Abstract: This paper presents a summary of beam-induced backgrounds observed in the ATLAS detector and discusses methods to tag and remove background contaminated events in data. Trigger-rate based monitoring of beam-related backgrounds is presented. The correlations of backgrounds with machine conditions, such as residual pressure in the beam-pipe, are discussed. Results from dedicated beam-background simulations are shown, and their qualitative agreement with data is evaluated. Data taken during the passage of unpaired, i.e. non-colliding, proton bunches is used to obtain background-enriched data samples. These are used to identify characteristic features of beam-induced backgrounds, which then are exploited to develop dedicated background tagging tools. These tools, based on observables in the Pixel detector, the muon spectrometer and the calorimeters, are described in detail and their efficiencies are evaluated. Finally an example of an application of these techniques to a monojet analysis is given, which demonstrates the importance of such event cleaning techniques for some new physics searches.

Abstract: A dedicated reconstruction algorithm to find decay vertices in the ATLAS muon spectrometer is presented. The algorithm searches the region just upstream of or inside the muon spectrometer volume for multi-particle vertices that originate from the decay of particles with long decay paths. The performance of the algorithm is evaluated using both a sample of simulated Higgs boson events, in which the Higgs boson decays to long-lived neutral particles that in turn decay to b (b) over bar final states, and pp collision data at root s = 7 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the LHC during 2011.

Abstract: The semiconductor tracker is a silicon microstrip detector forming part of the inner tracking system of the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. The operation and performance of the semiconductor tracker during the first years of LHC running are described. More than 99% of the detector modules were operational during this period, with an average intrinsic hit efficiency of (99.74 +/- 0.04)%. The evolution of the noise occupancy is discussed, and measurements of the Lorentz angle, delta-ray production and energy loss presented. The alignment of the detector is found to be stable at the few-micron level over long periods of time. Radiation damage measurements, which include the evolution of detector leakage currents, are found to be consistent with predictions and are used in the verification of radiation background simulations.

Abstract: The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider is used to search for high-mass resonances decaying to an electron-positron pair or a muon-antimuon pair. The search is sensitive to heavy neutral Z' gauge bosons, Randall-Sundrum gravitons, Z* bosons, techni-mesons, Z/gamma bosons, and bosons predicted by Torsion models. Results are presented based on an analysis of pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.9 fb(-1) in the e(+)e(-) channel and 5.0 fb(-1) in the mu(+)mu(-) channel. A Z' boson with Standard Model-like couplings is excluded at 95% confidence level for masses below 2.22 TeV. A Randall-Sundrum graviton with coupling k root M-P1 = 0.1 is excluded at 95% confidence level for masses below 2.16 Tev. Limits on the other models are also presented, including Technicolor and Minimal Z' Models.

Abstract: A measurement of B-s(0) -> J/psi phi decay parameters, including the CP-violating weak phase phi(s) and the decay width difference Delta Gamma(s) is reported, using 4.9 fb(-1) of integrated luminosity collected in 2011 by the ATLAS detector from LHC pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy root s = 7 TeV. The mean decay width Gamma(s) and the transversity amplitudes vertical bar A(0)(0)vertical bar(2) and vertical bar A(parallel to)(0)vertical bar(2) are also measured. The values reported for these parameters are: phi(s) = 0.22 +/- 0.41 (stat.) +/- 0.10 (syst.) rad Delta Gamma(s) = 0.053 +/- 0.021 (stat.) +/- 0.010 (syst.) ps(-1) Gamma(s) = 0.677 +/- 0.007 (stat.) +/- 0.004 (syst.) ps(-1) vertical bar A(0)(0)vertical bar(2) = 0.528 +/- 0.006 (stat.) +/- 0.009 (syst.) vertical bar A(parallel to)(0)vertical bar(2) = 0.220 +/- 0.008 (stat.) +/- 0.007 (syst.) where the values quoted for phi(s) and Delta Gamma(s) correspond to the solution compatible with the external measurements to which the strong phase delta(perpendicular to) is constrained and where is Delta Gamma(s) constrained to be positive. The fraction of S-wave KK or f(0) contamination through the decays B-s(0) -> J/psi K+K- (f(0)) is measured as well and is found to be consistent with zero. Results for phi(s) and Delta Gamma(s) are also presented as 68%, 90% and 95% likelihood contours, which show agreement with Standard Model expectations.