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Frank Petriello

Publications and source records attributed to Frank Petriello.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
arXiv2015

Higgs boson production in association with a jet at NNLO using jettiness subtraction

We use the recently proposed jettiness-subtraction scheme to provide the complete calculation of Higgs boson production in association with a jet in hadronic collisions through next-to-next-to-leading order in perturbative QCD. This method exploits the observation that the $N$-jettiness event-shape variable completely describes the singularity structure of QCD when final-state colored particles are present. Our results are in agreement with a recent computation of the $gg$ and $qg$ partonic initial states based on sector-improved residue subtraction. We present phenomenological results for both fiducial cross sections and distributions at the LHC.

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arXiv2015

Rare exclusive decays of the Z-boson revisited

The realization that first- and second-generation Yukawa couplings can be probed by decays of the Higgs boson to a meson in association with a photon has renewed interest in such rare exclusive decays. We present here a detailed study of the rare $Z$-boson processes $Z \to J/ψ+γ$, $Z \to Υ+γ$, and $Z \to ϕ+γ$ that can serve as benchmarks for the analogous Higgs-boson decays. We include both direct-production and fragmentation contributions to these decays, and consider the leading QCD corrections and the relativistic corrections to the $J/ψ$ and $Υ$ processes. We present numerical predictions for the branching ratios that include a careful accounting of the theoretical uncertainties.

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arXiv2015

Higgs boson production in association with a jet at next-to-next-to-leading order

We present precise predictions for Higgs boson production in association with a jet. Our calculation is accurate to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD in the Higgs Effective Field Theory and constitutes the first complete NNLO computation for Higgs production with a final-state jet in hadronic collisions. We include all relevant phenomenological channels and present fully-differential results as well as total cross sections for the LHC. Our NNLO predictions reduce the unphysical scale dependence by more than a factor of two and enhance the total rate by about twenty percent compared to NLO QCD predictions. Our results demonstrate for the first time satisfactory convergence of the perturbative series.

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arXiv2015

The N-jettiness soft function at next-to-next-to-leading order

We present a general framework for the calculation of soft functions for SCET_I observables through next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in the strong coupling constant. As an example of our formalism we show how it can be used to obtain the complete NNLO soft function for the $N$-jettiness event shape variable. We present numerical results for two examples with phenomenological impact: the one-jettiness soft function for both electron-proton and proton-proton collisions.

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arXiv2014

Relativistic corrections to Higgs boson decays to quarkonia

We improve the theoretical predictions for the decays of the Higgs boson to an $S$-wave vector quarkonium plus a photon by calculating the relativistic correction of order $v^2$, where $v$ is the heavy-quark velocity in the quarkonium rest frame. Our numerical results are given for the $J/ψ$ and $Υ(nS)$ channels, with $n=1,2,3$. The numerical results include a previously calculated correction of order $α_s$ and summations, to all orders in $α_s$, of leading logarithms of $m_H^2/m_Q^2$, where $m_H$ is the Higgs-boson mass and $m_Q$ is the heavy-quark mass. These QCD corrections apply to the contribution of leading order in $v$ and to part of the order-$v^2$ correction. For the remainder of the order-$v^2$ correction, we sum leading logarithms of $m_H/m_Q$ through order $α_s^2$. These refinements reduce the theoretical uncertainties in the direct-production amplitudes for $H \to J/ψ+γ$ and $H \to Υ(1S)+γ$ by approximately a factor of 3 and open the door to improved determinations at the LHC of the Higgs-boson Yukawa couplings to the charm and bottom quarks.

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arXiv2014

An Exclusive Window onto Higgs Yukawa Couplings

We show that both flavor-conserving and flavor-violating Yukawa couplings of the Higgs boson to first- and second-generation quarks can be probed by measuring rare decays of the form h->MV, where M denotes a vector meson and V indicates either gamma, W or Z. We calculate the branching ratios for these processes in both the Standard Model and its possible extensions. We discuss the experimental prospects for their observation. The possibility of accessing these Higgs couplings appears to be unique to the high-luminosity LHC and future hadron colliders, providing further motivation for those machines.

