The Topological Processor for the future ATLAS Level-1 Trigger: from design to commissioning

The ATLAS detector at LHC will require a Trigger system to efficiently select events down to a manageable event storage rate of about 400 Hz. By 2015 the LHC instantaneous luminosity will be increased up to 3 x 10^34 cm-2s-1, this represents an unprecedented challenge faced by the ATLAS Trigger system. To cope with the higher event rate and efficiently select relevant events from a physics point of view, a new element will be included in the Level-1 Trigger scheme after 2015: the Topological Processor (L1Topo). The L1Topo system, currently developed at CERN, will consist initially of an ATCA crate and two L1Topo modules. A high density opto-electroconverter (AVAGO miniPOD) drives up to 1.6 Tb/s of data from the calorimeter and muon detectors into two high-end FPGA (Virtex7-690), to be processed in about 200 ns. The design has been optimized to guarantee excellent signal in- tegrity of the high-speed links and low latency data transmission on the Real Time Data Path (RTDP). The L1Topo receives data in a standalone protocol from the calorimeters and muon detectors to be processed into several VHDL topological algorithms. Those algorithms perform geometrical cuts, correlations and calculate complex observables such as the invariant mass. The output of such topological cuts is sent to the Central Trigger Processor. This talk focuses on the relevant high-density design characteristic of L1Topo, which allows several hundreds optical links to processed (up to 13 Gb/s each) using ordinary PCB material. Relevant test results performed on the L1Topo prototypes to characterize the high-speed links latency (eye diagram, bit error rate, margin analysis) and the logic resource utilization of the algorithms are discussed.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figure

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements

Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020