Studies of Top Quark properties at the LHC

The LHC collider plans to start in 2007, after which millions of top quarks will be produced at the collision points. In the first period of data taking these events will provide an essential calibration tool for the ATLAS and CMS detectors. During a later stage, as part of the precision measurement programme, both detectors will determine the top mass and properties like spin, charge and couplings. Top physics also plays a central role in the search for new particles, both as source of a possible signal and as source of background.}Comment: Moriond conference writeu

Special Supersymmetric features of large invariant mass unpolarized and polarized top-antitop production at LHC

We consider the top-antitop invariant mass distributions for production of unpolarized and polarized top quark pairs at LHC, in the theoretical framework of the MSSM. Assuming a "moderately" light SUSY scenario, we derive the leading logarithmic electroweak contributions at one loop in a region of large invariant mass, $M_{t\bar t}\simeq1$ TeV, for the unpolarized differential cross section $d\sigma/dM_{t\bar t}$ and for the differential longitudinal top polarization asymmetry $A_t(M_{t\bar t})$. We perform a realistic evaluation of the expected uncertainties of the two quantities, both from a theoretical and from an experimental point of view, and discuss the possibility of obtaining, from accurate measurements of the two mass distributions, stringent consistency tests of the model, in particular identifications of large $\tan\beta$ effects.Comment: 23 pages, 9 eps figure

After the Standard Model: New Resonances at the LHC

Experiments will soon start taking data at CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) with high expectations for discovery of new physics phenomena. Indeed, the LHC's unprecedented center-of-mass energy will allow the experiments to probe an energy regime where the standard model is known to break down. In this article, the experiments' capability to observe new resonances in various channels is reviewed.Comment: Preprint version of a Brief Review for Modern Physics Letters A. Changes w.r.t. the fully corrected version are smal

Deterministic Annealing as a jet clustering algorithm in hadronic collisions

We show that a general purpose clusterization algorithm, Deterministic Annealing, can be adapted to the problem of jet identification in particle production by high energy collisions. In particular we consider the problem of jet searching in events generated at hadronic colliders. Deterministic Annealing is able to reproduce the results obtained by traditional jet algorithms and to exhibit a higher degree of flexibility.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figure

On saturation of charged hadron production in pp collisions at LHC

First results on charged hadron transverse momentum spectra in pp collisions obtained by the CMS Collaboration at LHC were analyzed in z-scaling approach. The first LHC data confirm z-scaling. The saturation regime of the scaling function psi(z) observed in pp and antp-pp interactions at lower energy sqrt s = 19-1960 GeV is verified. The saturation of psi(z) for charged hadrons is found down to z=0.05 at the highest energy sqrt s = 2360 GeV reached till now at colliders. A microscopic scenario of hadron production is discussed in connection with search for new signatures of phase transitions in hadron matter. Constituent energy loss and its dependencies on the transverse momentum of charged hadrons and collision energy are estimated. The beam energy scan at LHC in the saturation region is suggested.Comment: LaTeX, 6 pages, 6 figure

Standard Model Physics at LEP

Selected topics on precision tests of the Standard Model of the Electroweak and the Strong Interaction at the LEP $e^+e^-$ collider are presented, including an update of the world summary of measurements of $\alpha_s$, representing the state of knowledge of summer 1999. This write-up of lecture notes consists of a reproduction of slides, pictures and tables, supplemented by a short descriptive text and a list of relevant references.Comment: lecture given at Intern. Summer School at Nijmegen, August 1999, 44 pages, 36 (mostly coloured) figures, LaTeX, needs crckapb.st

Bose-Einstein Correlations in e+e- to W+W- at 172 and 183 GeV

Bose-Einstein correlations between like-charge pions are studied in hadronic final states produced by e+e- annihilations at center-of-mass energies of 172 and 183 GeV. Three event samples are studied, each dominated by one of the processes W+W- to qqlnu, W+W- to qqqq, or (Z/g)* to qq. After demonstrating the existence of Bose-Einstein correlations in W decays, an attempt is made to determine Bose-Einstein correlations for pions originating from the same W boson and from different W bosons, as well as for pions from (Z/g)* to qq events. The following results are obtained for the individual chaoticity parameters lambda assuming a common source radius R: lambda_same = 0.63 +- 0.19 +- 0.14, lambda_diff = 0.22 +- 0.53 +- 0.14, lambda_Z = 0.47 +- 0.11 +- 0.08, R = 0.92 +- 0.09 +- 0.09. In each case, the first error is statistical and the second is systematic. At the current level of statistical precision it is not established whether Bose-Einstein correlations, between pions from different W bosons exist or not.Comment: 24 pages, LaTeX, including 6 eps figures, submitted to European Physical Journal