The achievement of frictionless systems, known as superlubricity, has become of great importance concerning energy saving and emission reduction. In parallel, the drive toward sustainability and environmental aspects has led to intense advances in the research and development of biobased materials. From the standpoint of Green Chemistry principles, this review presents a critical overview of the latest findings and future perspectives on the application of biobased materials aiming at superlubricant pursuits. The progress in the use of biomacromolecules, such as chitosan, cellulose, and lignin, as additives to lubricants or coating materials, are addressed, as well as the advances on sustainable coatings based on diamond-like carbon (DLC). Deeper investigations on the development of non-hazardous processes dedicated to the tribological properties of DLC, such as electrochemical synthesis using environment-friendly solvents to generate molecular precursors, widen the perspectives to achieve sustainable materials. Besides, the exploration of the tribochemical interactions between the DLC surface and lubricants containing biobased materials arises as a promising strategy to achieve green superlubricity as a viable and scalable process, through different pathways: by hydrogen bonds between lubricant and additives, via surface passivation of the functional groups present in these biomacromolecules or by biomimicking natural joints.

Research towards the production of renewable chemicals for fuel and energy industries has found lignin valorization as key. With a high carbon content and aromaticity, a fine-tuning of the depolymerization process is required to convert lignin into valuable chemicals. In context, model compounds have been used to understand the electrocatalyzed depolymerization for mimicking the typical linkages of lignin. In this investigation, 2-phenoxyacetophenone, a model compound for lignin beta-O-4 linkage, was electro-catalytically hydrogenated (ECH) in distinct three-electrode setups: an open and a membrane cell. A deep eutectic solvent based on ethylene-glycol and choline chloride was used to pursue sustainable routes to dissolve lignin. Copper was used as electrocatalyst due to the economic feasibility and low activity towards hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), a side reaction of ECH. By varying the cell type, we demonstrate a simple ECH route for the generation of different monomers and oligomers from lignin. Gas chromatography of the products revealed a higher content of carbonyl groups in those using the membrane cell, whereas the open cell produced mostly hydroxyl-end chemicals. Aiming at high value-added products, our results disclose the cell type influence on electrochemical reductive depolymerization of lignin. This approach encompasses cheap transition metal electrodes and sustainable solvents.

Breaking down lignin into smaller units is the key to generate high value-added products. Nevertheless, dissolving this complex plant polyphenol in an environment-friendly way is often a challenge. Levulinic acid, which is formed during the hydrothermal processing of lignocellulosic biomass, has been shown to efficiently dissolve lignin. Herein, levulinic acid was evaluated as a medium for the reductive electrochemical depolymerization of the lignin macromolecule. Copper was chosen as the electrocatalyst due to the economic feasibility and low activity towards the hydrogen evolution reaction. After depolymerization, high-resolution mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy revealed lignin-derived monomers and dimers. A predominance of aryl ether and phenolic groups was observed. Depolymerized lignin was further evaluated as an anti-corrosion coating, revealing enhancements on the electrochemical stability of the metal. Via a simple depolymerization process of biomass waste in a biomass-based solvent, a straightforward approach to produce high value-added compounds or tailored biobased materials was demonstrated. 

Photoluminescent carbon nanoparticles (CNPs), such as carbon dots (CDs), have attracted much attention owing to a unique set of properties, like high and tunable fluorescence. In this way, the use of carbon-rich lignin has been demonstrated to be a sustainable approach to producing a broad range of photoluminescent CNPs. However, the valorization of this complex polyphenol is limited when it comes to green and efficient ways of conversion. In addition, the existing solvothermal approaches using lignin often result in CDs with low photoluminescence, while flammable and/or toxic solvents are employed. Here, we depolymerized technical lignins, i.e. kraft and soda, through electroreductive cleavage in two different sustainable media: deep eutectic solvent and levulinic acid. After depolymerization, lignin-derived monomers were generated, with a predominance of aryl ether and phenolic groups, which were further combined with 1,2-Phenylenediamine to produce N-doped CNPs in a solvent-free approach. Photoluminescent CNPs with varied sizes were generated (5–50 nm), which presented a wide photoluminescence emission, from blue to red, depending on solvent polarity. These results demonstrate a feasible and sustainable route for the solvent-free synthesis of photoluminescent CNPs using lignin-derived monomers as carbon source, which may find applications in a wide range of fields.

Residents in marginalized areas tend to show a lower level of confidence in the criminal justice system and carry out police reports and testimonies to the criminal justice system to a lesser extent than residents in other areas. In this scientific essay, a qualitative study is conducted to analyze the disinclination to leave testimonies and report crimes in marginalized areas, along with researching possible ways to improve the residents relationship with the criminal justice system. The theoretical framework for this study consists of Žižeks theory of violence, territorial stigma and social exclusion. The sample group for the study is advocates in non-profit organizations operating in marginalized areas. Using a semi-structured interview method, this study’s empirical findings reveals that a critical view of the criminal justice system, lack of confidence in the criminal justice system, ambivalent feelings about the residential area and mass medias stigmatizing effects are believed to cause a reluctance to cooperate with the criminal justice system in marginalized areas. Furthermore, our findings show that an admittance of the existence of racism within the justice system, increased communication, cultural competence, and safe meeting places are believed to improve the relationship between the residents and the criminal justice system.

We calculate the Josephson current density j (phi) for a Weyl superconductor-normal-metal-superconductor junction for which the outer terminals are superconducting Weylmetals and the normal layer is a Weyl (semi) metal. We describe the Weyl (semi) metal using a simple model with two Weyl points. The model has broken time-reversal symmetry, but inversion symmetry is present. We calculate the Josephson current for both zero and finite temperature for the two pairing mechanisms inside the superconductors that have been proposed in the literature, zero-momentum BCS-like pairing and finite-momentum FFLO-like pairing, and assuming the short-junction limit. For both pairing types we find that the current is proportional to the normal-state junction conductivity, with a proportionality coefficient that shows quantitative differences between the two pairing mechanisms. The current for the BCS-like pairing is found to be independent of the chemical potential, whereas the current for the FFLO-like pairing is not.

