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D. Andreou

Publications and source records attributed to D. Andreou.

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Search for $D^{*}(2007)^0\toμ^+μ^-$ in $B^-\toπ^-μ^+μ^-$ decays

The very rare $D^{*}(2007)^0\toμ^+μ^-$ decay is searched for by analysing $B^-\toπ^-μ^+μ^-$ decays. The analysis uses a sample of beauty mesons produced in proton-proton collisions collected with the LHCb detector between 2011 and 2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9 fb$^{-1}$. The signal signature corresponds to simultaneous peaks in the $μ^+μ^-$ and $π^-μ^+μ^-$ invariant masses. No evidence for an excess of events over background is observed and an upper limit is set on the branching fraction of the decay at ${\cal B}(D^{*}(2007)^0\toμ^+μ^-) < 2.6\times 10^{-8}$ at $90\%$ confidence level. This is the first limit on the branching fraction of $D^{*}(2007)^0\toμ^+μ^-$ decays and the most stringent limit on $D^{*}(2007)^0$ decays to leptonic final states. The analysis is the first search for a rare charm-meson decay exploiting production via beauty decays.

hep-ex↗

Search for the lepton-flavour violating decays $B^0 \to K^{*0} μ^\pm e^\mp$ and $B_s^0 \to ϕμ^\pm e^\mp$

A search for the lepton-flavour violating decays $B^0 \to K^{*0} μ^\pm e^\mp$ and $B_s^0 \to ϕμ^\pm e^\mp$ is presented, using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb detector at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $9\,\text{fb}^{-1}$. No significant signals are observed and upper limits of \begin{align} {\cal B}( B^0 \to K^{*0} μ^+ e^- ) &< \phantom{1}5.7\times 10^{-9}~(6.9\times 10^{-9}),\newline {\cal B}( B^0 \to K^{*0} μ^- e^+ ) &< \phantom{1}6.8\times 10^{-9}~(7.9\times 10^{-9}),\newline {\cal B}( B^0 \to K^{*0} μ^\pm e^\mp ) &< 10.1\times 10^{-9}~(11.7\times 10^{-9}),\newline {\cal B}( B_s^0 \to ϕμ^\pm e^\mp ) &< 16.0\times 10^{-9}~(19.8\times 10^{-9}) \end{align} are set at $90\%~(95\%)$ confidence level. These results constitute the world's most stringent limits to date, with the limit on the decay $B_s^0 \to ϕμ^\pm e^\mp$ the first being set. In addition, limits are reported for scalar and left-handed lepton-flavour violating New Physics scenarios.

hep-ex↗

Search for the doubly heavy baryon $\itΞ_{bc}^{+}$ decaying to $J/\itψ \itΞ_{c}^{+}$

A first search for the $\itΞ_{bc}^{+}\to J/\itψ\itΞ_{c}^{+}$ decay is performed by the LHCb experiment with a data sample of proton-proton collisions, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $9\,\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ recorded at centre-of-mass energies of 7, 8, and $13\mathrm{\,Te\kern -0.1em V}$. Two peaking structures are seen with a local (global) significance of $4.3\,(2.8)$ and $4.1\,(2.4)$ standard deviations at masses of $6571\,\mathrm{Me\kern -0.1em V\!/}c^2$ and $6694\,\mathrm{Me\kern -0.1em V\!/}c^2$, respectively. Upper limits are set on the $\itΞ_{bc}^{+}$ baryon production cross-section times the branching fraction relative to that of the $B_{c}^{+}\to J/\itψ D_{s}^{+}$ decay at centre-of-mass energies of 8 and $13\mathrm{\,Te\kern -0.1em V}$, in the $\itΞ_{bc}^{+}$ and in the $B_{c}^{+}$ rapidity and transverse-momentum ranges from 2.0 to 4.5 and 0 to $20\,\mathrm{Ge\kern -0.1em V\!/}c$, respectively. Upper limits are presented as a function of the $\itΞ_{bc}^{+}$ mass and lifetime.

hep-ex↗

Amplitude analysis of $B^0 \rightarrow \overline{D}^0 D_s^+ π^-$ and $B^+ \rightarrow D^- D_s^+ π^+$ decays

Resonant contributions in $B^0 \rightarrow \overline{D}^0 D^+_sπ^-$ and $B^+\rightarrow D^- D^+_sπ^+$ decays are determined with an amplitude analysis, which is performed both separately and simultaneously, where in the latter case isospin symmetry between the decays is assumed. The analysis is based on data collected by the LHCb detector in proton-proton collisions at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8 and 13 $\rm{TeV}$. The full data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 9 $\rm fb^{-1}$. A doubly charged spin-0 open-charm tetraquark candidate together with a neutral partner, both with masses near $2.9\,\rm{GeV}$, are observed in the $D_sπ$ decay channel.

