HAWK 2.0: A Monte Carlo program for Higgs production in vector-boson fusion and Higgs strahlung at hadron colliders

The Monte Carlo integrator HAWK provides precision predictions for Higgs production at hadron colliders in vector-boson fusion and Higgs strahlung, i.e. in production processes where the Higgs boson is Attached to WeaK bosons. The fully differential predictions include the full QCD and electroweak next-to-leading-order corrections. Results are computed as integrated cross sections and as binned distributions for important hadron-collider observables.Comment: 33 pages, 1 figur

NLO QCD corrections to W+ W+ jj production in vector-boson fusion at the LHC

We present a next-to-leading-order QCD calculation for e+\nu e\mu+\nu\mu jj production in vector-boson fusion, i.e. the scattering of two positively charged W bosons at the LHC. We include the complete set of electroweak leading-order diagrams for the six-particle final state and quantitatively assess the size of the s-channel and interference contributions in VBF kinematics. The calculation uses the complex-mass scheme to describe the W-boson resonances and is implemented into a flexible Monte Carlo generator. Using a dynamical scale based on the transverse momenta of the jets, the QCD corrections stay below about 10% for all considered observables, while the residual scale dependence is at the level of 1%.Comment: 60 page

ZZ production at the LHC: fiducial cross sections and distributions in NNLO QCD

We consider QCD radiative corrections to the production of four charged leptons in the ZZ signal region at the LHC. We report on the complete calculation of the next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) corrections to this process in QCD perturbation theory. Numerical results are presented for $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV, using typical selection cuts applied by the ATLAS and CMS collaborations. The NNLO corrections increase the NLO fiducial cross section by about $15\%$, and they have a relatively small impact on the shape of the considered kinematical distributions. In the case of the $\Delta\Phi$ distribution of the two Z candidates, the NNLO corrections improve the agreement of the theoretical prediction with the CMS data.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

Fully differential NNLO computations with MATRIX

We present the computational framework MATRIX which allows us to evaluate fully differential cross sections for a wide class of processes at hadron colliders in next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD. The processes we consider are $2\to 1$ and $2\to 2$ hadronic reactions involving Higgs and vector bosons in the final state. All possible leptonic decay channels of the vector bosons are included for the first time in the calculations, by consistently accounting for all resonant and non-resonant diagrams, off-shell effects and spin correlations. We briefly introduce the theoretical framework MATRIX is based on, discuss its relevant features and provide a detailed description of how to use MATRIX to obtain NNLO accurate results for the various processes. We report reference predictions for inclusive and fiducial cross sections of all the physics processes considered here and discuss their corresponding uncertainties. MATRIX features an automatic extrapolation procedure that allows us, for the first time, to control the systematic uncertainties inherent to the applied NNLO subtraction procedure down to the few permille level (or better).Comment: 76 pages, 2 figures, 11 table

Wgamma and Zgamma production at the LHC in NNLO QCD

We consider the production of $W\gamma$ and $Z\gamma$ pairs at hadron colliders. We report on the complete fully differential computation of radiative corrections at next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in QCD perturbation theory. The calculation includes the leptonic decay of the vector boson with the corresponding spin correlations, off shell effects and final-state photon radiation. We present numerical results for $pp$ collisions at 7 and 8 TeV and we compare them with available LHC data. In the case of $Z\gamma$ production, the impact of NNLO corrections is generally moderate, ranging from 8% to 18%, depending on the applied cuts. In the case of $W\gamma$ production, the NNLO effects are more important, and range from 19% to 26%, thereby improving the agreement of the theoretical predictions with the data. As expected, the impact of QCD radiative corrections is significantly reduced when a jet veto is applied.Comment: 27 pages, 11 figure

Transverse-momentum resummation for vector-boson pair production at NNLL+NNLO

We consider the transverse-momentum ($p_T$) distribution of $ZZ$ and $W^+W^-$ boson pairs produced in hadron collisions. At small $p_T$, the logarithmically enhanced contributions due to multiple soft-gluon emission are resummed to all orders in QCD perturbation theory. At intermediate and large values of $p_T$, we consistently combine resummation with the known fixed-order results. We exploit the most advanced perturbative information that is available at present: next-to-next-to-leading logarithmic resummation combined with the next-to-next-to-leading fixed-order calculation. After integration over $p_T$, we recover the known next-to-next-to-leading order result for the inclusive cross section. We present numerical results at the LHC, together with an estimate of the corresponding uncertainties. We also study the rapidity dependence of the $p_T$ spectrum and we consider $p_T$ efficiencies at different orders of resummed and fixed-order perturbation theory.Comment: 25 pages, 11 figure

W±ZW^\pm Z production at the LHC: fiducial cross sections and distributions in NNLO QCD

We report on the first fully differential calculation for $W^\pm Z$ production in hadron collisions up to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in QCD perturbation theory. Leptonic decays of the $W$ and $Z$ bosons are consistently taken into account, i.e. we include all resonant and non-resonant diagrams that contribute to the process $pp\to \ell^{'\pm} \nu_{\ell^{'}} \ell^+\ell^-+X$ both in the same-flavour ($\ell'=\ell$) and the different-flavour ($\ell'\neq \ell$) channel. Fiducial cross sections and distributions are presented in the presence of standard selection cuts applied in the experimental $W^\pm Z$ analyses by ATLAS and CMS at centre-of-mass energies of 8 and 13\,TeV. As previously shown for the inclusive cross section, NNLO corrections increase the NLO result by about $10\%$, thereby leading to an improved agreement with experimental data. The importance of NNLO accurate predictions is also shown in the case of new-physics scenarios, where, especially in high-$p_T$ categories, their impact can reach ${\cal O}(20\%)$. The availability of differential NNLO predictions will play a crucial role in the rich physics programme that is based on precision studies of $W^\pm Z$ signatures at the LHC.Comment: 38 pages, 18 figures, 8 table

NLO QCD corrections to pp->WW+jet+X

We report on the calculation of the next-to-leading order QCD corrections to the production of W-boson pairs in association with a hard jet at hadron colliders, which is an important source of background for Higgs and new-physics searches. If a veto against the emission of a second hard jet is applied, the corrections stabilize the leading-order prediction for the cross section considerably.Comment: 6 pages, latex, 4 ps figures, to appear in the proceedings of the "8th International Symposium on Radiative Corrections (RADCOR07)", Florence, Italy, October 1-5, 200

W+W−W^+W^- production at the LHC: fiducial cross sections and distributions in NNLO QCD

We consider QCD radiative corrections to $W^+W^-$ production at the LHC and present the first fully differential predictions for this process at next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in perturbation theory. Our computation consistently includes the leptonic decays of the $W$ bosons, taking into account spin correlations, off-shell effects and non-resonant contributions. Detailed predictions are presented for the different-flavour channel $pp\to\mu^+e^-\nu_\mu {\bar \nu}_e+X$ at $\sqrt{s}=8$ and $13$ TeV. In particular, we discuss fiducial cross sections and distributions in the presence of standard selection cuts used in experimental $W^+W^-$ and $H\to W^+W^-$ analyses at the LHC. The inclusive $W^+W^-$ cross section receives large NNLO corrections, and, due to the presence of a jet veto, typical fiducial cuts have a sizeable influence on the behaviour of the perturbative expansion. The availability of differential NNLO predictions, both for inclusive and fiducial observables, will play an important role in the rich physics programme that is based on precision studies of $W^+W^-$ signatures at the LHC.Comment: 40 pages, 23 figures, 6 table