There is agreement in research about the need to find better ways of teaching chemistry to enhance students’ understanding. This thesis aims to contribute to the understanding of how we better support teaching and learning of undergraduate chemistry to make it meaningful and intelligible for students from the outset. The thesis is concerned with examining the interactions between student, specific content and teacher in the undergraduate chemistry classroom; that is, the processes making up the three relations of the didactic triangle. The data consists of observations of students and tutors during problem-solving activities in an introductory chemistry course and interviews with graduate students.

Systematic analyses of the different interactions between the student, the chemistry content, and the tutor are made using the analytical tool of practical epistemology analysis. The main findings of the thesis include detailed insights into how undergraduate chemistry students deal with newly encountered content together with didactic models and concrete suggestions for improved teaching and for supporting continuity and progression in the undergraduate chemistry classroom. Specifically, I show how students deal with the chemistry content through a complex interaction of knowledge, experiences, and purposes on different levels invoked by both students and tutors as they interact with each other. Whether these interactions have a positive or negative effect on students’ learning depends on the nature of knowledge, experiences and purposes that were invoked. Moreover, the tutor sometimes invoked other purposes than the ones related to the task at hand for connecting the activity to the subject matter in general. These purposes were not always made continuous with the activity which resulting in confusion among students. The results from these analyses were used for producing hypotheses and models that could support continuity and progression during the activity. The suggested models aim to make the content more manageable and meaningful to students, enabling connections to other experiences and purposes, and helping teachers and tutors to analyze and reflect on their teaching. Moreover, a purpose- and activity-based progression is suggested that gives attention to purposes in chemistry education other than providing explanations of chemical phenomena. The aim of this ‘progression in action’ is to engage students in activities were they can see the meaning of chemical concepts and ideas through their use to accomplish different chemical tasks. A general conclusion is that detailed knowledge about the processes of teaching and learning is important for providing adequate support to both undergraduate students and university teachers in the chemistry classroom.

In this paper, we discuss the well-known teaching challenge of how to provide undergraduate students with basic chemistry knowledge without making them experience these basics as meaningless and unintelligible. First, we situate the challenge in a classic dilemma: should we teach the necessary basic facts before the chemical explanations or should the explanations be taught before or in parallel to these facts? Here we draw on examples from interviews with graduate students reflecting on their experiences regarding their studies at the undergraduate level. Second, we suggest a way out of the dilemma, through a shift in perspective from the typical progression of facts and explanations towards a purpose and activity-based progression. We conclude with a discussion of implications of such a shift for university chemistry education together with suggestions for future research.

Anthropomorphisms are widespread at all levels of the educational system even among science experts. This has led to a shift in how anthropomorphisms are viewed in science education, from a discussion of whether they should be allowed or avoided towards an interest in their role in supporting students’ understanding of science. In this study we examine the role of anthropomorphisms in supporting students’ understanding of chemistry. We analyze examples from undergraduate students’ discussions during problem-solving classes through the use of practical epistemology analysis (PEA). Findings suggest that students invoked anthropomorphisms alongside technical relations which together produced more or less chemically appropriate explanations. Also, anthropomorphisms constitute potentially productive points of departure for rendering students’ explanations more chemically appropriate. The implications of this study refer to the need to deal with anthropomorphisms explicitly and repeatedly as well as to encourage explicit connections between different parts of the explanation - teleological as well as causal.

In this study, we explore the issues and challenges involved in supporting students’ learning to discern relevant and critical aspects of determining oxidation states of atoms in complex molecules. We present a detailed case of an interaction between three students and a tutor during a problem-solving class, using the analytical tool of practical epistemology analysis (PEA). The results show that the ability to make relevant distinctions between the different parts of a molecule for solving the problem, even with the guidance of the tutor, seemed to be challenging for students. These shifts were connected to both purposes that were specific for solving the problem at hand, and additional purposes for general learning of the subject matter, in this case how to assign oxidation states in molecules. The students sometimes could not follow the additional purposes introduced by the tutor, which made the related distinctions more confusing. Our results indicate that in order to provide adequate support and guidance for students the tutor needs to consider how to sequence, move between, and productively connect the different purposes introduced in a tutor-student interaction. One way of doing that is by first pursuing the purposes for solving the problem and then successively introduce additional, more general purposes for developing students’ learning of the subject matter studied. Further recommendations drawn from this study are discussed as well.

Tony Atkinson is universally celebrated for his outstanding contributions to the measurement and analysis of inequality, but he never saw the study of inequality as a separate branch of economics. He was an economist in the classical sense, rejecting any sub-field labelling of his interests and expertise, and he made contributions right across economics. His death on 1 January 2017 deprived the world of both an intellectual giant and a deeply committed public servant in the broadest sense of the term. This collective tribute highlights the range, depth and importance of Tony's enormous legacy, the product of almost fifty years’ work.

A measurement is presented of the production cross section of top quark pairs (σ_{\ttbar{}}) in proton-proton (pp) collisions at √s = 7 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Using a data sample of 35 pb−1, candidate events are selected in the dilepton topology with large missing transverse energy, \met{}, and at least two jets.

A baseline analysis employing kinematic properties of the candidate events to separate the signal from background and using data-driven techniques to determine the most important backgrounds, results in a measurement ofσ_{\ttbar{}} = 173 ± 22(stat.)+18 −16(syst.)+8 −7(lum.) pb,

where the three uncertainties are from statistics, systematics and integrated luminosity, respectively.