hep-ex↗

First observation of a doubly charged tetraquark and its neutral partner

A combined amplitude analysis is performed for the decays $B^0 \rightarrow \overline{D}^0 D^+_sπ^-$ and $B^+\rightarrow D^- D^+_sπ^+$, which are related by isospin symmetry. The analysis is based on data collected by the LHCb detector in proton-proton collisions at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8 and 13$\,\rm{TeV}$. The full data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 9$\,\rm{fb^{-1}}$. Two new resonant states with masses of $2.908\pm0.011\pm0.020\,\rm{GeV}$ and widths of $0.136\pm0.023\pm0.011\,\rm{GeV}$ are observed, which decay to $D^+_sπ^+$ and $D^+_sπ^-$ respectively. The former state indicates the first observation of a doubly charged open-charm tetraquark state with minimal quark content $[c\bar{s}u\bar{d}]$, and the latter state is a neutral tetraquark composed of $[c\bar{s}\bar{u}d]$ quarks. Both states are found to have spin-parity $0^+$, and their resonant parameters are consistent with each other, which suggests that they belong to an isospin triplet.

hep-ex↗

Amplitude analysis of the $Λ^+_c\to pK^-π^+$ decay and $Λ^+_c$ baryon polarization measurement in semileptonic beauty hadron decays

An amplitude analysis of $Λ^+_c \to pK^-π^+$ decays together with a measurement of the $Λ^+_c$ polarization vector in semileptonic beauty hadron decays is presented. A sample of $400\,000$ candidates is selected from proton-proton collisions recorded by the LHCb detector at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. An amplitude model is developed and the resonance fractions as well as two- and three-body decay parameters are reported. The mass and width of the $Λ(2000)$ state are also determined. A significant $Λ^+_c$ polarization is found. A large sensitivity of the $Λ^+_c \to pK^-π^+$ decay to the polarization is seen, making the amplitude model suitable for $Λ^+_c$ polarization measurements in other systems.

hep-ex↗

Measurement of the ratio of branching fractions $\mathcal{B}(B_c^+ \to B_s^0 π^+)/\mathcal{B}(B_c^+ \to J/ψπ^+)$

The ratio of branching fractions of $B_c^+ \to B_s^0 π^+$ and $B_c^+ \to J/ψπ^+$ decays is measured with proton-proton collision data of a centre-of-mass energy of $13\text{TeV}$. The data were collected with the LHCb experiment during 2016--2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $5.4 \text{fb}^{-1}$. The $B_s^0$ mesons are reconstructed via the decays $B_s^0 \to J/ψϕ$ and $B_s^0 \to D_s^- π^+$. The ratio of branching fractions is measured to be $\mathcal{B}(B_c^+ \to B_s^0 π^+)/\mathcal{B}(B_c^+ \to J/ψπ^+) = 91 \pm 10 \pm 8 \pm 3$ where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second is systematic and the third is due to the knowledge of the branching fractions of the intermediate state decays.

hep-ex↗

First observation and branching fraction measurement of the $Λ_b^0\to D_s^- p$ decay

The first observation of the $Λ_b^0\to D_s^- p$ decay is presented using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment at a centre-of-mass energy of ${\sqrt{s}=13 \,\textrm{TeV}}$, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of $6\,\textrm{fb}^{-1}$. Using the $Λ_b^0\toΛ_c^+π^-$ decay as the normalisation mode, the branching fraction of the $Λ_b^0\to D_s^- p$ decay is measured to be ${\mathcal{B}(Λ_b^0\to D_s^- p)=(12.6 \pm 0.5 \pm 0.3 \pm 1.2 )\times 10^{-6}}$, where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second systematic and the third due to uncertainties in the branching fractions of the $Λ_b^0\toΛ_c^+π^-$, $D_s^- \to K^-K^+π^-$ and $Λ_c^+\to p K^- π^+$ decays.

hep-ex↗

Observation of the $B^0_s\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-}$ decay

The first observation of the $B^0_s\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-}$ decay and the measurement of its branching ratio relative to the $B^0\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-}$ decay are presented. The data sample used corresponds to an integrated luminosity of $9\,\text{fb}^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions recorded by the LHCb experiment at centre-of-mass energies of 7, 8 and $13\,\text{TeV}$ between 2011 and 2018. The decay is observed with more than $10$ standard deviations and the time-integrated ratio of branching fractions is determined to be \begin{align*} \frac{\mathcal{B}(B^0_s\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-})}{\mathcal{B}(B^0\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-})} = 0.269 \pm 0.032 \pm 0.011 \pm 0.008\, , \end{align*} where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second systematic and the third due to the uncertainty of the fragmentation fraction ratio $f_s/f_d$. The $B^0_s\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-}$ branching fraction is calculated to be \begin{align*} \mathcal{B}(B^0_s\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-}) = (2.15 \pm 0.26 \pm 0.09 \pm 0.06 \pm 0.16)\times 10^{-4} \,, \end{align*} where the fourth uncertainty is due to the $B^0\!\to D^{*+}D^{*-}$branching fraction. These results are calculated using the average $B^0_s$ meson lifetime in simulation. Correction factors are reported for scenarios where either a purely heavy or a purely light $B^0_s$ eigenstate is considered.