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arXiv2013

Combining Resummed Higgs Predictions Across Jet Bins

Experimental analyses often use jet binning to distinguish between different kinematic regimes and separate contributions from background processes. To accurately model theoretical uncertainties in these measurements, a consistent description of the jet bins is required. We present a complete framework for the combination of resummed results for production processes in different exclusive jet bins, focusing on Higgs production in gluon fusion as an example. We extend the resummation of the Higgs + 1-jet cross section into the challenging low transverse momentum region, lowering the uncertainties considerably. We provide combined predictions with resummation for cross sections in the Higgs + 0-jet and Higgs + 1-jet bins, and give an improved theory covariance matrix for use in experimental studies. We estimate that the relevant theoretical uncertainties on the signal strength in the Higgs to WW analysis are reduced by nearly a factor of 2 compared to the current value.

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arXiv2013

Disentangling radiative corrections using high-mass Drell-Yan at the LHC

We present a detailed numerical study of lepton-pair production via the Drell-Yan process above the Z-peak at the LHC. Our results consistently combine next-to-next-to-leading order QCD corrections and next-to-leading order electroweak effects, and include the leading photon-initiated processes using a recent extraction of the photon distribution function. We focus on the effects of electroweak corrections and of photon-photon scattering contributions, and demonstrate which kinematic distributions exhibit sensitivity to these corrections. We show that a combination of measurements allows them to be disentangled and separately determined.

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arXiv2013

Higgs boson decays to quarkonia and the Hccbar coupling

In this paper we discuss decays of the Higgs boson to quarkonia in association with a photon. We identify a new mechanism for producing such final states in Higgs decays that leads to predictions for the decay rates that differ by an order of magnitude from previous estimates. Although the branching ratios for these processes are still small, the processes are experimentally clean, and the H \to J/ψ+gamma decay should be observable at a 14 TeV LHC. We point out that quantum interference between two different production mechanisms makes the decay rates sensitive to the HQQbar couplings. Consequently, measurements of the H \to J/ψ+gamma decay rate would allow one to probe the Higgs-charm coupling directly at the LHC. We discuss the experimental prospects for the observation of these decays and for the direct measurement of the Hccbar coupling.

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arXiv2013

Electroweak Corrections at High Energies

We present a survey of the most abundant processes at the LHC for sensitivity to electroweak corrections at \sqrt{s} = 8, 14, 33, and 100 TeV proton-proton collision energies. The processes studied are pp -> dijet, inclusive W and Z, W/Z+jets, and WW. In each case we compare the experimental uncertainty in the highest kinematic regions of interest with the relative magnitude of electroweak corrections and fixed-order α_S calculations.

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arXiv2013

Reducing theoretical uncertainties for exclusive Higgs plus one-jet production at the LHC

We resum a class of large Sudakov logarithms affecting Higgs boson production in the exclusive one-jet bin at the LHC. We extend previous results by calculating the full one-loop soft function for this process, which extends the accuracy of the resummation to include the leading three logarithmic corrections at each order in the QCD coupling constant. We match this result to the next-to-leading order cross section and present a detailed numerical study assuming realistic LHC cuts. Careful attention is paid to the matching procedure, and to the theoretical uncertainties induced by residual scale variation. We find that the matched NLL'+ NLO cross section has significantly smaller uncertainties than the fixed-order result, and can be used to alleviate the theoretical errors hindering current Higgs analyses at the LHC.

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arXiv2013

Higgs boson production in association with a jet at next-to-next-to-leading order in perturbative QCD

We report on a calculation of the cross-section for Higgs boson production in gluon fusion in association with a hadronic jet at next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in perturbative QCD. The computational technique is discussed in detail. We show explicitly how to employ known soft and collinear limits of scattering amplitudes to construct subtraction terms for NNLO computations. Cancellation of singularities is demonstrated numerically for the collinearly-subtracted $gg \to H + j $ cross-section through NNLO and the finite $σ_{gg \to Hj}$ cross-section is computed through ${\cal O}(α_s^5)$ as a function of the center-of-mass collision energy. We present numerical results for the gluon-fusion contribution to Higgs production in association with a jet at the LHC. The NNLO QCD corrections significantly reduce the residual scale dependence of the cross-section. The computational method that we describe in this paper is applicable to the calculation of NNLO QCD corrections to any other $ 2 \to 2$ process at a hadron collider