We also perform a cross section measurement requiring at least one b-tagged jet and a looser kinematic selection that increases the signal-to-background ratio, yielding

σ_{\ttbar{}} = 171 ± 22(stat.)+21 -16(syst.)+7 −6(lum.) pb.

Additional studies are performed to corroborate these measurements; a technique that normalizes the \ttbar{} signal yield to the measured rate of Z decays, a two-dimensional template shape fit using the \met{} vs the number of jets to simultaneously measure the production cross sections of \ttbar{}, WW and Z → ττ final states, and a simultaneous measurement of σ_{\ttbar{}} and the b-tagging efficiency using the distribution of the number of tagged jets in each event.

All the measurements are in good agreement with each other and the Standard Model prediction.

A search is presented for the pair production of heavy vectorlike quarks (VLQs) that each decay into a W boson and a light quark. This study focuses on events where one W boson decays into leptons and the other into hadrons. The search analyzed 140 fb−1 of pp collision data with pffiffi s ¼ 13 TeV, recorded by the ATLAS detector from 2015 to 2018 during run 2 of the Large Hadron Collider. The final state is characterized by a high-transverse-momentum isolated electron or muon, large missing transverse momentum, multiple small-radius jets, and a single large-radius jet identified as originating from the hadronic decay of a boosted W boson. With higher center-of-mass energy and integrated luminosity than in the run 1 search, and improved analysis tools, this analysis excludes VLQs (Q) with masses below 1530 GeV at 95% confidence level for the branching ratio BðQ → WqÞ ¼ 1, an improvement of 840 GeV on the previous ATLAS limit.

This paper presents a measurement of the production cross-section of a Z boson in association with b- or c-jets, in proton–proton collisions at s=13 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 140 fb-1. Inclusive and differential cross-sections are measured for events containing a Z boson decaying into electrons or muons and produced in association with at least one b-jet, at least one c-jet, or at least two b-jets with transverse momentum pT>20 GeV and rapidity |y|<2.5. Predictions from several Monte Carlo generators based on next-to-leading-order matrix elements interfaced with a parton-shower simulation, with different choices of flavour schemes for initial-state partons, are compared with the measured cross-sections. The results are also compared with novel predictions, based on infrared and collinear safe jet flavour dressing algorithms. Selected Z+≥1c-jet observables, optimized for sensitivity to intrinsic-charm, are compared with benchmark models with different intrinsic-charm fractions.

The energy and mass measurements of jets are crucial tasks for the Large Hadron Collider experiments. This paper presents a new calibration method to simultaneously calibrate these quantities for large-radius jets measured with the ATLAS detector using a deep neural network (DNN). To address the specificities of the calibration problem, special loss functions and training procedures are employed, and a complex network architecture, which includes feature annotation and residual connection layers, is used. The DNN-based calibration is compared to the standard numerical approach in an extensive series of tests. The DNN approach is found to perform significantly better in almost all of the tests and over most of the relevant kinematic phase space. In particular, it consistently improves the energy and mass resolutions, with a 30% better energy resolution obtained for transverse momenta pT > 500 GeV.

This Letter presents the first study of the energy dependence of diboson polarization fractions in WZ → ℓνℓ′ℓ′(ℓ,ℓ′ = e; μ) production. The dataset used corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 140 fb−1 of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector. Two fiducial regions with an enhanced presence of events featuring two longitudinally polarized bosons are defined. A nonzero fraction of events with two longitudinally polarized bosons is measured with an observed significance of 5.3 standard deviations in the region with 100 < pZT ≤ 200 GeV and 1.6 standard deviations in the region with pZT > 200 GeV, where pZT is the transverse momentum of the Z boson. This Letter also reports the first study of the radiation-amplitude-zero effect. Events with two transversely polarized bosons are analyzed for the ΔY(ℓWZ) and ΔYℓWZ) distributions defined respectively as the rapidity difference between the lepton from the W boson decay and the Z boson and the rapidity difference between the W boson and the Z boson. Significant suppression of events near zero is observed in both distributions. Unfolded ΔY(ℓWZ) and ΔY(WZ) distributions are also measured and compared to theoretical predictions.

A search for pair-produced scalar or vector leptoquarks decaying into a b-quark and a τ -lepton is presented using the full LHC Run 2 (2015–2018) data sample of 139 fb - 1 collected with the ATLAS detector in proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of s=13 TeV. Events in which at least one τ -lepton decays hadronically are considered, and multivariate discriminants are used to extract the signals. No significant deviations from the Standard Model expectation are observed and 95% confidence-level upper limits on the production cross-section are derived as a function of leptoquark mass and branching ratio B into a τ -lepton and b-quark. For scalar leptoquarks, masses below 1460 GeV are excluded assuming B= 100 %, while for vector leptoquarks the corresponding limit is 1650 GeV (1910 GeV) in the minimal-coupling (Yang–Mills) scenario.

The mass of the Higgs boson is measured in the H→γγ decay channel, exploiting the high resolution of the invariant mass of photon pairs reconstructed from the decays of Higgs bosons produced in proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy s=13 TeV. The dataset was collected between 2015 and 2018 by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider, and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 140 fb−1. The measured value of the Higgs boson mass is 125.17±0.11(stat.)±0.09(syst.) GeV and is based on an improved energy scale calibration for photons, whose impact on the measurement is about four times smaller than in the previous publication. A combination with the corresponding measurement using 7 and 8 TeV pp collision ATLAS data results in a Higgs boson mass measurement of 125.22±0.11(stat.)±0.09(syst.) GeV. With an uncertainty of 1.1 per mille, this is currently the most precise measurement of the mass of the Higgs boson from a single decay channel.