hep-ex↗

First demonstration of in-beam performance of bent Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors

A novel approach for designing the next generation of vertex detectors foresees to employ wafer-scale sensors that can be bent to truly cylindrical geometries after thinning them to thicknesses of 20-40$μ$m. To solidify this concept, the feasibility of operating bent MAPS was demonstrated using 1.5$\times$3cm ALPIDE chips. Already with their thickness of 50$μ$m, they can be successfully bent to radii of about 2cm without any signs of mechanical or electrical damage. During a subsequent characterisation using a 5.4GeV electron beam, it was further confirmed that they preserve their full electrical functionality as well as particle detection performance. In this article, the bending procedure and the setup used for characterisation are detailed. Furthermore, the analysis of the beam test, including the measurement of the detection efficiency as a function of beam position and local inclination angle, is discussed. The results show that the sensors maintain their excellent performance after bending to radii of 2cm, with detection efficiencies above 99.9% at typical operating conditions, paving the way towards a new class of detectors with unprecedented low material budget and ideal geometrical properties.

physics.ins-det↗

Heavy Flavour measurements in Pb$-$Pb collisions with the upgraded ALICE Inner Tracking System

During the second LHC long shutdown (LS2) the Inner Tracking System (ITS) of ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) will be replaced by seven layers of CMOS Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (MAPS). The latest innovations in silicon imaging technology allow for the construction of large, ultra-thin silicon wafers which can further improve the capabilities of the ALICE tracker. The research and development studies towards the construction of a novel vertex detector have started. The detector installation has been proposed for the third LHC long shutdown (LS3) during which the three innermost layers shall be replaced by three cylindrical layers of large curved CMOS wafers. This upgrade (ITS3) will further improve the impact parameter resolution and the tracking efficiency of low momentum particles. The innermost layer will be positioned closer to the interaction point and the material budget will be reduced down to 0.05$\%X_0$ per layer. Monte Carlo simulations of a simplified ITS3 geometry within the ITS2 design indicate an improvement in the impact parameter resolution and the tracking efficiency, which are of crucial importance for measurements of heavy-flavour hadrons. This contribution shows the improved performance for the example of the $Λ_{\mathrm{b}}$, for which the significance of its measurement is extracted based on these MC simulations. A significant improvement by almost a factor of three in the low momentum region compared to the ITS2 is observed.

nucl-ex↗

A next-generation LHC heavy-ion experiment

The present document discusses plans for a compact, next-generation multi-purpose detector at the LHC as a follow-up to the present ALICE experiment. The aim is to build a nearly massless barrel detector consisting of truly cylindrical layers based on curved wafer-scale ultra-thin silicon sensors with MAPS technology, featuring an unprecedented low material budget of 0.05% X$_0$ per layer, with the innermost layers possibly positioned inside the beam pipe. In addition to superior tracking and vertexing capabilities over a wide momentum range down to a few tens of MeV/$c$, the detector will provide particle identification via time-of-flight determination with about 20~ps resolution. In addition, electron and photon identification will be performed in a separate shower detector. The proposed detector is conceived for studies of pp, pA and AA collisions at luminosities a factor of 20 to 50 times higher than possible with the upgraded ALICE detector, enabling a rich physics program ranging from measurements with electromagnetic probes at ultra-low transverse momenta to precision physics in the charm and beauty sector.

physics.ins-det↗

The upgrade of the ALICE Inner Tracking System

The Inner Tracking System (ITS) of the ALICE experiment will be upgraded during the second long LHC shutdown in $\mathrm{2019}-\mathrm{2020}$. The main goal of the ALICE ITS Upgrade is to enable high precision measurements of low - momentum particles (< 1 GeV/c) by acquiring a large sample of events, benefiting from the increase of the LHC instantaneous luminosity of $\mathrm{Pb}-\mathrm{Pb}$ collisions to $\mathcal{L} = 6 \cdot 10^{27} cm^{-2} s^{-1} $ during Run 3. Working in this direction the ITS upgrade project is focusing on the increase of the readout rate, on the improvement of the impact parameter resolution, as well as on the improvement of the tracking efficiency and the position resolution. The major setup modification is the substitution of the current ITS with seven layers of silicon pixel detectors. The ALPIDE chip, a CMOS Monolithic Active Pixel Sensor (MAPS), was developed for this purpose and offers a spatial resolution of 5 $μ$m. The use of MAPS together with a stringent mechanical design allows for the reduction of the material budget down to 0.35% $X_0$ for the innermost layers and 1% $X_0$ for the outer layers. The detector design was validated during the research and development period through a variety of tests ensuring the proper operation for the full lifetime inside ALICE. The production phase is close to completion with all the new assembled components undergoing different tests that aim to characterize the modules and staves and determine their qualification level. This contribution describes the detector design, the measurements performed during the research and development phase, as well as the production status.

physics.ins-det↗