Rare and Exotic Higgs decays at ATLAS and CMS

After the Higgs boson discovery in 2012, the experiments at the LHC are continuing to study this particle and look for physics beyond the standard model. Some of the Higgs boson properties, such as the mass, has been measured with sub-percent level accuracy. Yet the present integrated luminosity is still a limiting factor for measuring the Higgs boson self-coupling or the first generation Yukawa couplings. The current constraints on the Higgs boson couplings would still allow for a sizeable branching fraction into undetected final states, which motivates the direct searches for rare and exotic decay modes. This presentation discusses several new results from these searches utilizing advanced online selection methods or analysis techniques with the entire Run 2 data.Comment: Contribution to the 2024 QCD session of the 58th Rencontres de Morion

Unified phase diagram of reversible-irreversible, jamming and yielding transitions in cyclically sheared soft sphere packings

Self-organization, and transitions from reversible to irreversible behaviour, of interacting particle assemblies driven by externally imposed stresses or deformation is of interest in comprehending diverse phenomena in soft matter. They have been investigated in a wide range of systems, such as colloidal suspensions, glasses, and granular matter. In different density and driving regimes, such behaviour is related to yielding of amorphous solids, jamming, and memory formation, \emph{etc.} How these phenomena are related to each other has not, however, been much studied. In order to obtain a unified view of the different regimes of behaviour, and transitions between them, we investigate computationally the response of soft sphere assemblies to athermal cyclic shear deformation over a wide range of densities and amplitudes of shear deformation. Cyclic shear deformation induces transitions from reversible to irreversible behaviour in both unjammed and jammed soft sphere packings. Well above isotropic jamming density ($\bf{\phi_J}$), this transition corresponds to yielding. In the vicinity of the jamming point, up to a higher density limit we designate ${\bf \phi_J^{cyc}}$, an unjammed phase emerges between a localised, \emph{absorbing} phase, and a diffusive, {\emph irreversible} phase. The emergence of the unjammed phase signals the shifting of the jamming point to higher densities as a result of annealing, and opens a window where shear jamming becomes possible for frictionless packings. Below $\bf{\phi_J}$, two distinct localised states, termed point and loop reversibile, are observed. We characterise in detail the different regimes and transitions between them, and obtain a unified density-shear amplitude phase diagram

An experimental study of the swelling properties of spherical hydro-gel immersed in water and the formulation of a simple theoretical model for its explanation

The mechanism of variation of mass and volume, through the absorption of water, by the most commonly used and abundantly available spherical hydro-gel beads of various colors has been studied. Immersing the beads in distilled water, both mass and volume were measured at regular intervals. By an analysis of mass-versus-time data, using standard theoretical methods, the mechanism of diffusion of water has been studied. Relaxation controlled transport was found to be the predominant process of diffusion of water into the materials under study. The diffusion coefficient has been determined for hydro-gels of different colors. Various swelling related parameters such as equilibrium water content, equilibrium swelling ratio, characteristic time, initial rate of water absorption etc. were determined for these hydro-gels. The maximum attainable mass and the maximum number of water molecules that can be attached to active polymer sites in a single bead have been calculated. In this regard, the number of such active sites per unit volume and mass of dry hydro-gel was determined. A theoretical model has been developed, based on the consideration of water absorption through the occupation of vacant polymer sites in a highly porous hydro-gel. Considerations of cylindrical and spherical pores in this model predicted almost the same swelling behavior. Expressions relating mass and volume with time have been formulated and they agreed well with experimental observations. The dependence of characteristic time () upon structural parameters have been established. Values of swelling related parameters have been determined by a numerical fitting of theoretical model to experimental data. The agreement of experimental findings with theoretical predictions has been depicted graphically

An experimental study of the swelling properties of spherical hydro-gel immersed in water and the formulation of a simple theoretical model for its explanation

The mechanism of variation of mass and volume, through the absorption of water, by the most commonly used and abundantly available spherical hydro-gel beads of various colors has been studied. Immersing the beads in distilled water, both mass and volume were measured at regular intervals. By an analysis of mass-versus-time data, using standard theoretical methods, the mechanism of diffusion of water has been studied. Relaxation controlled transport was found to be the predominant process of diffusion of water into the materials under study. The diffusion coefficient has been determined for hydro-gels of different colors. Various swelling related parameters such as equilibrium water content, equilibrium swelling ratio, characteristic time, initial rate of water absorption etc. were determined for these hydro-gels. The maximum attainable mass and the maximum number of water molecules that can be attached to active polymer sites in a single bead have been calculated. In this regard, the number of such active sites per unit volume and mass of dry hydro-gel was determined. A theoretical model has been developed, based on the consideration of water absorption through the occupation of vacant polymer sites in a highly porous hydro-gel. Considerations of cylindrical and spherical pores in this model predicted almost the same swelling behavior. Expressions relating mass and volume with time have been formulated and they agreed well with experimental observations. The dependence of characteristic time () upon structural parameters have been established. Values of swelling related parameters have been determined by a numerical fitting of theoretical model to experimental data. The agreement of experimental findings with theoretical predictions has been depicted graphically