This paper presents for the first time a precise measurement of the production properties of the Z boson in the full phase space of the decay leptons. This is in contrast to the many previous precise unfolded measurements performed in the fiducial phase space of the decay leptons. The measurement is obtained from proton–proton collision data collected by the ATLAS experiment in 2012 at s=8 TeV at the LHC and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20.2 fb-1. The results, based on a total of 15.3 million Z-boson decays to electron and muon pairs, extend and improve a previous measurement of the full set of angular coefficients describing Z-boson decay. The double-differential cross-section distributions in Z-boson transverse momentum pT and rapidity y are measured in the pole region, defined as 80<mℓℓ<100 GeV, over the range |y|<3.6. The total uncertainty of the normalised cross-section measurements in the peak region of the pT distribution is dominated by statistical uncertainties over the full range and increases as a function of rapidity from 0.5–1.0% for |y|<2.0 to 2-7% at higher rapidities. The results for the rapidity-dependent transverse momentum distributions are compared to state-of-the-art QCD predictions, which combine in the best cases approximate N4LL resummation with N3LO fixed-order perturbative calculations. The differential rapidity distributions integrated over pT are even more precise, with accuracies from 0.2–0.3% for |y|<2.0 to 0.4–0.9% at higher rapidities, and are compared to fixed-order QCD predictions using the most recent parton distribution functions. The agreement between data and predictions is quite good in most cases.

This letter documents a search for flavour-changing neutral currents (FCNCs), which are strongly suppressed in the Standard Model, in events with a photon and a top quark with the ATLAS detector. The analysis uses data collected in pp collisions at √s = 13 TeV during Run 2 of the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹. Both FCNC top-quark production and decay are considered. The final state consists of a charged lepton, missing transverse momentum, a b-tagged jet, one high-momentum photon and possibly additional jets. A multiclass deep neural network is used to classify events either as signal in one of the two categories, FCNC production or decay, or as background. No significant excess of events over the background prediction is observed and 95% CL upper limits are placed on the strength of left- and right-handed FCNC interactions. The 95% CL bounds on the branching fractions for the FCNC top-quark decays, estimated (expected) from both top-quark production and decay, are B(t → uγ ) < 0.85 (0.88) × 10⁻⁵ and B(t → cγ ) < 4.2 (3.40) × 10⁻⁵ for a left-handed tqγ coupling, and B(t → uγ ) < 1.2 (1.20)×10⁻⁵ and B(t → cγ ) < 4.5 (3.70)×10⁻⁵ for a right-handed coupling.

This paper presents a search for hypothetical massive, charged, long-lived particles with the ATLAS detector at the LHC using an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹ of proton–proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV. These particles are expected to move significantly slower than the speed of light and should be identifiable by their high transverse momenta and anomalously large specific ionisation losses, dE/dx. Trajectories reconstructed solely by the inner tracking system and a dE/dx measurement in the pixel detector layers provide sensitivity to particles with lifetimes down to O(1) ns with a mass, measured using the Bethe–Bloch relation, ranging from 100 GeV to 3 TeV. Interpretations for pair-production of R-hadrons, charginos and staus in scenarios of supersymmetry compatible with these particles being long-lived are presented, with mass limits extending considerably beyond those from previous searches in broad ranges of lifetime.

Results from a wide range of searches targeting different experimental signatures with and without missing transverse momentum (ETmiss) are used to constrain a Two-Higgs-Doublet Model (2HDM) with an additional pseudo-scalar mediating the interaction between ordinary and dark matter (2HDM+a). The analyses use up to 139 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy s=13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider during 2015–2018. The results from three of the most sensitive searches are combined statistically. These searches target signatures with large ETmiss and a leptonically decaying Z boson; large ETmiss and a Higgs boson decaying to bottom quarks; and production of charged Higgs bosons in final states with top and bottom quarks, respectively. Constraints are derived for several common and new benchmark scenarios in the 2HDM+a.

A search for heavy Higgs bosons produced in association with a vector boson and decaying into a pair of vector bosons is performed in final states with two leptons (electrons or muons) of the same electric charge, missing transverse momentum and jets. A data sample of proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider between 2015 and 2018 is used. The data correspond to a total integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹. The observed data are in agreement with Standard Model background expectations. The results are interpreted using higher-dimensional operators in an effective field theory. Upper limits on the production cross-section are calculated at 95% confidence level as a function of the heavy Higgs boson’s mass and coupling strengths to vector bosons. Limits are set in the Higgs boson mass range from 300 to 1500 GeV, and depend on the assumed couplings. The highest excluded mass for a heavy Higgs boson with the coupling combinations explored is 900 GeV. Limits on coupling strengths are also provided.

This paper presents a statistical combination of searches targeting final states with two top quarks and invisible particles, characterised by the presence of zero, one or two leptons, at least one jet originating from a b-quark and missing transverse momentum. The analyses are searches for phenomena beyond the Standard Model consistent with the direct production of dark matter in pp collisions at the LHC, using 139 fb⁻¹ of data collected with the ATLAS detector at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The results are interpreted in terms of simplified dark matter models with a spin-0 scalar or pseudoscalar mediator particle. In addition, the results are interpreted in terms of upper limits on the Higgs boson invisible branching ratio, where the Higgs boson is produced according to the Standard Model in association with a pair of top quarks. For scalar (pseudoscalar) dark matter models, with all couplings set to unity, the statistical combination extends the mass range excluded by the best of the individual channels by 50 (25) GeV, excluding mediator masses up to 370 GeV. In addition, the statistical combination improves the expected coupling exclusion reach by 14% (24%), assuming a scalar (pseudoscalar) mediator mass of 10 GeV. An upper limit on the Higgs boson invisible branching ratio of 0.38 () is observed (expected) at 95% confidence level.

