Search

We present next-to-leading order QCD and electroweak (EW) theory predictions for V + 2 jet production, with V = Z, W±, considering both the QCD and EW production modes and their interference. We focus on phase-space regions where V + 2 jet production is dominated by vector-boson fusion, and where these processes yield the dominant irreducible backgrounds in searches for invisible Higgs boson decays. Predictions at parton level are provided together with detailed prescriptions for their implementation in experimental analyses based on the reweighting of Monte Carlo samples. The key idea is that, exploiting accurate data for W + 2 jet production in combination with a theory-driven extrapolation to the Z + 2 jet process can lead to a determination of the irreducible background at the few-percent level. Particular attention is devoted to the estimate of the residual theoretical uncertainties due to unknown higher-order QCD and EW effects and their correlation between the different V + 2 jet processes, which is key to improve the sensitivity to invisible Higgs decays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the first combination of NNLO QCD and NLO EW corrections for vector-boson pair production at the LHC. We consider all final states with two, three and four charged leptons, including resonant and non-resonant diagrams, spin correlations and off-shell effects. Detailed predictions are discussed for three representative channels corresponding to W+W−, W±Z and Z Z production. Both QCD and EW corrections are very significant, and the details of their combination can play a crucial role to achieve the level of precision demanded by experimental analyses. In this context we point out nontrivial issues that arise at large transverse momenta, where the EW corrections are strongly enhanced by Sudakov logarithms and the QCD corrections can feature so-called giant K -factors. Our calculations have been carried out in the Matrix+OpenLoops framework and can be extended to the production of an arbitrary colour singlet in hadronic collisions, provided that the required two-loop QCD amplitudes are available. Combined NNLO QCD and NLO EW predictions for the full set of massive diboson processes will be made publicly available in the next release of Matrix and will be instrumental in advancing precision diboson studies and new-physics searches at the LHC and future hadron colliders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-energy jets recoiling against missing transverse energy (MET) are powerful probes of dark matter at the LHC. Searches based on large MET signatures require a precise control of the $$Z(\nu {\bar{\nu }})+$$ jet background in the signal region. This can be achieved by taking accurate data in control regions dominated by $$Z(\ell ^+\ell ^-)+$$ jet, $$W(\ell \nu )+$$ jet and $$\gamma +$$ jet production, and extrapolating to the $$Z(\nu {\bar{\nu }})+$$ jet background by means of precise theoretical predictions. In this context, recent advances in perturbative calculations open the door to significant sensitivity improvements in dark matter searches. In this spirit, we present a combination of state-of-the-art calculations for all relevant $$V+$$ jets processes, including throughout NNLO QCD corrections and NLO electroweak corrections supplemented by Sudakov logarithms at two loops. Predictions at parton level are provided together with detailed recommendations for their usage in experimental analyses based on the reweighting of Monte Carlo samples. Particular attention is devoted to the estimate of theoretical uncertainties in the framework of dark matter searches, where subtle aspects such as correlations across different $$V+$$ jet processes play a key role. The anticipated theoretical uncertainty in the $$Z(\nu {\bar{\nu }})+$$ jet background is at the few percent level up to the TeV range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the first NLO QCD+EW predictions for Higgs boson production in association with a ℓν or ℓ ℓ pair plus zero or one jets at the LHC. Fixed-order NLO QCD+EW calculations are combined with a QCD+QED parton shower using the recently developed resonance-aware method in the POWHEG framework. Moreover, applying the improved MiNLO technique to Hℓν +jet and Hℓ ℓ +jet production at NLO QCD+EW, we obtain predictions that are NLO accurate for observables with both zero or one resolved jet. This approach permits also to capture higher-order effects associated with the interplay of EW corrections and QCD radiation. The behavior of EW corrections is studied for various kinematic distributions, relevant for experimental analyses of Higgsstrahlung processes at the 13 TeV LHC. Exact NLO EW corrections are complemented with approximate analytic formulae that account for the leading and next-to-leading Sudakov logarithms in the high-energy regime. In the tails of transverse-momentum distributions, relevant for analyses in the boosted Higgs regime, the Sudakov approximation works well, and NLO EW effects can largely exceed the ten percent level. Our predictions are based on the POWHEG BOX RES+OpenLoops framework in combination with the Pythia 8.1 parton shower. