Abstract: The angular distributions of Drell-Yan charged lepton pairs in the vicinity of the Z-boson mass peak probe the underlying QCD dynamics of Z-boson production. This paper presents a measurement of the complete set of angular coefficients Lambda(0-7) describing these distributions in the Z-boson Collins-Soper frame. The data analysed correspond to 20.3 fb(-1) of pp collisions at root s = 8TeV, collected by the ATLAS detector at the CERN LHC. The measurements are compared to the most precise fixed-order calculations currently available (O (alpha(2)(s))) and with theoretical predictions embedded in Monte Carlo generators. The measurements are precise enough to probe QCD corrections beyond the formal accuracy of these calculations and to provide discrimination between different parton-shower models. A signi fi cant deviation from the O (alpha(2)(s)) predictions is observed for A(0)-A(2). Evidence is found for non-zero A(5,6, 7), consistent with expectations.

Abstract: The production of W boson pairs in proton-proton collisions at root s = 8TeV is studied using data corresponding to 20.3 fb(-1) of integrated luminosity collected by the ATLAS detector during 2012 at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The W bosons are reconstructed using their leptonic decays into electrons or muons and neutrinos. Events with reconstructed jets are not included in the candidate event sample. A total of 6636 W W candidate events are observed. Measurements are performed in fiducial regions closely approximating the detector acceptance. The integrated measurement is corrected for all acceptance effects and for the W branching fractions to leptons in order to obtain the total W W production cross section, which is found to be 71.1 +/- 1.1( stat) + (5.7) (5.0) (syst) +/- 1 : 4( lumi) pb. This agrees with the next-to-next-to-leading-order Standard Model prediction of 63.2(+1.6) (-1.4) (scale) +/- 1.2(PDF) pb. Fiducial differential cross sections are measured as a function of each of six kinematic variables. The distribution of the transverse momentum of the leading lepton is used to set limits on anomalous triple-gauge-boson couplings.

Abstract: Here we propose a realistic SU(3)(c) circle times SU(3)(L) circle times U(1)(X) electroweak gauge model with enlarged Higgs sector. The scheme allows for the natural implementation of a type II seesaw mechanism for Dirac neutrinos, while charged lepton and quark masses are reproduced in a natural way thanks to the presence of new scalars. The new SU(3)(c) circle times SU(3)(L) circle times U(1)(X) energy scale characterizing neutrino mass generation could be accessible to the current LHC experiments.

Abstract: Little Higgs models are promising constructs to solve the hierarchy problem affecting the Higgs boson mass for generic new physics. However, their preservation of lepton universality forbids them to account for the H -> tau μCMS hint and at the same time respect (as they do) the severe limits on H -> μe inherited from the nonobservation of μ-> e gamma We compute the predictions of the simplest little Higgs model for the H -> ll' decays and conclude that the measurement of any of these decays at LHC (even with a much smaller rate than currently hinted) would, under reasonable assumptions, disfavor this model. This result is consistent with our earlier observation of very suppressed lepton flavor violating semileptonic tau decays within this model.

Abstract: Random coincidences degrade the image in Positron Emission Tomography, PET. To compensate for their degradation effects, the rate of random coincidences should be estimated. Under certain circumstances, current estimation methods fail to provide accurate results. We propose a novel method, “Singles-Prompts” (SP), that includes the information conveyed by prompt coincidences and models the pile-up. The SP method has the same structure than the well-known “Singles Rate” (SR) approach. Hence, SP can straightforwardly replace SR. In this work, the SP method has been extensively assessed and compared to two conventional methods, SR and the delayed window (DW) method, in a preclinical PET scenario using Monte-Carlo simulations. SP offers accurate estimates for the randoms rates, while SR and DW tend to overestimate the rates (similar to 10%, and 5%, respectively). With pile-up, the SP method is more robust than SR (but less than DW). At the image level, the contrast is overestimated in SR-corrected images, + 16%, while SP produces the correct value. Spill-over is slightly reduced using SP instead of SR. The DW images values are similar to those of SP except for low-statistic scenarios, where DW behaves as if randoms were not compensated for. In particular, the contrast is reduced, -16%. In general, the better estimations of SP translate into better image quality.