Search

Projection pursuit is used to find interesting low-dimensional projections of high-dimensional data by optimizing an index over all possible projections. Most indexes have been developed to detect departure from known distributions, such as normality, or to find separations between known groups. Here, we are interested in finding projections revealing potentially complex bivariate patterns, using new indexes constructed from scagnostics and a maximum information coefficient, with a purpose to detect unusual relationships between model parameters describing physics phenomena. The performance of these indexes is examined with respect to ideal behaviour, using simulated data, and then applied to problems from gravitational wave astronomy. The implementation builds upon the projection pursuit tools available in the R package, tourr, with indexes constructed from code in the R packages, binostics, minerva and mbgraphic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider simplified dark matter models where a dark matter candidate couples to the standard model (SM) particles via an s-channel spin-2 mediator, and study constraints on the model parameter space from the current LHC data. Our focus lies on the complementarity among different searches, in particular monojet and multijet plus missing-energy searches and resonance searches. For universal couplings of the mediator to SM particles, missing-energy searches can give stronger constraints than WW, ZZ, dijet, dihiggs, $$t\bar{t}$$ , $$b\bar{b}$$ resonance searches in the low-mass region and/or when the coupling of the mediator to dark matter is much larger than its couplings to SM particles. The strongest constraints, however, come from diphoton and dilepton resonance searches. Only if these modes are suppressed, missing-energy searches can be competitive in constraining dark matter models with a spin-2 mediator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discrepancies between measurements of decay modes with an underlying quark level transition b → s ℓ + ℓ - and standard model (SM) predictions have persisted for several years, particularly for the muon channels. The inadequacy of the SM becomes more compelling in a global fit. For example, Capdevila et al. (JHEP 01, 093. arXiv:1704.05340, 2018) described 175 observables by six parameters encoding new physics and quantified the disagreement with the SM at about the 5 σ level. While certain one and two parameter fits have previously been considered in detail, we establish a framework for the detailed discussion of the full 6d fit. We visualize and quantify the 6d 1 σ region around the best fit point and define fit uncertainties for both current and future observables. We then define metrics quantifying the deviations between measurements and both SM and best fit predictions. These metrics relate observables to directions in parameter space, revealing their precise role in the fit, thus providing guidance for future theoretical and experimental work. Some metrics further quantify the role of correlated uncertainties, which turns out to be significant. For example the relevance of angular observables such as P 5 ′ is reduced in this context. Finally, studying the space of observables allows us to discuss the internal tensions in the fit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recent paper on visualizing the sensitivity of hadronic experiments to nucleon structure (Wang et al. in arXiv:1803.02777, 2018) introduces the tool PDFSense which defines measures to allow the user to judge the sensitivity of PDF fits to a given experiment. The sensitivity is characterized by high-dimensional data residuals that are visualized in a 3-d subspace of the 10 first principal components or using non-linear embeddings. We show how a tour, a dynamic visualisation of high dimensional data, can extend this tool beyond 3-d relationships. This approach enables resolving structure orthogonal to the 2-d viewing plane used so far, and hence finer tuned assessment of the sensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a general procedure to decompose Beyond the Standard Model (BSM) collider signatures presenting a $$\mathbb {Z}_2$$ symmetry into Simplified Model Spectrum (SMS) topologies. Our method provides a way to cast BSM predictions for the LHC in a model independent framework, which can be directly confronted with the relevant experimental constraints. Our concrete implementation currently focusses on supersymmetry searches with missing energy, for which a large variety of SMS results from ATLAS and CMS are available. As show-case examples we apply our procedure to two scans of the minimal supersymmetric standard model. We discuss how the SMS limits constrain various particle masses and which regions of parameter space remain unchallenged by the current SMS interpretations of the LHC results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate to which extent the SUSY search results published by ATLAS and CMS in the context of simplified models actually cover the more realistic scenarios of a full model. Concretely, we work within the phenomenological MSSM (pMSSM) with 19 free parameters and compare the constraints obtained from SModelS v1.1.1 with those from the ATLAS pMSSM study in arXiv:1508.06608. We find that about 40-45% of the points excluded by ATLAS escape the currently available simplified model constraints. For these points we identify the most relevant topologies which are not tested by the current simplified model results. In particular, we find that topologies with asymmetric branches, including 3-jet signatures from gluino-squark associated production, could be important for improving the current constraining power of simplified models results. Furthermore, for a better coverage of light stops and sbottoms, constraints for decays via heavier neutralinos and charginos, which subsequently decay visibly to the lightest neutralino are also needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]