Abstract: This paper presents the observation of four-topquark (t (t) over bart (t) over bar) production in proton-proton collisions at the LHC. The analysis is performed using an integrated luminosity of 140 fb-1 at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeVcollected using the ATLAS detector. Events containing two leptons with the same electric charge or at least three leptons (electrons or muons) are selected. Event kinematics are used to separate signal from background through a multivariate discriminant, and dedicated control regions are used to constrain the dominant backgrounds. The observed (expected) significance of themeasured t (t) over bart (t) over bar signal with respect to the standard model (SM) background-only hypothesis is 6.1 (4.3) standard deviations. The t (t) over bart (t) over bar production cross section is measured to be 22.5(-5.5)(+6.6), consistent with the SM prediction of 12.0 +/- 2.4 fb within 1.8 standard deviations. Data are also used to set limits on the three-top-quark production cross section, being an irreducible background not measured previously, and to constrain the top-Higgs Yukawa coupling and effective field theory operator coefficients that affect t (t) over bart (t) over bar production.

Abstract: This paper reports a search for Higgs boson pair (hh) production in association with a vector boson ( W or Z) using 139 fb(-1) of proton-proton collision data at root s = 13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The search is performed in final states in which the vector boson decays leptonically (W -> l nu, Z -> ll, nu nu with l = e, mu) and the Higgs bosons each decay into a pair of b-quarks. It targets Vhh signals from both non-resonant hh production, present in the Standard Model (SM), and resonant hh production, as predicted in some SM extensions. A 95% confidence-level upper limit of 183 (87) times the SM cross-section is observed (expected) for non-resonant Vhh production when assuming the kinematics are as expected in the SM. Constraints are also placed on Higgs boson coupling modifiers. For the resonant search, upper limits on the production cross-sections are derived for two specific models: one is the production of a vector boson along with a neutral heavy scalar resonance H, in the mass range 260-1000GeV, that decays into hh, and the other is the production of a heavier neutral pseudoscalar resonance A that decays into a Z boson and H boson, where the A boson mass is 360-800GeV and the H boson mass is 260-400GeV. Constraints are also derived in the parameter space of two-Higgs-doublet models.

Abstract: A search for supersymmetry involving the pair production of gluinos decaying via off-shell third-generation squarks into the lightest neutralino ((chi) over tilde (0)(1)) is reported. It exploits LHC proton-proton collision data at a centre-ofmass energy root s = 13 TeV with an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1) collected with the ATLAS detector from 2015 to 2018. The search uses events containing large missing transverse momentum, up to one electron or muon, and several energetic jets, at least three of which must be identified as containing b-hadrons. Both a simple kinematic event selection and an event selection based upon a deep neural network are used. No significant excess above the predicted background is found. In simplified models involving the pair production of gluinos that decay via off-shell top (bottom) squarks, gluino masses less than 2.44 TeV (2.35 TeV) are excluded at 95% CL for a massless (chi) over tilde (0)(1). Limits are also set on the gluino mass in models with variable branching ratios for gluino decays to b (b) over bar (chi) over tilde (0)(1), t (t) over bar (chi) over tilde (0)(1) and t (b) over bar (chi) over tilde (-)(iota) / (t) over barb (chi) over tilde (0)(1).

Abstract: The flavour-tagging algorithms developed by the AvTLAS Collaboration and used to analyse its dataset of root s = 13 TeV pp collisions from Run 2 of the Large Hadron Collider are presented. These new tagging algorithms are based on recurrent and deep neural networks, and their performance is evaluated in simulated collision events. These developments yield considerable improvements over previous jet-flavour identification strategies. At the 77% b-jet identification efficiency operating point, light-jet (charm-jet) rejection factors of 170 (5) are achieved in a sample of simulated Standard Model t (t) over bar events; similarly, at a c-jet identification efficiency of 30%, a light-jet (b-jet) rejection factor of 70 (9) is obtained.

Abstract: A search for pair-produced vector-like quarks using events with exactly one lepton (e or mu), at least four jets including at least one b-tagged jet, and large missing transverse momentum is presented. Data from proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of root s =13 TeV, recorded by the ATLAS detector at the LHC from 2015 to 2018 and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1), are analysed. Vector-like partners T and B of the top and bottom quarks are considered, as is a vector-like X with charge +5/3, assuming their decay into a W, Z, or Higgs boson and a third-generation quark. No significant deviations from the Standard Model expectation are observed. Upper limits on the production cross-section of T and B quark pairs as a function of their mass are derived for various decay branching ratio scenarios. The strongest lower limits on the masses are 1.59 TeV assuming mass-degenerate vector-like quarks and branching ratios corresponding to the weak-isospin doublet model, and 1.47 TeV (1.46 TeV) for exclusive T -> Zt (B/X -> Wt) decays. In addition, lower limits on the T and B quark masses are derived for all possible branching ratios.