Measurements of the cross sections for top quark pairs produced in association with a W or Z boson are presented, using 8 TeV pp collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.5 fb-1, collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. We found that final states are selected in which the associated W boson decays to a charged lepton and a neutrino or the Z boson decays to two charged leptons. Signal events are identified by matching reconstructed objects in the detector to specific final state particles from tt-W or tt-Z decays. The tt-W cross section is measured to be 382+117 -102 fb with a significance of 4.8 standard deviations from the background-only hypothesis. The tt-Z cross section is measured to be 242+65 -55 fb with a significance of 6.4 standard deviations from the background-only hypothesis. These measurements are used to set bounds on five anomalous dimension-six operators that would affect the tt-W and tt-Z cross sections.

A measurement of the cross section for the production of top quark-antiquark pairs (${\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}}$) in association with a vector boson V (W or Z) in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 8$ $\, \text {TeV}$ is presented. The results are based on a dataset corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.5 fb$^{-1}$ recorded with the CMS detector at the LHC. The measurement is performed in three leptonic (e and $\mu$) channels: a same-sign dilepton analysis targeting ${\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} \mathrm {W} $ events, and trilepton and four-lepton analyses designed for ${\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} {\mathrm {Z}} $ events. In the same-sign dilepton channel, the ${\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} \mathrm {W} $ cross section is measured as $\sigma _{{\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} \mathrm {W}} = 170 ^{+90-80}\, \text {(stat)} \pm 70\, \text {(syst)} \, \text {fb} $, corresponding to a significance of 1.6 standard deviations over the background-only hypothesis. Combining the trilepton and four-lepton channels, a direct measurement of the ${\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} {\mathrm {Z}} $ cross section, $\sigma _{{\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} {\mathrm {Z}}} = 200 ^{+80-70}\, \text {(stat)} ^{+40-30}\, \text {(syst)} \mathrm{fb}^{-1} $, is obtained with a significance of 3.1 standard deviations. The measured cross sections are compatible with standard model predictions within their experimental uncertainties. The inclusive ${\mathrm {t}}\overline{{\mathrm {t}}} {\mathrm {V}} $ process is observed with a significance of 3.7 standard deviations from the combination of all three leptonic channels.

In this work, the interaction between the Higgs boson and the top quark is studied with the proton-proton collisions at 13 TeV provided by the LHC at the CMS detector at CERN (Geneva). At the LHC, these particles are produced simultaneously via the associate production of the Higgs boson with one top quark (tH process) or two top quarks (ttH process). Compared to many other possible outcomes of the proton-proton interactions, these processes are very rare, as the top quark and the Higgs boson are the heaviest elementary particles known. Hence, identifying them constitutes a significant experimental challenge. A high particle selection efficiency in the CMS detector is therefore crucial. At the core of this selection stands the Level-1 (L1) trigger system, a system that filters collision events to retain only those with potential interest for physics analysis. The selection of hadronically decaying τ leptons, expected from the Higgs boson decays, is especially demanding due to the large background arising from the QCD interactions. The first part of this thesis presents the optimization of the L1 τ algorithm in Run 2 (2016-2018) and Run 3 (2022-2024) of the LHC. It includes the development of a novel trigger concept for the High-Luminosity LHC, foreseen to start in 2027 and to deliver 5 times the current instantaneous luminosity. To this end, sophisticated algorithms based on machine learning approaches are used, facilitated by the increasingly modern technology and powerful computation of the trigger system. The second part of the work presents the search of the tH and ttH processes with the subsequent decays of the Higgs boson to pairs of τ lepton, W bosons or Z bosons, making use of the data recorded during Run 2. The presence of multiple particles in the final state, along with the low cross section of the processes, makes the search an ideal use case for multivariant discriminants that enhance the selectivity of the signals and reject the overwhelming background contributions. The discriminants presented are built using state-of-the-art machine learning techniques, able to capture the correlations amongst the processes involved, as well as the so-called Matrix Element Method (MEM), which combines the theoretical description of the processes with the detector resolution effects. The level of sophistication of the methods used, along with the unprecedented amount of collision data analyzed, result in the most stringent measurements of the tH and ttH cross sections up to date.

Before any kind of new physics discovery could be made at the LHC, a precise understanding and measurement of the Standard Model of particle physics' processes was necessary. The book provides an introduction to top quark production in the context of the Standard Model and presents two such precise measurements of the production of top quark pairs in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV that were observed with the ATLAS Experiment at the LHC. The presented measurements focus on events with one charged lepton, missing transverse energy and jets. Using novel and advanced analysis techniques as well as a good understanding of the detector, they constitute the most precise measurements of the quantity at that time.

The latest of the 'Lepton Photon' symposium, one of the well-established series of meetings in the high-energy physics community, was successfully organized at the South Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China, from August 7-12, 2017, where physicists around the world gathered to discuss the latest advancements in the research field.This proceedings volume of the Lepton Photon 2017 collects contributions by the plenary session speakers and the posters' presenters, which cover the latest results in particle physics, nuclear physics, astrophysics, cosmology, and plans for future facilities.

A search is performed for top-quark pairs (tt¯) produced together with a photon (?) with transverse energy greater than 20 GeV using a sample of tt¯ candidate events in final states with jets, missing transverse momentum, and one isolated electron or muon. The data set used corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 4.59 fb−1 of proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. In total, 140 and 222 tt¯? candidate events are observed in the electron and muon channels, to be compared to the expectation of 79 ± 26 and 120 ± 39 non-tt¯? background events, respectively. The production of tt¯? events is observed with a significance of 5.3 standard deviations away from the null hypothesis. The tt¯? production cross section times the branching ratio (BR) of the single-lepton decay channel is measured in a fiducial kinematic region within the ATLAS acceptance. The measured value is ?fidtt¯? × BR = 63 ± 8(stat)+17–13(syst) ± 1(lumi) fb per lepton flavor, in good agreement with the leading-order theoretical calculation normalized to the next-to-leading-order theoretical prediction of 48 ± 10 fb.