Abstract: A search for events with a dark photon produced in association with a dark Higgs boson via rare decays of the standard model Z boson is presented, using 139 fb(-1) of root p 1/4 13 TeV proton-proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The dark boson decays into a pair of dark photons, and at least two of the three dark photons must each decay into a pair of electrons or muons, resulting in at least two same-flavor opposite-charge lepton pairs in the final state. The data are found to be consistent with the background prediction, and upper limits are set on the dark photon's coupling to the dark Higgs boson times the kinetic mixing between the standard model photon and the dark photon, alpha(D)epsilon(2), in the dark photon mass range of [5, 40] GeV except for the gamma mass window [8.8, 11.1] GeV. This search explores new parameter space not previously excluded by other experiments.

Abstract: In dark-matter annihilation channels to hadronic final states, stable particles – such as positrons, photons, antiprotons, and antineutrinos – are produced via complex sequences of phenomena including QED/QCD radiation, hadronisation, and hadron decays. These processes are normally modelled by Monte Carlo (MC) event generators whose limited accuracy imply intrinsic QCD uncertainties on the predictions for indirect-detection experiments like Fermi-LAT, Pamela, IceCube or Ams-02. In this article, we perform a comprehensive analysis of QCD uncertainties, meaning both perturbative and nonperturbative sources of uncertainty are included – estimated via variations of MC renormalization-scale and fragmentation-function parameters, respectively – in antimatter spectra from dark-matter annihilation, based on parametric variations of the Pythia 8 event generator. After performing several retunings of light-quark fragmentation functions, we define a set of variations that span a conservative estimate of the QCD uncertainties. We estimate the effects on antimatter spectra for various annihilation channels and final-state particle species, and discuss their impact on fitted values for the dark-matter mass and thermally-averaged annihilation cross section. We find dramatic impacts which can go up to O(10%) for the annihilation cross section. We provide the spectra in tabulated form including QCD uncertainties and code snippets to perform fast dark-matter fits, in this github repository.

Abstract: We suggest a common origin for dark matter, neutrino mass and family symmetry within the orbifold theory proposed in [Phys. Lett. B 801, 135195 (2020); Phys. Rev. D 101, 116012 (2020)]. Flavor physics is described by an A(4) family symmetry that results naturally from compactification. Weakly interacting massive particle dark matter emerges from the first Kaluza-Klein excitation of the same scalar that drives family symmetry breaking and neutrino masses through the inverse seesaw mechanism. In addition to the “golden” quark-lepton mass relation and predictions for 0 nu beta beta decay, the model provides a good global description of all flavor observables.

Abstract: Two new excited states, S2c(3185)0 and S2c(3327)0, are observed in the E thorn c K- invariant-mass spectrum using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9 fb-1. Five previously observed excited S20c states are confirmed, namely S2c(3000)0, S2c(3050)0, S2c(3065)0, S2c(3090)0, and S2c(3119)0. The masses and widths of these seven states are measured with the highest precision to date.

Abstract: A measurement of novel event shapes quantifying the isotropy of collider events is performed in 140 fb(-1) of proton-proton collisions with root s = 13TeV centre-of-mass energy recorded with the ATLAS detector at CERN's Large Hadron Collider. These event shapes are defined as the Wasserstein distance between collider events and isotropic reference geometries. This distance is evaluated by solving optimal transport problems, using the 'Energy-Mover's Distance'. Isotropic references with cylindrical and circular symmetries are studied, to probe the symmetries of interest at hadron colliders. The novel event-shape observables defined in this way are infrared- and collinear-safe, have improved dynamic range and have greater sensitivity to isotropic radiation patterns than other event shapes. The measured event-shape variables are corrected for detector effects, and presented in inclusive bins of jet multiplicity and the scalar sum of the two leading jets' transverse momenta. The measured distributions are provided as inputs to future Monte Carlo tuning campaigns and other studies probing fundamental properties of QCD and the production of hadronic final states up to the TeV-scale.