The correlations between flow harmonics v_n for n=2, 3, and 4 and mean transverse momentum [p_T] in ¹²⁹Xe+¹²⁹Xe and ²⁰⁸Pb+²⁰⁸Pb collisions at √s=5.44 and 5.02 TeV, respectively, are measured using charged particles with the ATLAS detector. The correlations are potentially sensitive to the shape and size of the initial geometry, nuclear deformation, and initial momentum anisotropy. The effects from nonflow and centrality fluctuations are minimized, respectively, via a subevent cumulant method and an event-activity selection based on particle production at very forward rapidity. The v_n−[p_T] correlations show strong dependencies on centrality, harmonic number n, p_T, and pseudorapidity range. Current models qualitatively describe the overall centrality- and system-dependent trends but fail to quantitatively reproduce all features of the data. In central collisions, where models generally show good agreement, the v₂−[p_T] correlations are sensitive to the triaxiality of the quadruple deformation. Comparison of the model with the Pb+Pb and Xe+Xe data confirms that the ¹²⁹Xe nucleus is a highly deformed triaxial ellipsoid that has neither a prolate nor oblate shape. This provides strong evidence for a triaxial deformation of the ¹²⁹Xe nucleus from high-energy heavy-ion collisions.

Cross-section measurements for a Z boson produced in association with high-transverse-momentum jets (p_T ≥ 100 GeV) and decaying into a charged-lepton pair (e⁺e⁻, μ⁺μ⁻) are presented. The measurements are performed using proton–proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹ collected by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. Measurements of angular correlations between the Z boson and the closest jet are performed in events with at least one jet with p_T ≥ 500 GeV. Event topologies of particular interest are the collinear emission of a Z boson in dijet events and a boosted Z boson recoiling against a jet. Fiducial cross sections are compared with state-of-the-art theoretical predictions. The data are found to agree with next-to-next-to-leading-order predictions by NNLOᴊᴇᴛ and with the next-to-leading-order multi-leg generators MADGRAPH5_AMC@NLO and SHERPA.

Inclusive and differential measurements of the top–antitop () charge asymmetry and the leptonic asymmetry are presented in proton–proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The measurement uses the complete Run 2 dataset, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹, combines data in the single-lepton and dilepton channels, and employs reconstruction techniques adapted to both the resolved and boosted topologies. A Bayesian unfolding procedure is performed to correct for detector resolution and acceptance effects. The combined inclusive charge asymmetry is measured to be = 0.0068 ± 0.0015, which differs from zero by 4.7 standard deviations. Differential measurements are performed as a function of the invariant mass, transverse momentum and longitudinal boost of the system. Both the inclusive and differential measurements are found to be compatible with the Standard Model predictions, at next-to-next-to-leading order in quantum chromodynamics perturbation theory with next-to-leading-order electroweak corrections. The measurements are interpreted in the framework of the Standard Model effective field theory, placing competitive bounds on several Wilson coefficients.

The electroweak production of  in association with two jets is studied in a regime with a photon of high transverse momentum above 150 GeV using proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV at the Large Hadron Collider. The analysis uses a data sample with an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹collected by the ATLAS detector during the 2015–2018 LHC data-taking period. This process is an important probe of the electroweak symmetry breaking mechanism in the Standard Model and is sensitive to quartic gauge boson couplings via vector-boson scattering. The fiducial cross section for electroweak production is measured to be fb and is consistent with the Standard Model prediction. Evidence of electroweak production is found with an observed significance of 3.2σ for the background-only hypothesis, compared with an expected significance of 3.7σ. The combination of this result with the previously published ATLAS observation of electroweak production yields an observed (expected) signal significance of 6.3σ (6.6σ). Limits on anomalous quartic gauge boson couplings are obtained in the framework of effective field theory with dimension-8 operators.

The exclusive production of pion pairs in the process pp→ppπ⁺π⁻ has been measured at √s=7TeV with the ATLAS detector at the LHC, using 80μb⁻¹ of low-luminosity data. The pion pairs were detected in the ATLAS central detector while outgoing protons were measured in the forward ATLAS ALFA detector system. This represents the first use of proton tagging to measure an exclusive hadronic final state at the LHC. A cross-section measurement is performed in two kinematic regions defined by the proton momenta, the pion rapidities and transverse momenta, and the pion–pion invariant mass. Cross-section values of 4.8±1.0 (stat) (syst) μb and 9±6 (stat) (syst) μb are obtained in the two regions; they are compared with theoretical models and provide a demonstration of the feasibility of measurements of this type.

Results of a measurement of dimuon photoproduction in nonultraperipheral Pb+Pb collisions at √𝑠_𝑁⁢𝑁=5.02 TeV are presented. The measurement uses ATLAS data from the 2015 and 2018 Pb+Pb data-taking periods at the LHC with an integrated luminosity of 1.94nb⁻¹. The 𝛾⁢𝛾→𝜇⁺⁢𝜇⁻ pairs are identified via selections on pair momentum asymmetry and acoplanarity. Differential cross sections for dimuon production are measured in different centrality, average muon momentum, and pair rapidity intervals as functions of acoplanarity and 𝑘_⊥, the transverse momentum kick of one muon relative to the other. Measurements are also made as a function of the rapidity separation of the muons and the angle of the muon pair relative to the second-order event plane to test whether magnetic fields generated in the quark-gluon plasma affect the measured muons. A prior observation of a centrality-dependent broadening of the acoplanarity distribution is confirmed. Furthermore, the improved precision of the measurement reveals a depletion in the number of pairs having small acoplanarity or 𝑘_⊥ values in more central collisions. The acoplanarity distributions in a given centrality interval are observed to vary with the mean 𝑝_T of the muons in the pair, but the 𝑘_⊥ distributions do not. Comparisons with recent theoretical predictions are made. The predicted trends associated with effects of magnetic fields on the dimuons are not observed.

