Physics and Astronomy, Department of

 

First Advisor

Ilya Kravchenko

Date of this Version

Fall 12-1-2017

Citation

E. Avdeeva. A MEASUREMENT OF THE Wγ CROSS SECTION AT √S = 8 TEV IN PP COLLISIONS WITH THE CMS DETECTOR. PhD thesis, UNL, Lincoln, NE, 2017

Comments

A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfilment of Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Major: Physics & Astronomy, Under the Supervision of Professor Ilya Kravchenko. Lincoln, Nebraska: September, 2017

Copyright © 2017 Ekaterina Avdeeva

Abstract

A measurement of cross section of the Wγ → lνγ production in proton-proton collisions using 19.6 fb − 1 of LHC data collected by CMS detector at the center- √ of-mass collision energy of s = 8 TeV is reported. The W bosons are identified in their electron and muon decay modes. The process of Wγ production in the Standard Model (SM) involves a pure gauge boson coupling, a WWγ vertex, which allows one to test the electroweak sector of the SM in a unique way not achievable by studies of other processes. In addition to the total cross section, we measure the differential cross section of Wγ production as a function of a photon transverse momentum. The measurement of the differential cross section is a sensitive probe for new physics originating from an anomalous gauge coupling because possible effects of its presence increase with the photon transverse momentum and, thus, are more likely to be observed in the differential than in the total cross section. The results of this measurement agree with the Standard Model prediction at NLO in QCD, and no evidence of an anomalous triple gauge coupling has been observed. The reported total cross section measurement is the first measurement of this quantity at the 8 TeV collision energy with CMS data. The differential cross section measurement discussed in this dissertation is the first ever measurement of this process performed by CMS since the start of the LHC.

Adviser: Ilya Kravchenko

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