The CKM angle $\gamma$ is important for testing the unitarity of the CKM matrix and searching for new physics. $\gamma$ can be extracted by the interference between $b\to u$ and $b\to c$ in the B factory such as LHCb and Belle-II. Determining $\gamma$ also needs strong parameter information from the charm factory, such as the BESIII experiment. With quantum-correlated data samples collected at BESIII, the $\gamma$ uncertainties from the charm sector can be highly suppressed.

There has been considerable interest and resulting progress in implementing machine learning (ML) models in hardware over the last several years from the particle and nuclear physics communities. A big driver has been the release of the Python package, hls4ml, which has enabled porting models specified and trained using Python ML libraries to register transfer level (RTL) code. So far, the primary end targets have been commercial FPGAs or synthesized custom blocks on ASICs. However, recent developments in open-source embedded FPGA (eFPGA) frameworks now provide an alternate, more flexible pathway for implementing ML models in hardware. These customized eFPGA fabrics can be integrated as part of an overall chip design. In general, the decision between a fully custom, eFPGA, or commercial FPGA ML implementation will depend on the details of the end-use application. In this work, we explored the parameter space for eFPGA implementations of fully-connected neural network (fcNN) and boosted decision tree (BDT) models using the task of neutron/gamma classification with a specific focus on resource efficiency. We used data collected using an AmBe sealed source incident on Stilbene, which was optically coupled to an OnSemi J-series SiPM to generate training and test data for this study. We investigated relevant input features and the effects of bit-resolution and sampling rate as well as trade-offs in hyperparameters for both ML architectures while tracking total resource usage. The performance metric used to track model performance was the calculated neutron efficiency at a gamma leakage of 10$^{-3}$. The results of the study will be used to aid the specification of an eFPGA fabric, which will be integrated as part of a test chip.

We introduce a novel search strategy for heavy top-philic resonances that induce new contributions to four-top production at the LHC. We capitalize on recent advances in top-tagging performance to demonstrate that the final state, that is expected to be boosted based on current limits, can be fully reconstructed and exploited. Notably, our approach promises bounds on new physics cross-sections that are 30 to 60 times stronger than those obtained through traditional searches, showcasing its unprecedented effectiveness in probing top-philic new physics.

Despite intensive searches at the LHC, no new fundamental particle has been discovered since the discovery of the 125 GeV Higgs boson. In general, a new physics discovery is challenging without a UV-complete model because different channels and observables cannot be combined directly and unambiguously. Moreover, without indirect hints for new particles, the parameter space to be searched is huge, resulting in diminished significance due to the look-elsewhere effect. Several LHC searches with multiple leptons in the final state point towards the existence of a new Higgs boson with a mass in the 140-160 GeV range, decaying mostly to a pair of W bosons. This dominant decay mode motivates a Higgs triplet with zero hypercharge, which also predicts a heavier-than-expected $W$-boson as indicated by the CDF-II measurement. Within this simple and predictive model, we simulate and combine channels of associated di-photon production. Considering the run-2 results of ATLAS, including those presented recently at the Moriond conference, a significance of 4.3$\sigma$ is obtained for a mass of 152 GeV. This is the largest statistical evidence for a new narrow resonance observed at the LHC.

We consider neutral- and charged-current Drell Yan lepton-pair production at hadron colliders, and include dominant classes of electroweak and mixed QCD-electroweak corrections to all orders in perturbation theory. The accurate description of these physical effects is vital for a precise determination of fundamental Standard Model parameters, such as the $W$-boson mass and the electroweak mixing angle, as well as for a solid assessment of the associated theoretical uncertainties. Our state-of-the-art resummation reaches next-to-leading-logarithmic accuracy in both the electroweak and the mixed QCD-electroweak perturbative expansions, including constant terms at first order beyond Born level in both couplings, i.e. at order $\alpha$ and $\alpha_s \alpha$. These effects are incorporated on top of QCD predictions at next-to-next-to-next-to-leading-logarithmic accuracy, which include constant terms at third order in the strong coupling. Our results retain, for the first time at this accuracy, full dependence on the kinematics of the final-state leptons, thereby enabling a realistic comparison with experimental analyses at the differential level in presence of fiducial cuts. We present a phenomenological analysis of the impact of electroweak corrections in relevant observables at the LHC. We find visible shape distortions in resummation-dominated kinematical regions with respect to pure-QCD predictions, highlighting the importance of a complete description, not limited to QCD, for precision Drell Yan physics.

The global and local polarization measurements of $\Lambda$ ($\bar{\Lambda}$) hyperons by STAR and ALICE Collaborations open up an immense interest in investigating the polarization dynamics in heavy-ion collisions. Recent studies suggest the transverse component of the vorticity field is responsible for the global spin polarization, while the longitudinal component of the vorticity field accounts for the local polarization. The local polarization of $\Lambda$-hyperons arises due to the anisotropic flows in the transverse plane, indicating a quadrupole pattern of the longitudinal vorticity along the beam direction. The present study focuses on the local (longitudinal) polarization of $\Lambda$ and $\bar{\Lambda}$ in Au$+$Au and Pb$+$Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}$ = 200 GeV and 5.02 TeV, respectively. Further, we explore the centrality and transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) dependence of longitudinal polarization using hydrodynamic and transport models. All these models predict a maximum longitudinal polarization in mid-central collisions around 30-50 \% centrality at $p_{\rm T} \approx$ 2.0 - 3.0 GeV/c. These findings on longitudinal polarization advocate the existence of a thermal medium in non-central heavy-ion collisions. Our findings are in agreement with corresponding experimental data at the RHIC and LHC energies.