Abstract: A search for new physics with non-resonant signals in dielectron and dimuon final states in the mass range above 2 TeV is presented. This is the first search for non-resonant signals in dilepton final states at the LHC to use a background estimate from the data. The data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1), were recorded by the ATLAS experiment in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of root s= 13 TeV during Run 2 of the Large Hadron Collider. The benchmark signal signature is a two-quark and two-lepton contact interaction, which would enhance the dilepton event rate at the TeV mass scale. To model the contribution from background processes a functional form is fit to the dilepton invariant-mass spectra in data in a mass region below the region of interest. It is then extrapolated to a high-mass signal region to obtain the expected background there. No significant deviation from the expected background is observed in the data. Upper limits at 95% CL on the number of events and the visible cross-section times branching fraction for processes involving new physics are provided. Observed (expected) 95% CL lower limits on the contact interaction energy scale reach 35.8 (37.6) TeV.

Abstract: A measurement of prompt photon-pair production in proton-proton collisions at root s = 13 TeV is presented. The data were recorded by the ATLAS detector at the LHC with an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1). Events with two photons in the wellinstrumented region of the detector are selected. The photons are required to be isolated and have a transverse momentum of p(T,gamma 1(2)) > 40 (30) GeV for the leading (sub-leading) photon. The differential cross sections as functions of several observables for the diphoton system are measured and compared with theoretical predictions from state-of-the-art Monte Carlo and fixed-order calculations. The QCD predictions from next-to-next-to-leadingorder calculations and multi-leg merged calculations are able to describe the measured integrated and differential cross sections within uncertainties, whereas lower-order calculations show significant deviations, demonstrating that higher-order perturbative QCD corrections are crucial for this process. The resummed predictions with parton showers additionally provide an excellent description of the low transverse-momentum regime of the diphoton system.

Abstract: The result of a search for the pair production of the lightest supersymmetric partner of the bottom quark ((b) over tilde (1)) using 139 fb(-1) of proton-proton data collected at root s = 13 TeV by the ATLAS detector is reported. In the supersymmetric scenarios considered both of the bottom-squarks decay into a b-quark and the second-lightest neutralino, (b) over tilde (1) -> b + (chi) over tilde (0)(2). Each (chi) over tilde (0)(2) is assumed to subsequently decay with 100% branching ratio into a Higgs boson (h) like the one in the Standard Model and the lightest neutralino: (chi) over tilde (0)(2) -> h + (chi) over tilde (0)(1). The (chi) over tilde (0)(1) is assumed to be the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP) and is stable. Two signal mass configurations are targeted: the first has a constant LSP mass of 60 GeV; and the second has a constant mass difference between the (chi) over tilde (0)(2) and (chi) over tilde (0)(1) of 130 GeV. The final states considered contain no charged leptons, three or more b-jets, and large missing transverse momentum. No significant excess of events over the Standard Model background expectation is observed in any of the signal regions considered. Limits at the 95% confidence level are placed in the supersymmetric models considered, and bottom-squarks with mass up to 1.5 TeV are excluded.