Modified Signals for Supersymmetry in the NMSSM with a Singlino-like LSP

In the framework of the NMSSM with a singlino-like LSP, we study quantitatively the impact of the additional bino -> singlino cascade on the efficiencies in several search channels for supersymmetry of the ATLAS and CMS collaborations. Compared to the MSSM, the additional cascade reduces the missing transverse energy, but leads to additional jets or leptons. For the NMSSM benchmark lines which generalize cMSSM benchmark points, the efficiencies in the most relevant 2/3 jet + missing energy search channels can drop by factors ~1/3 to ~1/7, and can reduce the present lower bounds on M_{1/2} by as much as ~0.9 - 0.75 in the NMSSM for large bino-singlino mass differences. The larger efficiencies in multijet or multilepton search channels are not strong enough to affect this conclusion. In the fully constrained cNMSSM, sparticle decay cascades via the lightest stau can lead to signal cross sections in multilepton and 2tau search channels which are potentially visible at the LHC with 7 TeV center of mass energy.Comment: 24 pages, 9 Figures, misprint in Table 1 correcre

On the presentation of the LHC Higgs Results

We put forth conclusions and suggestions regarding the presentation of the LHC Higgs results that may help to maximize their impact and their utility to the whole High Energy Physics community.Comment: Conclusions from the workshops "Likelihoods for the LHC Searches", 21-23 January 2013 at CERN, "Implications of the 125 GeV Higgs Boson", 18-22 March 2013 at LPSC Grenoble, and from the 2013 Les Houches "Physics at TeV Colliders" workshop. 16 pages, 3 figures. Version 2: Comment added on the first publication of signal strength likelihoods in digital form by ATLA

TOpic: rare and special cases, the real "Strange cases"

Introduction: The bladder hernia represents approximately 1-3% of all inguinal hernias, where patients aged more than 50 years have a higher incidence (10%). Many factors contribute to the development of a bladder hernia, including the presence of a urinary outlet obstruction causing chronic bladder distention, the loss of bladder tone, pericystitis, the perivesical bladder fat protrusion and the obesity

Where is SUSY?

The direct searches for Superymmetry at colliders can be complemented by direct searches for dark matter (DM) in underground experiments, if one assumes the Lightest Supersymmetric Particle (LSP) provides the dark matter of the universe. It will be shown that within the Constrained minimal Supersymmetric Model (CMSSM) the direct searches for DM are complementary to direct LHC searches for SUSY and Higgs particles using analytical formulae. A combined excluded region from LHC, WMAP and XENON100 will be provided, showing that within the CMSSM gluinos below 1 TeV and LSP masses below 160 GeV are excluded (m_{1/2} > 400 GeV) independent of the squark masses.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figure

Testing Yukawa-unified SUSY during year 1 of LHC: the role of multiple b-jets, dileptons and missing E_T

We examine the prospects for testing SO(10) Yukawa-unified supersymmetric models during the first year of LHC running at \sqrt{s}= 7 TeV, assuming integrated luminosity values of 0.1 to 1 fb^-1. We consider two cases: the Higgs splitting (HS) and the D-term splitting (DR3) models. Each generically predicts light gluinos and heavy squarks, with an inverted scalar mass hierarchy. We hence expect large rates for gluino pair production followed by decays to final states with large b-jet multiplicity. For 0.2 fb^-1 of integrated luminosity, we find a 5 sigma discovery reach of m(gluino) ~ 400 GeV even if missing transverse energy, E_T^miss, is not a viable cut variable, by examining the multi-b-jet final state. A corroborating signal should stand out in the opposite-sign (OS) dimuon channel in the case of the HS model; the DR3 model will require higher integrated luminosity to yield a signal in the OS dimuon channel. This region may also be probed by the Tevatron with 5-10 fb^-1 of data, if a corresponding search in the multi-b+ E_T^miss channel is performed. With higher integrated luminosities of ~1 fb^-1, using E_T^miss plus a large multiplicity of b-jets, LHC should be able to discover Yukawa-unified SUSY with m(gluino) up to about 630 GeV. Thus, the year 1 LHC reach for Yukawa-unified SUSY should be enough to either claim a discovery of the gluino, or to very nearly rule out this class of models, since higher values of m(gluino) lead to rather poor Yukawa unification.Comment: 32 pages including 31 EPS figure

Les Houches 2015: Physics at TeV colliders - new physics working group report

We present the activities of the 'New Physics' working group for the 'Physics at TeV Colliders' workshop (Les Houches, France, 1-19 June, 2015). Our report includes new physics studies connected with the Higgs boson and its properties, direct search strategies, reinterpretation of the LHC results in the building of viable models and new computational tool developments. Important signatures for searches for natural new physics at the LHC and new assessments of the interplay between direct dark matter searches and the LHC are also considered.Comment: Proceedings of the New Physics Working Group of the 2015 Les Houches Workshop, Physics at TeV Colliders, Les Houches 1-19 June 2015. 197 page

Les Houches 2011: Physics at TeV Colliders New Physics Working Group Report

We present the activities of the "New Physics" working group for the "Physics at TeV Colliders" workshop (Les Houches, France, 30 May-17 June, 2011). Our report includes new agreements on formats for interfaces between computational tools, new tool developments, important signatures for searches at the LHC, recommendations for presentation of LHC search results, as well as additional phenomenological studies.Comment: 243 pages, report of the Les Houches 2011 New Physics Group; fix three figure

Salt stress-induced cell death in the unicellular green alga Micrasterias denticulata

Programmed cell death (PCD) is a key element in normal plant growth and development which may also be induced by various abiotic and biotic stress factors including salt stress. In the present study, morphological, biochemical, and physiological responses of the theoretically immortal unicellular freshwater green alga Micrasterias denticulata were examined after salt (200 mM NaCl or 200 mM KCl) and osmotic stress induced by iso-osmotic sorbitol. KCl caused morphological changes such as cytoplasmic vacuolization, extreme deformation of mitochondria, and ultrastructural changes of Golgi and ER. However, prolonged salt stress (24 h) led to the degradation of organelles by autophagy, a special form of PCD, both in NaCl- and KCl-treated cells. This was indicated by the enclosure of organelles by ER-derived double membranes. DNA of NaCl- and KCl-stressed cells but not of sorbitol-treated cells showed a ladder-like pattern on agarose gel, which means that the ionic rather than the osmotic component of salt stress leads to the activation of the responsible endonuclease. DNA laddering during salt stress could be abrogated by addition of Zn2+. Neither cytochrome c release from mitochondria nor increase in caspase-3-like activity occurred after salt stress. Reactive oxygen species could be detected within 5 min after the onset of salt and osmotic stress. Respiration, photosynthetic activity, and pigment composition indicated an active metabolism which supports programmed rather than necrotic cell death in Micrasterias after salt stress