Charged-particle multiplicities in pppp interactions at s\sqrt{s} = 900 GeV measured with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

The first measurements from proton-proton collisions recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC are presented. Data were collected in December 2009 using a minimum-bias trigger during collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 900 GeV. The charged-particle multiplicity, its dependence on transverse momentum and pseudorapidity, and the relationship between mean transverse momentum and charged-particle multiplicity are measured for events with at least one charged particle in the kinematic range |eta|500 MeV. The measurements are compared to Monte Carlo models of proton-proton collisions and to results from other experiments at the same centre-of-mass energy. The charged-particle multiplicity per event and unit of pseudorapidity at eta = 0 is measured to be 1.333 +/- 0.003 (stat.) +/- 0.040 (syst.), which is 5-15% higher than the Monte Carlo models predict.publishedVersio

Measurement of the b-hadron production cross section using decays to D*+ μ − X final states in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The b-hadron production cross section is measured with the ATLAS detector in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV, using 3.3 pb−1 of integrated luminosity, collected during the 2010 LHC run. The b-hadrons are selected by partially reconstructing D*+μ−X final states. Differential cross sections are measured as functions of the transverse momentum and pseudorapidity. The measured production cross section for a b-hadron with pT > 9 GeV and |η| < 2.5 is 32.7±0.8(stat.)+4.5−6.8(syst.) μb, higher than the next-to-leadingorder QCD predictions but consistent within the experimental and theoretical uncertainties

Measurement of the production cross section of prompt J/ψ mesons in association with a W ± boson in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The process pp → W ± J/ψ provides a powerful probe of the production mechanism of charmonium in hadronic collisions, and is also sensitive to multiple parton interactions in the colliding protons. Using the 2011 ATLAS dataset of 4.5 fb−1 of s√ = 7 TeV pp collisions at the LHC, the first observation is made of the production of W ± + prompt J/ψ events in hadronic collisions, using W ± → μν μ and J/ψ → μ + μ −. A yield of 27.4+7.5−6.5 W ± + prompt J/ψ events is observed, with a statistical significance of 5.1σ. The production rate as a ratio to the inclusive W ± boson production rate is measured, and the double parton scattering contribution to the cross section is estimated.publishedVersio

ATLAS search for new phenomena in dijet mass and angular distributions using pp collisions at s\sqrt{s}=7 TeV

Mass and angular distributions of dijets produced in LHC proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s}$=7 TeV have been studied with the ATLAS detector using the full 2011 data set with an integrated luminosity of 4.8/fb. Dijet masses up to 4.0 TeV have been probed. No resonance-like features have been observed in the dijet mass spectrum, and all angular distributions are consistent with the predictions of QCD. Exclusion limits on six hypotheses of new phenomena have been set at 95% CL in terms of mass or energy scale, as appropriate. These hypotheses include excited quarks below 2.83 TeV, colour octet scalars below 1.86 TeV, heavy W bosons below 1.68 TeV, string resonances below 3.61 TeV, quantum black holes with six extra space-time dimensions for quantum gravity scales below 4.11 TeV, and quark contact interactions below a compositeness scale of 7.6 TeV in a destructive interference scenario.publishedVersio

Measurement of isolated-photon pair production in pp collisions at root s=7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The ATLAS experiment at the LHC has measured the production cross section of events with two isolated photons in the final state, in proton-proton collisions at s√=7TeV. The full data set collected in 2011, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.9 fb−1, is used. The amount of background, from hadronic jets and isolated electrons, is estimated with data-driven techniques and subtracted. The total cross section, for two isolated photons with transverse energies above 25 GeV and 22 GeV respectively, in the acceptance of the electromagnetic calorimeter (|η|  0.4, is 44.0+3.2−4.2 pb. The differential cross sections as a function of the di-photon invariant mass, transverse momentum, azimuthal separation, and cosine of the polar angle of the largest transverse energy photon in the Collins-Soper di-photon rest frame are also measured. The results are compared to the prediction of leading-order parton-shower and next-to-leading-order and next-to-next-to-leading-order parton-level generators.publishedVersio

Recreating the top quark: Commissioning and monitoring of the ATLAS Inner Detector and search for New Physics with heavy particles

The ATLAS (A Toroidal Lhc ApparatuS) experiment is one of the two general purpose experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. The LHC is a proton-proton and ion-ion collider built in a 27 km long circular tunnel 100 meter below the surface of the Earth. The maximum energy at which LHC is capable to collide protons is 14 TeV in the center of mass frame, but currently it is being operated at half of its maximum energy, i.e. at 7 TeV. The first collisions at the LHC took place in November 2009. Before that the LHC detectors, including ATLAS (which was already built and installed in 2007) were commissioned using muons produced from the interaction of cosmic rays with the Earth atmosphere. The Inner Detector is one of components of ATLAS detector, which is responsible for tracking of charged particles. It consists of three independent but complementary sub-detectors, which are built using different types of charged particle detecting concepts. This thesis is based on four papers. The first paper documents the first measurement of the top quark charge at the LHC. The analysis is done on the data collected by ATLAS in the first half of year 2011. The charge is measured with two different techniques and the results from both show that the top quark charge is in agreement with the Standard Model (SM) prediction. The second paper is actually a book, written by collaborative efforts of almost all members of the ATLAS collaboration, describing the status of all the analyses before the launch of the LHC. I have contributed in two chapters of this book with performing simulation based analyses of the top quark charge measurement and estimating the possibility to observe supersymmetric signals with help of tau leptons. The third paper concerns the search for physics beyond the Standard Model. Several extensions of the Standard Model predict the existence of extra gauge bosons heavy enough to decay to top-antitop pairs. The studies based on the simulation of the production of such particles with different masses are performed in order to evaluate the potential of the ATLAS detector to discover them if they exist. The last paper summarizes the results of the commissioning of the reconstruction software for the ATLAS detector with cosmic muons and with the data from the first proton-proton collisions at the LHC. As a part of ATLAS reconstruction software, the Inner Detector Global Monitoring tool was also commissioned

