Abstract: A search is presented for single production of a vector-like B quark decaying into a Standard Model b-quark and a Standard Model Higgs boson, which decays into a b (b) over bar pair. The search is carried out in 139 fb(-1) of root s = 13 TeV proton-proton collision data collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC between 2015 and 2018. No significant deviation from the Standard Model background prediction is observed, and mass-dependent exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level are set on the resonance production cross-section in several theoretical scenarios determined by the couplings c(W), c(Z) and c(H) between the B quark and the Standard Model W, Z and Higgs bosons, respectively. For a vector-like B occurring as an isospin singlet, the search excludes values of c(W) greater than 0.45 for a B resonance mass (m(B)) between 1.0 and 1.2 TeV. For 1.2 TeV < m(B)< 2.0 TeV, c(W) values larger than 0.50-0.65 are excluded. If the B occurs as part of a (B, Y) doublet, the smallest excluded c(Z) coupling values range between 0.3 and 0.5 across the investigated resonance mass range 1.0 TeV < m(B)< 2.0 TeV.

Abstract: A search for a new heavy scalar particle X decaying into a Standard Model (SM) Higgs boson and a new singlet scalar particle S is presented. The search uses a proton-proton (pp) collision data sample with an integrated luminosity of 140 fb(-1) recorded at a centre-of-mass energy of root s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The most sensitive mass parameter space is explored in X mass ranging from 500 to 1500 GeV, with the corresponding S mass in the range 200-500 GeV. The search selects events with two hadronically decaying tau-lepton candidates from H -> tau(+)tau(-) decays and one or two light leptons (l = e, mu) from S -> VV (V = W, Z) decays while the remaining V boson decays hadronically or to neutrinos. A multivariate discriminant based on event kinematics is used to separate the signal from the background. No excess is observed beyond the expected SM background and 95% confidence level upper limits between 72 fb and 542 fb are derived on the cross-section sigma(pp -> X -> SH) assuming the same SM-Higgs boson-like decay branching ratios for the S -> VV decay. Upper limits on the visible cross-sections sigma(pp -> X -> SH -> WW tau tau) and sigma(pp -> X -> SH -> ZZ tau tau) are also set in the ranges 3-26 fb and 6-33 fb, respectively.

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.

Abstract: This paper reports the first ATLAS measurement of the B-s(0) -> μμeffective lifetime. The measurement is based on the data collected in 2015-2016, amounting to 26.3 fb(-1) of 13TeV LHC proton-proton collisions. The proper decay-time distribution of 58 +/- 13 background-subtracted signal candidates is fit with simulated signal templates parameterised as a function of the B-s(0) effective lifetime, with statistical uncertainties extracted through a Neyman construction. The resulting effective measurement of the B-s(0) -> μμlifetime is 0.99(-0.07)(+0.42) (stat.) +/- 0.17 (syst.) ps and it is found to be consistent with the Standard Model.

Abstract: This paper presents updated Monte Carlo configurations used to model the production of single electroweak vector bosons (W, Z/gamma*) in association with jets in proton-proton collisions for the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider. Improvements pertaining to the electroweak input scheme, parton-shower splitting kernels and scale-setting scheme are shown for multi-jet merged configurations accurate to next-to-leading order in the strong and electroweak couplings. The computational resources required for these set-ups are assessed, and approximations are introduced resulting in a factor three reduction of the per-event CPU time without affecting the physics modelling performance. Continuous statistical enhancement techniques are introduced by ATLAS in order to populate low cross-section regions of phase space and are shown to match or exceed the generated effective luminosity. This, together with the lower per-event CPU time, results in a 50% reduction in the required computing resources compared to a legacy set-up previously used by the ATLAS collaboration. The set-ups described in this paper will be used for future ATLAS analyses and lay the foundation for the next generation of Monte Carlo predictions for single vector-boson plus jets production.