Carlo predictions, providing input to improve these predictions of the main source of background events in analyses involving boosted Higgs bosons decaying into $b$-quarks.

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arXiv2018

Search for Higgs boson pair production in the $γγb\bar{b}$ final state with 13 TeV $pp$ collision data collected by the ATLAS experiment

A search is performed for resonant and non-resonant Higgs boson pair production in the $γγb\bar{b}$ final state. The data set used corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. No significant excess relative to the Standard Model expectation is observed. The observed limit on the non-resonant Higgs boson pair cross-section is 0.73 pb at 95% confidence level. This observed limit is equivalent to 22 times the predicted Standard Model cross-section. The Higgs boson self-coupling ($κ_λ= λ_{HHH} / λ_{HHH}^{\rm SM}$) is constrained at 95% confidence level to $-8.2 < κ_λ< 13.2$. For resonant Higgs boson pair production through X $\rightarrow$ HH $\rightarrow$ $γγb\bar{b}$, the limit is presented, using the narrow-width approximation, as a function of $m_X$ in the range 260 GeV $< m_X <$ 1000 GeV. The observed limits range from 1.1 pb to 0.12 pb over this mass range.

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arXiv2018

Measurement of the azimuthal anisotropy of charged particles produced in $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} = 5.02$ TeV Pb+Pb collisions with the ATLAS detector

Measurements of the azimuthal anisotropy in lead-lead collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} = 5.02$ TeV are presented using a data sample corresponding to 0.49 $\mathrm{nb}^{-1}$ integrated luminosity collected by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC in 2015. The recorded minimum-bias sample is enhanced by triggers for "ultra-central" collisions, providing an opportunity to perform detailed study of flow harmonics in the regime where the initial state is dominated by fluctuations. The anisotropy of the charged-particle azimuthal angle distributions is characterized by the Fourier coefficients, $v_{2}-v_{7}$, which are measured using the two-particle correlation, scalar-product and event-plane methods. The goal of the paper is to provide measurements of the differential as well as integrated flow harmonics $v_{n}$ over wide ranges of the transverse momentum, 0.5 $<p_{\mathrm{T}}<$ 60 GeV, the pseudorapidity, $|η|<$ 2.5, and the collision centrality $0-80$%. Results from different methods are compared and discussed in the context of previous and recent measurements in Pb+Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_\mathrm{NN}} = 2.76$ TeV and 5.02 TeV. In particular, the shape of the $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ dependence of elliptic or triangular flow harmonics is observed to be very similar at different centralities after scaling the $v_{n}$ and $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ values by constant factors over the centrality interval $0-60$% and the $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ range $0.5 < p_{\mathrm{T}} < 5$ GeV.

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arXiv2018

Comparison between simulated and observed LHC beam backgrounds in the ATLAS experiment at ${E_{\textrm {beam}}}$ = 4 TeV

Results of dedicated Monte Carlo simulations of beam-induced background (BIB) in the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) are presented and compared with data recorded in 2012. During normal physics operation this background arises mainly from scattering of the 4 TeV protons on residual gas in the beam pipe. Methods of reconstructing the BIB signals in the ATLAS detector, developed and implemented in the simulation chain based on the FLUKA Monte Carlo simulation package, are described. The interaction rates are determined from the residual gas pressure distribution in the LHC ring in order to set an absolute scale on the predicted rates of BIB so that they can be compared quantitatively with data. Through these comparisons the origins of the BIB leading to different observables in the ATLAS detectors are analysed. The level of agreement between simulation results and BIB measurements by ATLAS in 2012 demonstrates that a good understanding of the origin of BIB has been reached.

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arXiv2018

Performance of missing transverse momentum reconstruction with the ATLAS detector using proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV

The performance of the missing transverse momentum (E$_{T}^{miss}$) reconstruction with the ATLAS detector is evaluated using data collected in proton-proton collisions at the LHC at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV in 2015. To reconstruct E$_{T}^{miss}$, fully calibrated electrons, muons, photons, hadronically decaying $τ$-leptons, and jets reconstructed from calorimeter energy deposits and charged-particle tracks are used. These are combined with the soft hadronic activity measured by reconstructed charged-particle tracks not associated with the hard objects. Possible double counting of contributions from reconstructed charged-particle tracks from the inner detector, energy deposits in the calorimeter, and reconstructed muons from the muon spectrometer is avoided by applying a signal ambiguity resolution procedure which rejects already used signals when combining the various E$_{T}^{miss}$ contributions. The individual terms as well as the overall reconstructed E$_{T}^{miss}$ are evaluated with various performance metrics for scale (linearity), resolution, and sensitivity to the data-taking conditions. The method developed to determine the systematic uncertainties of the E$_{T}^{miss}$ scale and resolution is discussed. Results are shown based on the full 2015 data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.2 fb$^{-1}$.

