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  1. Free, publicly-accessible full text available September 1, 2027
  2. A new technique is developed to identify dielectrons ( e+e− ) with Lorentz boost γL>20 that produce one single merged cluster in the electromagnetic calorimeter of the CMS detector. The identification uses two multivariate models: one for the case where both electron tracks are reconstructed, and another where only one of the tracks is reconstructed. The efficiency is determined using proton-proton collision data collected at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. Boosted J/ψ mesons decaying into e+e− pairs are used to estimate the efficiency of the model with two tracks, yielding an overall efficiency of 80%. The Z→μ+μ−γ events, where the photon converts into a collimated dielectron, are used for the model with a single track, yielding an efficiency of about 60%. A dedicated energy correction for dielectron candidates is also developed using B±→J/ψK±→e+e−K± data. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available September 1, 2027
  3. A search for Higgs boson ( H ) production in association with two vector bosons ( V=W , Z ) via vector-boson scattering (VBS) is presented using proton-proton collision data collected at s=13  TeV by the CMS experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138  fb−1 . Events containing two forward jets consistent with VBS, a large-radius jet from the decay of a boosted H to a pair of b quarks, and zero, one, or two charged leptons coming from V decays are selected. The process is excluded at 95% confidence level for observed (expected) values of the VVHH coupling modifier κ2V outside the interval 0.40< κ2V <1.60 ( 0.34< κ2V <1.66 ), assuming standard model values for all other couplings, thus establishing a novel probe of the VVHH interaction. Constraints are also set on the individual κ2W and κ2Z coupling modifiers and on the allowed region in the κ2W − κ2Z plane. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available September 1, 2027
  4. Evidence of the production of two Z bosons and a photon in proton-proton collisions is reported for the first time in CMS. The analysis uses data collected by the CMS experiment between 2016 and 2018 at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138  fb−1 . Evidence for the process pp→ZZγ→4ℓγ ( ℓ=e , μ ), with an observed (expected) significance of 3.7 (3.1) standard deviations in a fiducial region defined by pTγ >20  GeV , |ηγ|<2.4 , ΔR(ℓ,γ)>0.5 , mZ between 60 and 120 GeV, and the invariant mass of either of the two Z bosons combined with the photon ( m Zγ ) larger than 100 GeV, is reported. The measured (predicted) fiducial cross section is 60−22+27   ab ( 47.56±0.04  ab ). Additionally, the inclusive production of pp→4ℓγ is studied by removing the m Zγ requirement to include final state radiation where one Z boson decays to 2ℓγ , yielding an observed (expected) significance of 5.0 (4.2) standard deviations and a measured (predicted) fiducial cross section of 156−35+39   ab ( 99.97±0.09  ab ). 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available August 1, 2027
  5. The existence of a new spin-zero particle with a mass below the electroweak scale is predicted by several theoretical models. Searches for resonant production of photon pairs at the LHC are able to probe these models. We present a search for a narrow resonance produced through gluon fusion that decays into a pair of photons with an invariant mass between 10 and 70 GeV, using a proton-proton collision dataset from the CMS experiment. This dataset, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 54.4  fb−1 , was recorded in 2018 at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV using a newly introduced diphoton trigger that enabled exploration of the low-mass diphoton spectrum. No significant excess above the expected background is observed. Upper limits are set on the product of the gluon fusion production cross section and the branching fraction of the diphoton decay of a narrow resonance. An interpretation of these limits within an effective field theory framework for axionlike particles is also provided. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available August 1, 2027
  6. A search is performed for a new resonance X decaying into a Higgs boson and a new scalar boson Y ( HY ) including the case where Y is assumed to be a second Higgs boson ( HH ), using proton-proton collision data collected at s=13  TeV , corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138  fb−1 . This study performs a comprehensive exploitation of the bbZZ events, encompassing the following decay topologies. One H candidate is identified through its decay into a bottom quark-antiquark pair, while the other H or the Y candidate is selected through its decay into a pair of Z bosons. One Z boson is required to decay leptonically and the other, to decay into a pair of quarks or neutrinos. Events of interest are categorized based on the Lorentz boosts of the hadronically decaying H and Z bosons. Machine-learning-based discriminants, together with the reconstructed resonance mass, are employed across the different categories to separate signal from backgrounds, and their corresponding distributions are included in a simultaneous fit. No significant deviations from the standard model predictions are observed. Upper limits at the 95% confidence level are set on the HY and HH production cross sections. For HY production, the upper limit on the cross section of the process pp→X→HY→bbZZ ranges from 500 to 5 fb, with the most stringent constraints achieved for high-mass X resonances and Y masses near the threshold for decay into a pair of massive vector bosons. This is comparable to the sensitivity achieved in other analyses, which focus on H decays to γγ or ττ and Y decays into a pair of bottom quarks or massive vector bosons. For resonant HH production, the upper limit on the cross section of pp→X→HH production is 1 pb for a high-mass resonance. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available August 1, 2027
  7. A<sc>bstract</sc> A search for Higgs boson (H) production at high transverse momentum (pT) in the WW decay channel is presented. The analysis uses proton-proton collisions at$$ \sqrt{s}=13 $$ s=13 TeV recorded by the CMS experiment in 2016–2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb−1. The visible decay products of the Higgs boson are reconstructed as a single large-radius jet with one isolated lepton or none (1ℓand 0ℓ, respectively;ℓ= e,μ). The H-candidate jets are identified using an advanced transformer-based algorithm and are calibrated with the Lund jet plane reweighting technique. The 1ℓchannel is further split into gluon fusion, vector boson fusion, and associated production with hadronically decaying vector boson categories, while the 0ℓchannel considers all production processes inclusively. The measured cross section times the H→WW branching fraction relative to the standard model expectation is$$ \mu =-{0.19}_{-0.46}^{+0.48} $$ μ=− 0.19−0.46+0.48 , indicating no evidence of a signal above the background. This measurement represents the first dedicated study of highly Lorentz-boosted H→WW decays, complementing earlier searches for high-pTHiggs boson in other decay channels. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available July 27, 2027
  8. A search for the pair production of heavy spin- 1/2 or spin- 3/2 resonances ( t* ) in proton-proton collisions at s=13  TeV is presented. Data collected with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC from 2016 to 2018 corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138  fb−1 are used. The analysis targets benchmark signal scenarios where one t* decays into a top quark ( t ) and a photon ( γ ), and the other into a t quark and a gluon ( g ), i.e., pp→t* t*¯ →ttγg . All-hadronic final states from the t pair decay chain are selected using jet substructure techniques. The signal is probed as a function of the t* candidate mass, which is reconstructed using the photon and a top quark candidate jet. No significant deviation from the background-only hypothesis is found. Observed (expected) upper limits on the signal cross section at 95% confidence level are set, excluding masses of spin- 1/2 t* particles below 930 (930) GeV and spin- 3/2 t* particles below 1330 (1390) GeV. This analysis marks the first search for heavy resonances in the t t¯ γg channel. Exploiting the high-energy photon to reduce the backgrounds, this search achieves sensitivity competitive with pp→t* t*¯ → t t¯ gg searches for spin- 1/2 t* despite the small expected t*→tγ branching fraction. 
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    Free, publicly-accessible full text available June 9, 2027
  9. Free, publicly-accessible full text available June 1, 2027
  10. Free, publicly-accessible full text available February 1, 2027