Proton structure and new physics interplay at the LHC

Particle Physics Theory seminar

Proton structure and new physics interplay at the LHC

  • Event time: 2:00pm until 3:00pm
  • Event date: 15th June 2022
  • Speaker: Dr Maria Ubiali (DAMPT Cambridge)
  • Location: Higgs Centre Seminar Room, Room 4305,

Event details

The high-energy distributions measured at the LHC provide important constraints on the proton structure, in particular on the parton content of the proton at a large fraction of momentum carried by the partons. At the same time, short-distance new physics effects such as those encoded by the Standard Model Effective Field Theory (SMEFT) would induce smooth distortions to the very same high-energy tails. In my talk, I will discuss the interplay between the determination of the proton structure and possible new physics effects, particularly focussing on high-mass Drell-Yan distributions. I will quantify the impact that a simultaneous determination of the Parton Distribution Functions (PDFs) of the proton and of the SMEFT Wilson coefficients has on new physics bounds. The main finding is that, while the interplay between PDFs and new physics effects remains moderate for the current dataset, it will become a significant challenge for EFT analyses at the HL-LHC. I will then discuss two new methodologies aimed at systematically disentangling the effects of new physics in PDF fits and review several ongoing studies.

Event resources

About Particle Physics Theory seminars

The Particle Physics Theory seminar is a weekly series of talks reflecting the diverse interests of the group. Topics include analytic and numerical calculations based on the Standard Model of elementary particle physics, theories exploring new physics, as well as more formal developments in gauge theories and gravity..

Find out more about Particle Physics Theory seminars.