Herbs Having Analgesic Activity

Healthcare maintains a high priority on pain management, and research to develop safer and more potent analgesics is ongoing. Natural goods, especially plants, have recently attracted renewed interest as potential sources of analgesic medications. In this study, various techniques are used to measure pain. The rich source of analgesics found in medicinal plants includes Moringa oleifera, Aloe barbadensis, Curcuma longa, Eugenia caryophyllata, Adhatoda vasica, Mentha piperita, Ocimum sanctum, Zingiber officinale, Lavandula angustifolia, Epilobium angustifolium, Dialium guineense, Sida acuta, Stylosanthes fruticose, Bougainvilla spectabilis, Ficus glomerata, Polyalithia longifolia, Calotropis gigantea, Tinospora cordifolia, Ageratina glabrata, Mangifera indica, Peperomia pellucida, Jatropha gossypifolia, Leonotis leonurus, Mimosa rubicaulis, Cussonia paniculate, Biebersteinia multifida, Alternanthera sessislis, Mentha arvensis, Oroxylum indicum, Tamarindus indica, Cucurbita maxima, Cucumis sativus, Emblica officinalis, Angiopteris evecta, Parastrephia lephidophylla, Peperomia pellucida, Scoparia dulcis, Ficus racemose, Eremostachys laciniata, Phlogacanthus thyrsiflorus, Kigelia pinnata, Molineria capitulate, Manihot esculenta, Ficus religiosa, Dalbergia sissoo, Grangea maderaspatana, Nothospondias staudtii, Rhodiola rosea, Juniperus communis, Erythrina variegate etc. The results reported in this review paper represent scientific knowledge that may be applied in the future to isolate potentially active molecules from some of these medicinal plants

Drastic modification in thermal conductivity of TiCoSb Half-Heusler alloy: Phonon engineering by lattice softening and ionic polarization

A drastic variation in thermal conductivity (\k{appa}) for synthesized samples (TiCoSb1+x, x=0.0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04, and 0.06) is observed and ~47% reduction in \k{appa} is reported for TiCoSb1.02 sample. In depth structural analysis is performed, employing mixed-phase Rietveld refinement technique. Embedded phases and vacancy are analyzed from X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Scanning electron microscopy data. Local structures of the synthesized samples are explored for the first time by X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements for TiCoSb system and corroborated with Rietveld refinement data. Lattice dynamics are revealed using Raman Spectroscopy (RS) measurements in unprecedented attempts for TiCoSb system. XRD and RS data accomplishes that variation in \k{appa} as a function of Sb concentration is observed owing to an alteration in phonon group velocity related to lattice softening. Polar nature of TiCoSb HH sample is revealed. LO-TO splitting (related to polar optical phonon scattering) in phonon vibration is observed due to polar nature of TiCoSb synthesized samples. Tailoring in LO-TO splitting due to screening effect, correlated with Co vacancies is reported for TiCoSb1+x synthesized samples. Lattice softening and LO-TO splitting lead to decreases in \k{appa}~47% for TiCoSb1.02 synthesized sample.Comment: Main article (17 pages, 10 figures), Supplemental article (5 pages, 7 figures), Comments are welcom

Clinicopathological spectrum of renal biopsies in children – A single center experience from Eastern India

Background: Renal diseases are common in childhood and they often present with diagnostic challenges. Renal biopsy is of major importance in diagnosing many renal diseases in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinicopathological aspect of renal diseases underwent biopsy in children in a tertiary care teaching institute in Eastern India. Materials and methods: This cross sectional study was conducted on children (≤12 year) admitted with difficult to treat renal disorders in Pediatric ward and thorough evaluations confirmed the requirement of renal biopsy. Sixty one (61) children satisfying the inclusion and exclusion criteria were enrolled in our study. Period of study was from February 2021 to July 2022. Results: In this study, males were 31 and females were 30 in numbers. The mean age was 6.77± 3.42 years. The indications for renal biopsy were steroid resistant nephrotic syndrome (SRNS) (49.18%), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (29.51%), acute glomerulonephritis (AGN) (16.39%), and others. The major bulks of histopathological findings revealed focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) and minimal change disease (MCD) in 45.9%, 32.8% and 13.1% respectively. Hypertension was present in 58.1% and hematuria in 64.5% of cases (p value 0.001). Conclusion: SRNS (49.18%) was the most common indication of renal biopsy and FSGS (45.9%) was the most common histopathological finding in our study. This study provides data on biopsy proven childhood renal disorders from this region

Measurements of the pp → ZZ production cross section and the Z → 4ℓ branching fraction, and constraints on anomalous triple gauge couplings at √s = 13 TeV

Four-lepton production in proton-proton collisions, pp -> (Z/gamma*)(Z/gamma*) -> 4l, where l = e or mu, is studied at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV with the CMS detector at the LHC. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb(-1). The ZZ production cross section, sigma(pp -> ZZ) = 17.2 +/- 0.5 (stat) +/- 0.7 (syst) +/- 0.4 (theo) +/- 0.4 (lumi) pb, measured using events with two opposite-sign, same-flavor lepton pairs produced in the mass region 60 4l) = 4.83(-0.22)(+0.23) (stat)(-0.29)(+0.32) (syst) +/- 0.08 (theo) +/- 0.12(lumi) x 10(-6) for events with a four-lepton invariant mass in the range 80 4GeV for all opposite-sign, same-flavor lepton pairs. The results agree with standard model predictions. The invariant mass distribution of the four-lepton system is used to set limits on anomalous ZZZ and ZZ. couplings at 95% confidence level: -0.0012 < f(4)(Z) < 0.0010, -0.0010 < f(5)(Z) < 0.0013, -0.0012 < f(4)(gamma) < 0.0013, -0.0012 < f(5)(gamma) < 0.0013

Measurement of t(t)over-bar normalised multi-differential cross sections in pp collisions at root s=13 TeV, and simultaneous determination of the strong coupling strength, top quark pole mass, and parton distribution functions

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