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arXiv2018

Search for light resonances decaying to boosted quark pairs and produced in association with a photon or a jet in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

This Letter presents a search for new light resonances decaying to pairs of quarks and produced in association with a high-$p_{\textrm{T}}$ photon or jet. The dataset consists of proton-proton collisions with an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Resonance candidates are identified as massive large-radius jets with substructure consistent with a particle decaying into a quark pair. The mass spectrum of the candidates is examined for local excesses above background. No evidence of a new resonance is observed in the data, which are used to exclude the production of a lepto-phobic axial-vector $Z^\prime$ boson.

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arXiv2018

Operation and performance of the ATLAS Tile Calorimeter in Run 1

The Tile Calorimeter is the hadron calorimeter covering the central region of the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. Approximately 10000 photomultipliers collect light from scintillating tiles acting as the active material sandwiched between slabs of steel absorber. This paper gives an overview of the calorimeter's performance during the years 2008-2012 using cosmic-ray muon events and proton-proton collision data at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV with a total integrated luminosity of nearly 30 fb$^{-1}$. The signal reconstruction methods, calibration systems as well as the detector operation status are presented. The combination of energy calibration methods and time calibration proved excellent performance, resulting in good stability of the calorimeter response under varying conditions during the LHC Run 1. Finally, the Tile Calorimeter response to isolated muons and hadrons as well as to jets from proton-proton collisions is presented. The results demonstrate excellent performance in accord with specifications mentioned in the Technical Design Report.

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arXiv2018

Search for vector-boson resonances decaying to a top quark and bottom quark in the lepton plus jets final state in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for new charged massive gauge bosons, $W^\prime$, is performed with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Data were collected in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 $\textrm{fb}^{-1}$. This analysis searches for $W^\prime$ bosons in the $W^\prime \rightarrow t\bar{b}$ decay channel in final states with an electron or muon plus jets. The search covers resonance masses between 0.5 and 5.0 TeV and considers right-handed $W^\prime$ bosons. No significant deviation from the Standard Model (SM) expectation is observed and upper limits are set on the $W^\prime \rightarrow t\bar{b}$ cross section times branching ratio and the $W^\prime$ boson effective couplings as a function of the $W^\prime$ boson mass. For right-handed $W^\prime$ bosons with coupling to the SM particles equal to the SM weak coupling constant, masses below 3.15 TeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level. This search is also combined with a previously published ATLAS result for $W^\prime \rightarrow t\bar{b}$ in the fully hadronic final state. Using the combined searches, right-handed $W^\prime$ bosons with masses below 3.25 TeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level.

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arXiv2018

Search for pair production of heavy vector-like quarks decaying into hadronic final states in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search is presented for the pair production of heavy vector-like quarks, $T\bar T$ or $B\bar B$, that decay into final states with jets and no reconstructed leptons. Jets in the final state are classified using a deep neural network as arising from hadronically decaying $W/Z$ bosons, Higgs bosons, top quarks, or background. The analysis uses data from the ATLAS experiment corresponding to 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions with a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV delivered by the Large Hadron Collider in 2015 and 2016. No significant deviation from the Standard Model expectation is observed. Results are interpreted assuming the vector-like quarks decay into a Standard Model boson and a third-generation-quark, $T\rightarrow Wb,Ht,Zt$ or $B\rightarrow Wt,Hb,Zb$, for a variety of branching ratios. At 95% confidence level, the observed (expected) lower limit on the vector-like $B$-quark mass for a weak-isospin doublet ($B, Y$) is 950 (890) GeV, and the lower limits on the masses for the pure decays $B\rightarrow Hb$ and $T\rightarrow Ht$, where these results are strongest, are 1010 (970) GeV and 1010 (1010) GeV, respectively.

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arXiv2018

Search for the Higgs boson produced in association with a vector boson and decaying into two spin-zero particles in the $H \rightarrow aa \rightarrow 4b$ channel in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for exotic decays of the Higgs boson into a pair of spin-zero particles, $H \rightarrow aa$, where the $a$-boson decays into $b$-quarks promptly or with a mean proper lifetime $cτ_a$ up to 6 mm and has a mass in the range of $20-60$ GeV, is presented. The search is performed in events where the Higgs boson is produced in association with a $W$ or $Z$ boson, giving rise to a signature of one or two charged leptons (electrons or muons) and multiple jets from $b$-quark decays. The analysis is based on the dataset of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV recorded in 2015 and 2016 by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$. No significant excess of events above the Standard Model background prediction is observed, and 95% confidence-level upper limits are derived for the production cross-sections for $pp \rightarrow WH$, $ZH$ and their combination, times the branching ratio of the decay chain $H \rightarrow aa \rightarrow 4b$. For $a$-bosons which decay promptly, the upper limit on the combination of cross-sections for $WH$ and $ZH$ times the branching ratio of $H \rightarrow aa \rightarrow 4b$ ranges from 3.0 pb for $m_a= 20$ GeV to 1.3 pb for $m_a = 60$ GeV, assuming that the ratio of $WH$ to $ZH$ cross-sections follows the Standard Model prediction. For $a$-bosons with longer proper lifetimes, the most stringent limits are 1.8 pb and 0.6 pb, respectively, at $cτ_a \sim 0.4$ mm.

