A search for the Standard Model Higgs boson in proton–proton collisions with the ATLAS detector at the LHC is presented. The datasets used correspond to integrated luminosities of approximately 4.8 fb−1 collected at √s=7 TeV in 2011 and 5.8 fb−1 at √s=8 TeV in 2012. Individual searches in the channels H→ZZ(⁎)→4ℓ, H→γγ and H→WW(⁎)→eνμν in the 8 TeV data are combined with previously published results of searches for H→ZZ(⁎), WW(⁎), bb and τ+τ− in the 7 TeV data and results from improved analyses of the H→ZZ(⁎)→4ℓ and H→γγ channels in the 7 TeV data. Clear evidence for the production of a neutral boson with a measured mass of 126.0±0.4(stat)±0.4(sys) GeV is presented. This observation, which has a significance of 5.9 standard deviations, corresponding to a background fluctuation probability of 1.7×10−9, is compatible with the production and decay of the Standard Model Higgs boson

The ATLAS experiment is preparing for data taking at 14 TeV collision energy. A rich discovery physics program is being prepared in addition to the detailed study of Standard Model processes which will be produced in abundance. The ATLAS multi-level trigger system is designed to accept one event in 2 • 10B to enable the selection of rare and unusual physics events. The ATLAS calorimeter system is a precise instrument, which includes liquid Argon electromagnetic and hadronic components as well as a scintillator-tile hadronic calorimeter. All these components are used in the various levels of the trigger system. A wide physics coverage is ensured by inclusively selecting events with candidate electrons, photons, taus, jets or those with large missing transverse energy. The commissioning of the trigger system is being performed with cosmic ray events and by replaying simulated Monte Carlo events through the trigger and data acquisition system.

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We describe likelihood-based statistical tests for use in high energy physics for the discovery of new phenomena and for construction of confidence intervals on model parameters. We focus on the properties of the test procedures that allow one to account for systematic uncertainties. Explicit formulae for the asymptotic distributions of test statistics are derived using results of Wilks and Wald. We motivate and justify the use of a representative data set, called the "Asimov data set", which provides a simple method to obtain the median experimental sensitivity of a search or measurement as well as fluctuations about this expectation.

A measurement of the Higgs boson mass is presented based on the combined data samples of the ATLAS and CMS experiments at the CERN LHC in the H → γγ and H → ZZ → 4l decay channels. The results are obtained from a simultaneous fit to the reconstructed invariant mass peaks in the two channels and for the two experiments. The measured masses from the individual channels and the two experiments are found to be consistent among themselves. The combined measured mass of the Higgs boson is m H ¼ 125.09 AE 0.21 ðstatÞ AE 0.11 ðsystÞ GeV. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.114.191803 PACS numbers: 14.80.Bn, 13.85.Qk The study of the mechanism of electroweak symmetry breaking is one of the principal goals of the CERN LHC program. In the standard model (SM), this symmetry breaking is achieved through the introduction of a complex doublet scalar field, leading to the prediction of the Higgs boson H [1-6], whose mass m H is, however, not predicted by the theory. In 2012, the ATLAS and CMS Collaborations at the LHC announced the discovery of a particle with Higgs-boson-like properties and a mass of about 125 GeV [7][8][9]. The discovery was based primarily on mass peaks observed in the γγ and ZZ → l þ l − l 0þ l 0−(denoted H → ZZ → 4l for simplicity) decay channels, where one or both of the Z bosons can be off shell and where l and l 0 denote an electron or muon. With m H known, all properties of the SM Higgs boson, such as its production cross section and partial decay widths, can be predicted. Increasingly precise measurements [10][11][12][13] have established that all observed properties of the new particle, including its spin, parity, and coupling strengths to SM particles are consistent within the uncertainties with those expected for the SM Higgs boson.The ATLAS and CMS Collaborations have independently measured m H using the samples of proton-proton collision data collected in 2011 and 2012, commonly referred to as LHC Run 1. The analyzed samples correspond to approximately 5 fb −1 of integrated luminosity at ffiffi ffi s p ¼ 7 TeV, and 20 fb −1 at ffiffi ffi s p ¼ 8 TeV, for each experiment. Combined results in the context of the separate experiments, as well as those in the individual channels, are presented in Refs. [12,[14][15][16].This Letter describes a combination of the Run 1 data from the two experiments, leading to improved precision for m H . Besides its intrinsic importance as a fundamental parameter, improved knowledge of m H yields more precise predictions for the other Higgs boson properties. Furthermore, the combined mass measurement provides a first step towards combinations of other quantities, such as the couplings. In the SM, m H is related to the values of the masses of the W boson and top quark through loopinduced effects. Taking into account other measured SM quantities, the comparison of the measurements of the Higgs boson, W boson, and top quark masses can be used to directly test the consistency of the SM [17] and thus to search for evidence of physics beyond the SM.The combination is performed usin...