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an NLO simulation of WWbb production with massive b-quarks at the LHC. Off-shell and non-resonant contributions associated with top-pair and single-top channels and with leptonic W-boson decays are consistently taken into account using the complex-mass scheme. Thanks to the finite b-quark mass, WWbb predictions can be extended to the whole b-quark phase space, thereby including Wt-channel single-top contributions that originate from collinear g $$\rightarrow $$ bb splittings in the four-flavour scheme. This provides a consistent NLO description of tt and Wt production and decay, including quantum interference effects. The simulation is also applicable to exclusive 0- and 1-jet bins, which is of great importance for Higgs-boson studies in the H $$\rightarrow $$ WW channel and for any other analysis with large top backgrounds and jet vetoes or jet bins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present precise predictions for four-lepton plus jets production at the LHC obtained within the fully automated Sherpa + OpenLoops framework. Off-shell intermediate vector bosons and related interferences are consistently included using the complexmass scheme. Four-lepton plus 0- and 1-jet final states are described at NLO accuracy, and the precision of the simulation is further increased by squared quark-loop NNLO contributions in the gg → 4l, gg → 4l+g, gq → 4l+q, and qq → 4l+g channels. These NLO and NNLO contributions are matched to the Sherpa parton shower, and the 0- and 1-jet final states are consistently merged using the Meps@Nlo technique. Thanks to Sudakov resummation, the parton shower provides improved predictions and uncertainty estimates for exclusive observables. This is important when jet vetoes or jet bins are used to separate four-lepton final states arising from Higgs decays, diboson production, and top-pair production. Detailed predictions are presented for the Atlas and Cms H → WW* analyses at 8TeV in the 0- and 1-jet bins. Assessing renormalisation-, factorisation- and resummationscale uncertainties, which reflect also unknown subleading Sudakov logarithms in jet bins, we find that residual perturbative uncertainties are as small as a few percent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present details of a calculation of the cross section for hadronic top-antitop production in next-to-leading order (NLO) QCD, including the decays of the top and antitop into bottom quarks and leptons. This calculation is based on matrix elements for νee +μ−$ {{\overline{\nu}}_{\mu }}\mathrm{b}\overline{\mathrm{b}} $ production and includes all non-resonant diagrams, interferences, and off-shell effects of the top quarks. Such contributions are formally suppressed by the top-quark width and turn out to be small in the inclusive cross section. However, they can be strongly enhanced in exclusive observables that play an important role in Higgs and new-physics searches. Also non-resonant and off-shell effects due to the finite W-boson width are investigated in detail, but their impact is much smaller than naively expected. We also introduce a matching approach to improve NLO calculations involving intermediate unstable particles. Using a fixed QCD scale leads to perturbative instabilities in the high-energy tails of distributions, but an appropriate dynamical scale stabilises NLO predictions. Numerical results for the total cross section, several distributions, and asymmetries are presented for Tevatron and the LHC at 7 TeV, 8 TeV, and 14 TeV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present predictions for $$ {\text{t}}\overline {\text{t}} {\text{b}}\overline {\text{b}} $$ production at the LHC in next-to-leading order QCD. The precise description of this background process is a prerequisite to observe associated $$ {\text{t}}\overline {\text{t}} {\text{H}} $$ production in the $$ {\text{H}} \to {\text{b}}\overline {\text{b}} $$ decay channel and to directly measure the top-quark Yukawa coupling at the LHC. The leading-order cross section is extremely sensitive to scale variations. We observe that the traditional scale choice adopted in ATLAS simulations underestimates the $$ {\text{t}}\overline {\text{t}} {\text{b}}\overline {\text{b}} $$ background by a factor two and introduce a new dynamical scale that stabilizes the perturbative predictions. We study various kinematic distributions and observe that the corrections have little impact on their shapes if standard cuts are applied. In the regime of highly boosted Higgs bosons, which offers better perspectives to observe the $$ {\text{t}}\overline {\text{t}} {\text{H}} $$ signal, we find significant distortions of the kinematic distributions. The one-loop amplitudes are computed using process-independent algebraic manipulations of Feynman diagrams and numerical tensor reduction. We find that this approach provides very high numerical stability and CPU efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We discuss the evaluation of the collinear single-logarithmic contributions to virtual electroweak corrections at high energies. More precisely, we prove the factorization of the mass singularities originating from loop diagrams involving collinear virtual gauge bosons coupled to external legs. We discuss, in particular, processes involving external longitudinal gauge bosons, which are treated using the Goldstone-boson equivalence theorem. The proof of factorization is performed within the 't Hooft–Feynman gauge at one-loop order and applies to arbitrary electroweak processes that are not mass-suppressed at high energies. As basic ingredients we use Ward identities for Green functions with arbitrary external particles involving a gauge boson collinear to one of these. The Ward identities are derived from the BRS invariance of the spontaneously broken electroweak gauge theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cross section for $\rm e^-e^-\rightarrow e^-e^- $ with arbitrary electron polarizations is calculated within the Electroweak Standard Model for energies large compared to the electron mass, including the complete virtual and soft-photonic $O(\alpha)$ radiative corrections. The relevant analytical results are listed, and a numerical evaluation is presented for the unpolarized and polarized cross sections as well as for polarization asymmetries. The relative weak corrections are typically of the order of 10%. At low energies, the bulk of the corrections is due to the running of the electromagnetic coupling constant. For left-handed electrons, at high energies the vertex and box corrections involving virtual W bosons become very important. The polarization asymmetry is considerably reduced by the weak radiative corrections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]