A measurement of single top-quark production in the s-channel is performed in proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The dataset corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻1. The analysis is performed on events with an electron or muon, missing transverse momentum and exactly two b-tagged jets in the final state. A discriminant based on matrix element calculations is used to separate single-top-quark s-channel events from the main background contributions, which are top-quark pair production and W-boson production in association with jets. The observed (expected) signal significance over the background-only hypothesis is 3.3 (3.9) standard deviations, and the measured cross-section is pb, consistent with the Standard Model prediction of pb.

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider has been used to measure jet substructure modification and suppression in Pb+Pb collisions at a nucleon–nucleon center-of-mass energy in comparison with proton–proton (pp) collisions at . The Pb+Pb data, collected in 2018, have an integrated luminosity of 1.72nb⁻¹, while the pp data, collected in 2017, have an integrated luminosity of 260pb⁻¹. Jets used in this analysis are clustered using the anti-k_t algorithm with a radius parameter R=0.4. The jet constituents, defined by both tracking and calorimeter information, are used to determine the angular scale r_g of the first hard splitting inside the jet by reclustering them using the Cambridge–Aachen algorithm and employing the soft-drop grooming technique. The nuclear modification factor, R_AA, used to characterize jet suppression in Pb+Pb collisions, is presented differentially in r_g, jet transverse momentum, and in intervals of collision centrality. The R_AA value is observed to depend significantly on jet r_g. Jets produced with the largest measured r_g are found to be twice as suppressed as those with the smallest r_g in central Pb+Pb collisions. The R_AA values do not exhibit a strong variation with jet p_T in any of the r_g intervals. The r_g and p_T dependence of jet R_AA is qualitatively consistent with a picture of jet quenching arising from coherence and provides the most direct evidence in support of this approach

A study of the charge conjugation and parity (CP) properties of the interaction between the Higgs boson and τ-leptons is presented. The study is based on a measurement of CP-sensitive angular observables defined by the visible decay products of τ-leptons produced in Higgs boson decays. The analysis uses 139 fb⁻¹ of proton–proton collision data recorded at a centre-of-mass energy of √s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Contributions from CP-violating interactions between the Higgs boson and τ-leptons are described by a single mixing angle parameter φ_τ in the generalised Yukawa interaction. Without constraining the H→ττ signal strength to its expected value under the Standard Model hypothesis, the mixing angle φ_τ is measured to be 9°±16°, with an expected value of 0°±28° at the 68% confidence level. The pure CP-odd hypothesis is disfavoured at a level of 3.4 standard deviations. The results are compatible with the predictions for the Higgs boson in the Standard Model.

The mass of the Higgs boson is measured in the H→ZZ⁎→4ℓ decay channel. The analysis uses proton–proton collision data from the Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector between 2015 and 2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹. The measured value of the Higgs boson mass is 124.99±0.18(stat.)±0.04(syst.) GeV. In final states with muons, this measurement benefits from an improved momentum-scale calibration relative to that adopted in previous publications. The measurement also employs an analytic model that takes into account the invariant-mass resolution of the four-lepton system on a per-event basis and the output of a deep neural network discriminating signal from background events. This measurement is combined with the corresponding measurement using 7 and 8 TeV pp collision data, resulting in a Higgs boson mass of 124.94±0.17(stat.)±0.03(syst.) GeV.

Measurements of Higgs boson production cross-sections are carried out in the diphoton decay channel using 139 fb⁻¹ of pp collision data at √s = 13 TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. The analysis is based on the definition of 101 distinct signal regions using machine-learning techniques. The inclusive Higgs boson signal strength in the diphoton channel is measured to be 1.04. Cross-sections for gluon-gluon fusion, vector-boson fusion, associated production with a W or Z boson, and top associated production processes are reported. An upper limit of 10 times the Standard Model prediction is set for the associated production process of a Higgs boson with a single top quark, which has a unique sensitivity to the sign of the top quark Yukawa coupling. Higgs boson production is further characterized through measurements of Simplified Template Cross-Sections (STXS). In total, cross-sections of 28 STXS regions are measured. The measured STXS cross-sections are compatible with their Standard Model predictions, with a p-value of 93%. The measurements are also used to set constraints on Higgs boson coupling strengths, as well as on new interactions beyond the Standard Model in an effective field theory approach. No significant deviations from the Standard Model predictions are observed in these measurements, which provide significant sensitivity improvements compared to the previous ATLAS results

In a special run of the LHC with β* = 2.5 km, proton–proton elastic-scattering events were recorded at √s = 13 TeV with an integrated luminosity of 340 µb⁻¹ using the ALFA subdetector of ATLAS in 2016. The elastic cross section was measured differentially in the Mandelstam t variable in the range from −t = 2.5 · 10⁻⁴ GeV² to −t = 0.46 GeV² using 6.9 million elastic-scattering candidates. This paper presents measurements of the total cross section σ_tot, parameters of the nuclear slope, and the ρ-parameter defined as the ratio of the real part to the imaginary part of the elastic-scattering amplitude in the limit t → 0. These parameters are determined from a fit to the differential elastic cross section using the optical theorem and different parameterizations of the t-dependence. The results for σtotand ρ are

σ_tot (pp → X) = 104.7 ± 1.1 mb, ρ = 0.098 ± 0.011.

The uncertainty in σtot is dominated by the luminosity measurement, and in ρ by imperfect knowledge of the detector alignment and by modelling of the nuclear amplitude.

