Search for new physics in events with same-sign dileptons and b-tagged jets in pp collisions at $ \sqrt {s} = 7 $ TeV
A bstractA search for new physics is performed using isolated same-sign dileptons with at least two b-quark jets in the final state. Results are based on a 4.98 fb−1 sample of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV collected by the CMS detector. No excess above the standard model background is observed. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are set on the number of events from non-standard-model sources. These limits are used to set constraints on a number of new physics models. Information on acceptance and efficiencies are also provided so that the results can be used to confront additional models in an approximate way.

title: Search for third-generation leptoquarks and scalar bottom quarks in pp collisions at $ \sqrt{s}=7\;TeV $
abstract: A bstractResults are presented from a search for third-generation leptoquarks and scalar bottom quarks in a sample of proton-proton collisions at $ \sqrt{s}=7\;TeV $ collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.7 fb−1. A scenario where the new particles are pair produced and each decays to a b quark plus a tau neutrino or neutralino is considered. The number of observed events is found to be in agreement with the standard model prediction. Upper limits are set at 95% confidence level on the production cross sections. Leptoquarks with masses below ~450 GeV are excluded. Upper limits in the mass plane of the scalar quark and neutralino are set such that scalar bottom quark masses up to 410 GeV are excluded for neutralino masses of 50 GeV.

title: Observation of the hadronic final state charge asymmetry in high Q^{2} deep-inelastic scattering at HERA
abstract: A first measurement is presented of the charge asymmetry in the hadronic final state from the hard interaction in deep-inelastic ep neutral current scattering at HERA. The measurement is performed in the range of negative squared four momentum transfer 100 < Q(2) < 8000 GeV2. The difference between the event normalised distributions of the scaled momentum, x(p), for positively and negatively charged particles, measured in the current region of the Breit frame, is studied together with its evolution as a function of Q. The results are compared to Monte Carlo models at the hadron and parton levels.

title: Prompt photons in photoproduction at HERA
abstract: AbstractThe production of prompt photons is measured in the photoproduction regime of electron–proton scattering at HERA. The analysis is based on a data sample corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 340 pb−1 collected by the H1 experiment. Cross sections are measured for photons with transverse momentum and pseudorapidity in the range 
$6<\ensuremath{E_{T}^{\gamma}}<15$
 GeV and −1.0<ηγ<2.4, respectively. Cross sections for events with an additional jet are measured as a function of the transverse energy and pseudorapidity of the jet, and as a function of the fractional momenta xγ and xp carried by the partons entering the hard scattering process. The correlation between the photon and the jet is also studied. The results are compared with QCD predictions based on the collinear and on the kT factorization approaches.

title: Measurement of the single-top-quark t-channel cross section in pp collisions at $ \sqrt{s}=7 $ TeV
abstract: A bstractA measurement of the single-top-quark t-channel production cross section in pp collisions at $ \sqrt{s}=7 $ TeV with the CMS detector at the LHC is presented. Two different and complementary approaches have been followed. The first approach exploits the distributions of the pseudorapidity of the recoil jet and reconstructed top-quark mass using background estimates determined from control samples in data. The second approach is based on multivariate analysis techniques that probe the compatibility of the candidate events with the signal. Data have been collected for the muon and electron final states, corresponding to integrated luminosities of 1.17 and 1.56 fb−1, respectively. The single-top-quark production cross section in the t-channel is measured to be 67.2±6.1 pb, in agreement with the approximate next-to-next-to-leading-order standard model prediction. Using the standard model electroweak couplings, the CKM matrix element |Vtb| is measured to be 1.020 ± 0.046 (meas.) ± 0.017 (theor.).

title: Search for Excited Electrons in ep Collisions at HERA
abstract: A search for excited electrons is performed using the full e±p data sample collected by the H1 experiment at HERA, corresponding to a total luminosity of 475 pb−1. The electroweak decays of excited electrons e*→eγ, e*→eZ and e*→νW with subsequent hadronic or leptonic decays of the W and Z bosons are considered. No evidence for excited electron production is found. Mass dependent exclusion limits on e* production cross sections and on the ratio f/Λ of the coupling to the compositeness scale are derived within gauge mediated models. These limits extend the excluded region compared to previous excited electron searches. The e* production via contact interactions is also addressed for the first time in ep collisions.