Recreating the top quark: Commissioning and monitoring of the ATLAS Inner Detector and search for New Physics with heavy particles.

The ATLAS (A Toroidal Lhc ApparatuS) experiment is one of the two general purpose experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. The LHC is a proton-proton and ion-ion collider built in a 27 km long circular tunnel 100 meter below the surface of the Earth. The maximum energy at which LHC is capable to collide protons is 14 TeV in the center of mass frame, but currently it is being operated at half of its maximum energy, i.e. at 7 TeV. The first collisions at the LHC took place in November 2009. Before that the LHC detectors, including ATLAS (which was already built and installed in 2007) were commissioned using muons produced from the interaction of cosmic rays with the Earth atmosphere. The Inner Detector is one of components of ATLAS detector, which is responsible for tracking of charged particles. It consists of three independent but complementary sub-detectors, which are built using different types of charged particle detecting concepts. This thesis is based on four papers. The first paper documents the first measurement of the top quark charge at the LHC. The analysis is done on the data collected by ATLAS in the first half of year 2011. The charge is measured with two different techniques and the results from both show that the top quark charge is in agreement with the Standard Model (SM) prediction. The second paper is actually a book, written by collaborative efforts of almost all members of the ATLAS collaboration, describing the status of all the analyses before the launch of the LHC. I have contributed in two chapters of this book with performing simulation based analyses of the top quark charge measurement and estimating the possibility to observe supersymmetric signals with help of tau leptons. The third paper concerns the search for physics beyond the Standard Model. Several extensions of the Standard Model predict the existence of extra gauge bosons heavy enough to decay to top-antitop pairs. The studies based on the simulation of the production of such particles with different masses are performed in order to evaluate the potential of the ATLAS detector to discover them if they exist. The last paper summarizes the results of the commissioning of the reconstruction software for the ATLAS detector with cosmic muons and with the data from the first proton-proton collisions at the LHC. As a part of ATLAS reconstruction software, the Inner Detector Global Monitoring tool was also commissioned

Charged-particle multiplicities in pppp interactions at s\sqrt{s} = 900 GeV measured with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

The first measurements from proton-proton collisions recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC are presented. Data were collected in December 2009 using a minimum-bias trigger during collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 900 GeV. The charged-particle multiplicity, its dependence on transverse momentum and pseudorapidity, and the relationship between mean transverse momentum and charged-particle multiplicity are measured for events with at least one charged particle in the kinematic range |eta|500 MeV. The measurements are compared to Monte Carlo models of proton-proton collisions and to results from other experiments at the same centre-of-mass energy. The charged-particle multiplicity per event and unit of pseudorapidity at eta = 0 is measured to be 1.333 +/- 0.003 (stat.) +/- 0.040 (syst.), which is 5-15% higher than the Monte Carlo models predict

Search for resonances decaying into top-quark pairs using fully hadronic decays in pp collisions with ATLAS at s\sqrt{s} = 7 TeV

A search for resonances produced in 7 TeV proton-proton collisions and decaying into top-quark pairs is described. In this Letter events where the top-quark decay produces two massive jets with large transverse momenta recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider are considered. Two techniques that rely on jet substructure are used to separate top-quark jets from those arising from light quarks and gluons. In addition, each massive jet is required to have evidence of an associated bottom-quark decay. The data are consistent with the Standard Model, and limits can be set on the production cross section times branching fraction of a Z' boson and a Kaluza-Klein gluon resonance. These limits exclude, at the 95% credibility level, Z' bosons with masses 0.70-1.00 TeV as well as 1.28-1.32 TeV and Kaluza-Klein gluons with masses 0.70-1.62 TeV

Measurement of the production cross section of prompt J/ψ mesons in association with a W± boson in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The process pp → W ± J/ψ provides a powerful probe of the production mechanism of charmonium in hadronic collisions, and is also sensitive to multiple parton interactions in the colliding protons. Using the 2011 ATLAS dataset of 4.5 fb−1 of s√ = 7 TeV pp collisions at the LHC, the first observation is made of the production of W ± + prompt J/ψ events in hadronic collisions, using W ± → μν μ and J/ψ → μ + μ −. A yield of 27.4+7.5−6.5 W ± + prompt J/ψ events is observed, with a statistical significance of 5.1σ. The production rate as a ratio to the inclusive W ± boson production rate is measured, and the double parton scattering contribution to the cross section is estimated