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arXiv2018

Search for charged Higgs bosons decaying into top and bottom quarks at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for charged Higgs bosons heavier than the top quark and decaying via $H^\pm \rightarrow tb$ is presented. The data analysed corresponds to 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 13 TeV and was recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC in 2015 and 2016. The production of a charged Higgs boson in association with a top quark and a bottom quark, $pp \rightarrow tb H^\pm$, is explored in the mass range from $m_{H^\pm}$ = 200 to 2000 GeV using multi-jet final states with one or two electrons or muons. Events are categorised according to the multiplicity of jets and how likely these are to have originated from hadronisation of a bottom quark. Multivariate techniques are used to discriminate between signal and background events. No significant excess above the background-only hypothesis is observed and exclusion limits are derived for the production cross-section times branching fraction of a charged Higgs boson as a function of its mass, which range from 2.9 pb at $m_{H^\pm}$ = 200 GeV to 0.070 pb at $m_{H^\pm}$ = 2000 GeV. The results are interpreted in two benchmark scenarios of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model.

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arXiv2018

Measurement of the suppression and azimuthal anisotropy of muons from heavy-flavor decays in Pb+Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}} = 2.76$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

ATLAS measurements of the production of muons from heavy-flavor decays in $\sqrt{s_{\mathrm{NN}}} = 2.76$ TeV Pb+Pb collisions and $\sqrt{s} = 2.76$ TeV $pp$ collisions at the LHC are presented. Integrated luminosities of 0.14 $\mathrm{nb}^{-1}$ and 570 $\mathrm{nb}^{-1}$ are used for the Pb+Pb and $pp$ measurements, respectively, which are performed over the muon transverse momentum range $4 < p_{\mathrm{T}} < 14$ GeV and for five Pb+Pb centrality intervals. Backgrounds arising from in-flight pion and kaon decays, hadronic showers, and mis-reconstructed muons are statistically removed using a template-fitting procedure. The heavy-flavor muon differential cross-sections and per-event yields are measured in $pp$ and Pb+Pb collisions, respectively. The nuclear modification factor $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ obtained from these is observed to be independent of $p_{\mathrm{T}}$, within uncertainties, and to be less than unity, which indicates suppressed production of heavy-flavor muons in Pb+Pb collisions. For the 10% most central Pb+Pb events, the measured $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ is approximately 0.35. The azimuthal modulation of the heavy-flavor muon yields is also measured and the associated Fourier coefficients $v_n$ for $n =$ 2, 3 and 4 are given as a function of $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ and centrality. They vary slowly with $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ and show a systematic variation with centrality which is characteristic of other anisotropy measurements, such as that observed for inclusive hadrons. The measured $R_{\mathrm{AA}}$ and $v_n$ values are also compared with theoretical calculations.

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arXiv2018

Search for lepton-flavor-violating decays of the $Z$ boson into a $τ$ lepton and a light lepton with the ATLAS detector

Direct searches for lepton flavor violation in decays of the $Z$ boson with the ATLAS detector at the LHC are presented. Decays of the $Z$ boson into an electron or a muon and a hadronically decaying $τ$ lepton are considered. The searches are based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions collected by the ATLAS detector in 2015 and 2016, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb$^{-1}$ at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV. No significant excess of events above the expected background is observed, and upper limits on the branching ratios of lepton-flavor-violating decays are set at the 95% confidence level: $\mathcal{B} (Z\to eτ) < 5.8 \times 10^{-5}$ and $\mathcal{B} (Z\to μτ) < 2.4 \times 10^{-5}$. This is the first limit on $\mathcal{B} (Z\to eτ)$ with ATLAS data. The upper limit on $\mathcal{B} (Z\to μτ)$ is combined with a previous ATLAS result based on 20.3 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collision data at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s} = 8$ TeV and the combined upper limit at 95% confidence level is $\mathcal{B} (Z\to μτ) < 1.3 \times 10^{-5}$.

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