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arXiv2012

Resummation of jet-veto logarithms in hadronic processes containing jets

We derive a factorization theorem for production of an arbitrary number of color-singlet particles accompanied by a fixed number of jets at the LHC. The jets are defined with the standard anti-$k_T$ algorithm, and the fixed number of jets is obtained by imposing a veto on additional radiation in the final state. The formalism presented here is useful for current Higgs boson analyses using exclusive jet bins, and for other studies using a similar strategy. The derivation uses the soft-collinear effective theory and assumes that the transverse momenta of the hard jets are larger than the veto scale. We resum the large Sudakov logarithms $α_s^n \log^{2n-m}(p_T^{J}/p_T^{veto})$ up to the next-to-leading-logarithmic accuracy, and present numerical results for Higgs boson production in association with a jet at the LHC. We comment on the experimentally-interesting parameter region in which we expect our factorization formula to hold.

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arXiv2012

Combining QCD and electroweak corrections to dilepton production in FEWZ

We combine the next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD corrections to lepton-pair production through the Drell-Yan mechanism with the next-to-leading order (NLO) electroweak corrections within the framework of the FEWZ simulation code. Control over both sources of higher-order contributions is necessary for measurements where percent-level theoretical predictions are crucial, and in phase-space regions where the NLO electroweak corrections grow large. The inclusion of both corrections in a single simulation code eliminates the need to separately incorporate such effects as final-state radiation and electroweak Sudakov logarithms when comparing many experimental results to theory. We recalculate the NLO electroweak corrections in the complex-mass scheme for both massless and massive final-state leptons, and modify the QCD corrections in the original FEWZ code to maintain consistency with the complex-mass scheme to the lowest order. We present phenomenological results for LHC studies that include both NNLO QCD and NLO electroweak corrections. In addition, we study several interesting kinematics features induced by experimental cuts in the distribution of photon radiation at the LHC.

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arXiv2012

Single-variable asymmetries for measuring the `Higgs' boson spin and CP properties

We introduce a class of asymmetries sensitive to the spin and CP properties of the new boson discovered by the ATLAS and CMS experiments. These asymmetries can be measured in the four-lepton final state, and are defined by integrating the invariant masses of the lepton pairs over specified ranges. We outline a program of measurements using initial LHC data to determine the quantum numbers and coupling structure, provide analytic expressions for decay widths in several representative models, and discuss what can be determined using the available data. As examples, we show how the combination of ATLAS and CMS data already disfavor certain spin-2 couplings, and discuss how further data will allow for discrimination of a pure CP-odd scalar from a CP-even hypothesis.

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arXiv2012

Gauge-boson production with multiple jets near threshold

Signatures of new physics beyond the Standard Model are often characterized by large missing transverse energy ($\not E_T$) produced in association with multiple jets. The dominant Standard Model background to such processes comes from gauge-boson production in association with jets. A standard search strategy involves looking for an excess in the $m_{eff}$ distribution, where $m_{eff}= \not E_T +\sum_{J} p^T_J$ and $p^T_J$ denotes the transverse momentum of the $J$-th jet. The region of large $m_{eff}$ is dominated by jet production near threshold, giving rise to large Sudakov logarithms that can change the magnitude and shape of the $m_{eff}$ distribution. We present an effective theory framework for the resummation of such threshold logarithms. We perform an analysis for exclusive jet production using the N-jettiness global event shape, which allows theoretical control to also be maintained over large logarithms induced by vetoing additional jets. As a first step, we give explicit numerical results with next-to-leading-log (NLL) resummation for $pp \to γ+ 2$ jets in the large $m_{eff}$ region.

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arXiv2012

W physics at the LHC with FEWZ 2.1

We present an updated version of the FEWZ (Fully Exclusive W and Z production) code for the calculation of W and gamma*/Z production at next-to-next-to-leading order in the strong coupling. Several new features and observables are introduced, and an order-of-magnitude speed improvement over the performance of FEWZ 2.0 is demonstrated. New phenomenological results for W production and comparisons with LHC data are presented, and used to illustrate the range of physics studies possible with the features of FEWZ 2.1. We demonstrate with an example the importance of directly comparing fiducial-region measurements with theoretical predictions, rather than first extrapolating them to the full phase space.

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