Professor Daniela Bortoletto

Abstract:

A first measurement of the polarization of W bosons with large transverse momenta in pp collisions is presented. The measurement is based on 36pb⊃-1 of data recorded at √s=7TeV by the CMS detector at the LHC. The left-handed, right-handed, and longitudinal polarization fractions (f L, fR, and f0, respectively) of W bosons with transverse momenta larger than 50GeV are determined by using decays to both electrons and muons. The muon final state yields the most precise measurement: (fL-fR)⊃-=0.240±0.036(stat)±0.031(syst) and f0-=0.183±0.087(stat)±0.123(syst) for negatively charged W bosons and (fL-fR)⊃+=0.310±0.036(stat) ±0.017(syst) and f0+=0.171±0.085(stat)±0.099(syst) for positively charged W bosons. This establishes, for the first time, that W bosons produced in pp collisions with large transverse momenta are predominantly left-handed, as expected in the standard model. © 2011 American Physical Society.

Abstract:

A new heavy gauge boson, W', decaying to a muon and a neutrino, is searched for in pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV. The data, collected with the CMS detector at the LHC, correspond to an integrated luminosity of 36 pb-1. No significant excess of events above the standard model expectation is found in the transverse mass distribution of the muon-neutrino system. Masses below 1.40 TeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level for a sequential standard-model-like W'. The W' mass lower limit increases to 1.58 TeV when the present analysis is combined with the CMS result for the electron channel. © 2011 CERN.