The inclusive top-quark pair (tt¯) production cross-section σ_tt¯ is measured inproton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy √s = 5.02 TeV, using 257 pb⁻¹ of datacollected in 2017 by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. The tt¯ cross-section is measuredin both the dilepton and single-lepton final states of the tt¯ system and then combined. Thecombination of the two measurements yields

σ_tt¯ = 67.5 ± 0.9 (stat.) ± 2.3 (syst.) ± 1.1 (lumi.) ± 0.2 (beam) pb,

where the four uncertainties reflect the limited size of the data sample, experimental andtheoretical systematic effects, and imperfect knowledge of both the integrated luminosityand the LHC beam energy, giving a total uncertainty of 3.9%. The result is in agreementwith theoretical quantum chromodynamic calculations at next-to-next-to-leading order inthe strong coupling constant, including the resummation of next-to-next-to-leading logarithmic soft-gluon terms, and constrains the parton distribution functions of the proton atlarge Bjorken-x.

A measurement of observables sensitive to effects of colour reconnection in top-quark pair-production events is presented using 139 fb⁻¹ of 13 TeV proton–proton collision data collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events are selected by requiring exactly one isolated electron and one isolated muon with opposite charge and two or three jets, where exactly two jets are required to be b-tagged. For the selected events, measurements are presented for the charged-particle multiplicity, the scalar sum of the transverse momenta of the charged particles, and the same scalar sum in bins of charged-particle multiplicity. These observables are unfolded to the stable-particle level, thereby correcting for migration effects due to finite detector resolution, acceptance and efficiency effects. The particle-level measurements are compared with different colour reconnection models in Monte Carlo generators. These measurements disfavour some of the colour reconnection models and provide inputs to future optimisation of the parameters in Monte Carlo generators.

Studies of the correlations of the two highest transverse momentum (leading) jets in individual Pb+Pb collision events can provide information about the mechanism of jet quenching by the hot and dense matter created in such collisions. In Pb+Pb and pp collisions at √^sNN=5.02TeV, measurements of the leading dijet transverse momentum (p_T) correlations are presented. Additionally, measurements in Pb+Pb collisions of the dijet pair nuclear modification factors projected along leading and subleading jet p_T are made. The measurements are performed using the ATLAS detector at the LHC with 260 pb⁻¹ of pp data collected in 2017 and 2.2 nb⁻¹ of Pb+Pb data collected in 2015 and 2018. An unfolding procedure is applied to the two-dimensional leading and subleading jet p_T distributions to account for experimental effects in the measurement of both jets. Results are provided for dijets with leading jet p_T greater than 100 GeV. Measurements of the dijet-yield-normalized x_J distributions in Pb+Pb collisions show an increased fraction of imbalanced jets compared to pp collisions; these measurements are in agreement with previous measurements of the same quantity at 2.76 TeV in the overlapping kinematic range. Measurements of the absolutely normalized dijet rate in Pb+Pb and pp collisions are also presented, and show that balanced dijets are significantly more suppressed than imbalanced dijets in Pb+Pb collisions. It is observed in the measurements of the pair nuclear modification factors that the subleading jets are significantly suppressed relative to leading jets with p_T between 100 and 316 GeV for all centralities in Pb+Pb collisions

This paper presents a measurement of fiducial and differential cross-sections for W⁺W⁻ production in proton–proton collisions at √s=13 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider using a dataset corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹. Events with exactly one electron, one muon and no hadronic jets are studied. The fiducial region in which the measurements are performed is inspired by searches for the electroweak production of supersymmetric charginos decaying to two-lepton final states. The selected events have moderate values of missing transverse momentum and the ‘stransverse mass’ variable m_T2, which is widely used in searches for supersymmetry at the LHC. The ranges of these variables are chosen so that the acceptance is enhanced for direct W⁺W⁻ production and suppressed for production via top quarks, which is treated as a background. The fiducial cross-section and particle-level differential cross-sections for six variables are measured and compared with two theoretical SM predictions from perturbative QCD calculations.

This Letter reports the observation of single top quarks produced together with a photon, which directly probes the electroweak coupling of the top quark. The analysis uses 139  fb⁻¹ of 13 TeV proton-proton collision data collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Requiring a photon with transverse momentum larger than 20 GeV and within the detector acceptance, the fiducial cross section is measured to be 688±23(stat) , to be compared with the standard model prediction of at next-to-leading order in QCD.

This Letter reports the observation of τ-lepton-pair production in ultraperipheral lead-lead collisions Pb+Pb→Pb(γγ→ττ)Pb and constraints on the τ-lepton anomalous magnetic moment a_τ. The dataset corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 1.44  nb⁻¹ of LHC Pb+Pb collisions at √s_NN=5.02  TeV recorded by the ATLAS experiment in 2018. Selected events contain one muon from a τ-lepton decay, an electron or charged-particle track(s) from the other τ-lepton decay, little additional central-detector activity, and no forward neutrons. The γγ→ττ process is observed in Pb+Pb collisions with a significance exceeding 5 standard deviations and a signal strength of μ_ττ= assuming the standard model value for a_τ. To measure a_τ, a template fit to the muon transverse-momentum distribution from τ-lepton candidates is performed, using a dimuon (γγ→μμ) control sample to constrain systematic uncertainties. The observed 95% confidence-level interval for a_τ is −0.057<a_τ<0.024.