title: A Faraday Rotation Search for Magnetic Fields in Large-scale Structure
abstract: Faraday rotation of radio source polarization provides a measure of the integrated magnetic field along the observational lines of sight. We compare a large new sample of Faraday rotation measures (RMs) of polarized extragalactic sources with galaxy counts in Hercules and Perseus-Pisces, two nearby superclusters. We find that the average of RMs in these two supercluster areas are larger than in control areas in the same Galactic latitude range. This is the first RM detection of magnetic fields that pervade a supercluster volume, in which the fields are at least partially coherent over several megaparsecs. Even the most conservative interpretation of our observations, according to which Milky Way RM variations mimic the background supercluster galaxy overdensities, puts constraints on the IGM magnetoionic "strength" in these two superclusters. We obtain an approximate typical upper limit on the field strength of ~0.3 μG l/(500 kpc) when we combine our RM data with fiducial estimates of electron density from the environments of giant radio galaxies, and of the warm-hot intergalactic medium (WHIM).

title: Inflationary perturbations and precision cosmology
abstract: Inflationary cosmology provides a natural mechanism for the generation of primordial perturbations which seed the formation of observed cosmic structure and lead to specific signals of anisotropy in the cosmic microwave background radiation. In order to test the broad inflationary paradigm as well as particular models against precision observations, it is crucial to be able to make accurate predictions for the power spectrum of both scalar and tensor fluctuations. We present detailed calculations of these quantities utilizing direct numerical approaches as well as error-controlled uniform approximations, comparing with the (uncontrolled) traditional slow-roll approach. A simple extension of the leading-order uniform approximation yields results for the power spectra amplitudes, the spectral indices, and the running of spectral indices, with accuracy of the order of 0.1%--approximately the same level at which the transfer functions are known. Several representative examples are used to demonstrate these results.

title: Chaos and Noise in Galactic Potentials
abstract: This paper summarizes an investigation of the effects of weak friction and noise in time-independent, nonintegrable two-dimensional potentials that admit both regular and stochastic orbits. The aim is to understand the qualitative effects of internal and external irregularities associated with discreteness effects or couplings to an external environment, which stars in any real galaxy must experience. It is found that these irregularities can be important already on timescales much shorter than the natural relaxation timescale tR associated with two-body relaxation. In particular, for stochastic orbits friction and noise result in an exponential divergence from the unperturbed Hamiltonian trajectory, at a rate set by the value of the local Lyapunov exponent, which persists even for relatively large deviations from the unperturbed trajectory. Friction and noise can also have significant effects on the statistical properties of ensembles of stochastic orbits. Stochastic orbits may be divided into two classes, confined or sticky stochastic orbits which are trapped near islands of regularity, and unconfined or filling stochastic orbits that travel unimpeded throughout a stochastic sea. In the absence of friction and noise, transitions between confined and filling stochastic orbits are very slow. However, even very weak friction and noise can drastically accelerate such transitions, leading to an approach toward a statistical equilibrium on timescales tR. In the two-dimensional models studied in this paper, there are cases for which tR exceeds 106 crossing times where friction and noise can induce transitions for more than half the orbits within 100 crossing times, this corresponding in galaxies to a Hubble time tH. Implications for galactic dynamics are discussed.

title: Simulations and cosmological inference : A statistical model for power spectra means and covariances
abstract: We describe an approximate statistical model for the sample variance distribution of the nonlinear matter power spectrum that can be calibrated from limited numbers of simulations. Our model retains the common assumption of a multivariate normal distribution for the power spectrum band powers but takes full account of the (parameter-dependent) power spectrum covariance. The model is calibrated using an extension of the framework in Habib et al. (2007) to train Gaussian processes for the power spectrum mean and covariance given a set of simulation runs over a hypercube in parameter space. We demonstrate the performance of this machinery by estimating the parameters of a power-law model for the power spectrum. Within this framework, our calibrated sample variance distribution is robust to errors in the estimated covariance and shows rapid convergence of the posterior parameter constraints with the number of training simulations.

title: The Cosmic Web, Multi-Stream Flows, and Tessellations
abstract: Understanding the structure of the matter distribution in the Universe due to the action of the gravitational instability – the cosmic web – is complicated by lack of direct analytic access to the nonlinear domain of structure formation. Here, we suggest and apply a novel tessellation method designed for cold dark matter (CDM) N-body cosmological simulations. The method is based on the fact that the initial CDM state can be described by a 3-D manifold (in a 6-D phase space) that remains continuous under evolution. Our technique uses the full phase space information and has no free parameters; it can be used to compute multi-stream and density fields, the main focus