Abstract: Although weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) have long been among the most studied and theoretically attractive classes of candidates for the dark matter of our universe, the lack of their detection in direct detection and collider experiments has begun to dampen enthusiasm for this paradigm. In this study, we set out to appraise the status of the WIMP paradigm, focusing on the case of dark matter candidates that interact with the Standard Model through a new gauge boson. After considering a wide range of Z' mediated dark matter models, we quantitatively evaluate the fraction of the parameter space that has been excluded by existing experiments, and that is projected to fall within the reach of future direct detection experiments. Despite the existence of stringent constraints, we find that a sizable fraction of this parameter space remains viable. More specifically, if the dark matter is a Majorana fermion, we find that an order one fraction of the parameter space is in many cases untested by current experiments. Future direct detection experiments with sensitivity near the irreducible neutrino floor will be able to test a significant fraction of the currently viable parameter space, providing considerable motivation for the next generation of direct detection experiments.

Abstract: A determination of the top-quark mass is presented using 20.2 fb-1 of 8 TeV proton-proton collision data produced by the Large Hadron Collider and collected by the ATLAS experiment. The normalised differential cross section of top-quark pair production in association with an energetic jet is measured in the lepton+jets final state and unfolded to parton and particle levels. The unfolded distribution at parton level can be described using next-to-leading-order QCD predictions in terms of either the top-quark pole mass or the running mass as defined in the (modified) minimal subtraction scheme. A comparison between the experimental distribution and the theoretical prediction allows the top-quark mass to be extracted in the two schemes. The value obtained for the pole-mass scheme is: rnirle 171.1 0.4 (stat) 0.9 (syst) 173 (theo) GeV. The extracted value in the running-mass scheme is: rnt(rnt) = 162.9 0.5 (stat) 1.0 (syst) 1:12 (theo) GeV. The results for the top -quark mass using the two schemes are consistent, when translated from one scheme to the other.

Abstract: Ratios of isospin amplitudes in hadron decays are a useful probe of the interplay between weak and strong interactions and allow searches for physics beyond the standard model. We present the first results on isospin amplitudes in b-baryon decays, using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 8.5 fb(-1), collected with the LHCb detector in pp collisions at center of mass energies of 7, 8, and 13 TeV. The isospin amplitude ratio vertical bar A(1) (Delta(0)(b) -> J/psi(Sigma(0)) /A(0) (Delta(0)(b) -> J/psi Lambda)vertical bar, where the subscript on A indicates the final-state isospin, is measured to be less than 1/21.8 at 95% confidence level. The Cabibbo suppressed Xi(0)(b) -> J/psi Lambda decay is observed for the first time, allowing for the measurement vertical bar A(0) (Xi(0)(b) -> J/psi Lambda) / A(1/2 )(Xi(0)(b) -> J/psi Xi(0))vertical bar = 0.37 +/- 0.06 +/- 0.02, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively.

Abstract: New bounds on the electric dipole moment (EDM) of charm and bottom quarks are derived using the stringent limits on their chromo-EDMs. The new limits, vertical bar d(c)vertical bar < 1.5 x 10(-21) e cm and vertical bar d(b)vertical bar < 1.2 x 10(-20) e cm, improve the previous ones by about 3 orders of magnitude. These indirect bounds have implications for different models of new physics, including two-Higgs-doublet, leptoquarks, and supersymmetry models.

Abstract: The even-weight modular forms of level N can be arranged into the common irreducible representations of the inhomogeneous finite modular group Gamma(N) and the homogeneous finite modular group Gamma(N)' which is the double covering of Gamma(N) , and the odd-weight modular forms of level N transform in the new representations of Gamma(N)'. We find that the above structure of modular forms can naturally generate texture zeros of the fermion mass matrices if we properly assign the representations and weights of the matter fields under the modular group. We perform a comprehensive analysis for the Gamma(3)' congruent to T' modular symmetry. The three generations of left-handed quarks are assumed to transform as a doublet and a singlet of T', and we find six possible texture-zero structures of the quark mass matrix up to row and column permutations. We present five benchmark quark models which can produce very good fits to the experimental data. These quark models are further extended to include the lepton sector, and the resulting models can give a unified description of both quark and lepton masses and flavor mixing simultaneously, although they contain a smaller number of free parameters than the observables.