A measurement of the production of vector bottomonium states, Υ(1S), Υ(2S), and Υ(3S), in Pb+Pb and pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair of 5.02 TeV is presented. The data correspond to integrated luminosities of 1.38nb⁻¹ of Pb+Pb data collected in 2018, 0.44nb⁻¹ of Pb+Pb data collected in 2015, and 0.26fb⁻¹ of pp data collected in 2017 by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The measurements are performed in the dimuon decay channel for transverse momentum <30GeV, absolute rapidity |y^μμ|<1.5, and Pb+Pb event centrality 0–80%. The production rates of the three bottomonium states in Pb+Pb collisions are compared with those in pp collisions to extract the nuclear modification factors as functions of event centrality, , and |y^μμ|. In addition, the suppression of the excited states relative to the ground state is studied. The results are compared with theoretical model calculations.

A search for flavour-changing neutral-current decays of a top quark into an up-type quark (either up or charm) and a light scalar particle X decaying into a bottom anti-bottom quark pair is presented. The search focuses on top-quark pair production where one top quark decays to qX, with X → , and the other top quark decays according to the Standard Model, with the W boson decaying leptonically. The final state is thus characterised by an isolated electron or muon and at least four jets. Events are categorised according to the multiplicity of jets and jets tagged as originating from b-quarks, and a neural network is used to discriminate between signal and background processes. The data analysed correspond to 139 fb⁻¹ of proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The 95% confidence-level upper limits between 0.019% and 0.062% are derived for the branching fraction and between 0.018% and 0.078% for the branching fraction , for masses of the scalar particle X between 20 and 160 GeV.

This paper presents a search for a new Z′ vector gauge boson with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider using pp collision data collected at √s = 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹. The new gauge boson Z′ is predicted by L_μ − L_τ models to address observed phenomena that can not be explained by the Standard Model. The search examines the four-muon (4μ) final state, using a deep learning neural network classifier to separate the Z′ signal from the Standard Model background events. The di-muon invariant masses in the 4μ events are used to extract the Z′ resonance signature. No significant excess of events is observed over the predicted background. Upper limits at a 95% confidence level on the Z′ production cross-section times the decay branching fraction of pp → Z′μμ → 4μ are set from 0.31 to 4.3 fb for the Z′ mass ranging from 5 to 81 GeV. The corresponding common coupling strengths, gZ′, of the Z′ boson to the second and third generation leptons above 0.003 – 0.2 have been excluded.

A search for diphoton resonances in the mass range between 10 and 70 GeV with the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is presented. The analysis is based on pp collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb⁻¹ at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded from 2015 to 2018. Previous searches for diphoton resonances at the LHC have explored masses down to 65 GeV, finding no evidence of new particles. This search exploits the particular kinematics of events with pairs of closely spaced photons reconstructed in the detector, allowing examination of invariant masses down to 10 GeV. The presented strategy covers a region previously unexplored at hadron colliders because of the experimental challenges of recording low-energy photons and estimating the backgrounds. No significant excess is observed and the reported limits provide the strongest bound on promptly decaying axion-like particles coupling to gluons and photons for masses between 10 and 70 GeV.

Several extensions of the Standard Model predict the production of dark matter particles at the LHC. A search for dark matter particles produced in association with a dark Higgs boson decaying into W⁺W⁻ in the , final states with ℓ = e, μ is presented. This analysis uses 139 fb⁻¹ of pp collisions recorded by the ATLAS detector at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The W^± → decays are reconstructed from pairs of calorimeter-measured jets or from track-assisted reclustered jets, a technique aimed at resolving the dense topology from a pair of boosted quarks using jets in the calorimeter and tracking information. The observed data are found to agree with Standard Model predictions. Scenarios with dark Higgs boson masses ranging between 140 and 390 GeV are excluded.

This paper presents a search for dark matter, χ, using events with a single top quark and an energetic W boson. The analysis is based on proton–proton collision data collected with the ATLAS experiment at √s= 13 TeV during LHC Run 2 (2015–2018), corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb⁻¹. The search considers final states with zero or one charged lepton (electron or muon), at least one b-jet and large missing transverse momentum. In addition, a result from a previous search considering two-charged-lepton final states is included in the interpretation of the results. The data are found to be in good agreement with the Standard Model predictions and the results are interpreted in terms of 95% confidence-level exclusion limits in the context of a class of dark matter models involving an extended two-Higgs-doublet sector together with a pseudoscalar mediator particle. The search is particularly sensitive to on-shell production of the charged Higgs boson state, H^±, arising from the two-Higgs-doublet mixing, and its semi-invisible decays via the mediator particle, a: H^±→W^±a(→χχ). Signal models with H^± masses up to 1.5 TeV and a masses up to 350 GeV are excluded assuming a tan⁡ β value of 1. For masses of a of 150 (250) GeV, tan ⁡β values up to 2 are excluded for H^± masses between 200 (400) GeV and 1.5 TeV. Signals with tan⁡ β values between 20 and 30 are excluded for H^± masses between 500 and 800 GeV.

A search for the electroweak production of pairs of charged sleptons or charginos decaying into two-lepton final states with missing transverse momentum is presented. Two simplified models of R-parity-conserving supersymmetry are considered: direct pair-production of sleptons (), with each decaying into a charged lepton and a neutralino, and direct pair-production of the lightest charginos (), with each decaying into a W-boson and a . The lightest neutralino () is assumed to be the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP). The analyses target the experimentally challenging mass regions where m()−m() and m()−m() are close to the W-boson mass (‘moderately compressed’ regions). The search uses 139 fb⁻¹ of √s = 13 TeV proton-proton collisions recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. No significant excesses over the expected background are observed. Exclusion limits on the simplified models under study are reported in the (,) and () mass planes at 95% confidence level (CL). Sleptons with masses up to 150 GeV are excluded at 95% CL for the case of a mass-splitting between sleptons and the LSP of 50 GeV. Chargino masses up to 140 GeV are excluded at 95% CL for the case of a mass-splitting between the chargino and the LSP down to about 100 GeV.