A search is performed for the production of heavy resonances decaying into topantitop quark pairs in proton-proton collisions at √ s = 8 TeV. Data used for the analyses were collected with the CMS detector and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 19.7 fb −1 . The search is performed using events with three different final states, defined by the number of leptons (electrons and muons) from the tt → WbWb decay. The analyses are optimized for reconstruction of top quarks with high Lorentz boosts, where jet substructure techniques are used to enhance the sensitivity. Results are presented for all channels and a combination is performed. No significant excess of events relative to the expected yield from standard model processes is observed. Upper limits on the production cross section of heavy resonances decaying to tt are calculated. A narrow leptophobic topcolor Z resonance with a mass below 2.4 TeV is excluded at 95% confidence level. Limits are also derived for a broad Z resonance with a 10% width relative to the resonance mass, and a Kaluza-Klein excitation of the gluon in the Randall-Sundrum model. These are the most stringent limits to date on heavy resonances decaying into top-antitop quark pairs. Published in Physical Review D asThe CMS experiment uses a particle-flow (PF) based event reconstruction [37,38], which aggregates input from all subdetectors. This information includes charged-particle tracks from the tracking system and deposited energy from the electromagnetic and hadronic calorimeters, taking advantage of excellent granularity of the sub-systems. Particles are classified as electrons, muons, photons, charged hadrons, and neutral hadrons. Primary vertices are reconstructed using a deterministic annealing filter algorithm [39]. The vertex with the largest squared sum of the associated track p T values is taken to be the primary event vertex.Electrons are reconstructed in the pseudorapidity range |η| < 2.5, by combining tracking information with energy deposits in the electromagnetic calorimeter [40,41]. Electron candidates are required to originate from the primary event vertex. Electrons are identified using infor-6 5 Reconstruction of tt events B The CMS Collaboration

A novel adaptive technique for electromagnetic Particle In Cell (PIC) plasma simulations is presented here. Two main issues are identified in designing adaptive techniques for PIC simulation: first, the choice of the size of the particle shape function in progressively refined grids, with the need to avoid the exertion of self-forces on particles, and, second, the necessity to comply with the strict stability constraints of the explicit PIC algorithm. The adaptive implementation presented responds to these demands with the introduction of a Multi Level Multi Domain (MLMD) system (where a cloud of self-similar domains is fully simulated with both fields and particles) and the use of an Implicit Moment PIC method as baseline algorithm for the adaptive evolution. Information is exchanged between the levels with the projection of the field information from the refined to the coarser levels and the interpolation of the boundary conditions for the refined levels from the coarser level fields. Particles are bound to their level of origin and are prevented from transitioning to coarser levels, but are repopulated at the refined grid boundaries with a splitting technique. The presented algorithm is tested against a series of simulation challenges.

We present results of a two-dimensional fully kinetic particle-in-cell simulation in order to shed light on the role of whistler waves in the scattering of strahl electrons and in the heat-flux regulation in the solar wind. We model the electron velocity distribution function as initially composed of core and strahl populations as typically encountered in the near-Sun solar wind as observed by Parker Solar Probe. We demonstrate that, as a consequence of the evolution of the electron velocity distribution function (VDF), two branches of the whistler heat-flux instability can be excited, which can drive whistler waves propagating in the direction oblique or parallel to the background magnetic field. First, oblique whistler waves induce pitch-angle scattering of strahl electrons, toward higher perpendicular velocities. This leads to the broadening of the strahl pitch-angle distribution and hence to the formation of a halo-like population at the expense of the strahl. Later on, the electron VDF experiences the effect of parallel whistler waves, which contributes to the redistribution of the particles scattered in the perpendicular direction into a more symmetric halo, in agreement with observations. Simulation results show a remarkable agreement with the linear theory of the oblique whistler heat-flux instability. The process is accompanied by a significant decrease of the heat flux carried by the strahl population.

We present an analysis of the electron dynamics during rapid island merging in asymmetric magnetic reconnection. We consider a doubly periodic system with two asymmetric transitions. The upper layer is an asymmetric Harris sheet of finite width perturbed initially to promote a single reconnection site. The lower layer is a tangential discontinuity that promotes the formation of many X-points, separated by rapidly merging islands. Across both layers, the magnetic field and the density have a strong jump, but the pressure is held constant. Our analysis focuses on the consequences of electron energization during island coalescence. We focus first on the parallel and perpendicular components of the electron temperature to establish the presence of possible anisotropies and non-gyrotropies. Thanks to the direct comparison between the two different layers simulated, we can distinguish three main types of behavior characteristic of three different regions of interest. The first type represents the regions where traditional asymmetric reconnections take place without involving island merging. The second type of regions instead shows reconnection events between two merging islands. Finally, the third regions identify the regions between two diverging island and where typical signature of reconnection is not observed. Electrons in these latter regions additionally show a flat-top distribution resulting from the saturation of a two-stream instability generated by the two interacting electron beams from the two nearest reconnection points. Finally, the analysis of agyrotropy shows the presence of a distinct double structure laying all over the lower side facing the higher magnetic field region. This structure becomes quadrupolar in the proximity of the regions of the third type. The distinguishing features found for the three types of regions investigated provide clear indicators to the recently launched Magnetospheric Multiscale NASA mission for investigating magnetopause reconnection involving multiple islands

The long term evolution of large domain Particle In Cell simulations of collisionless magnetic reconnection is investigated following observations that show two possible outcomes for collisionless reconnection: towards a Petschek-like configuration (Gosling 2007) or towards multiple X points (Eriksson et al. 2014). In the present simulation, a mixed scenario develops. At earlier time, plasmoids are emitted, disrupting the formation of Petschek-like structures. Later, an almost stationary monster plasmoid forms, preventing the emission of other plasmoids.A situation reminding of Petschek's switch-off then ensues. Switch-off is obtained through a slow shock / rotational discontinuity compound structure. Two external slow shocks located in correspondence of the separatrices reduce the in plane tangential component of the magnetic field, but not to zero. Two transitions reminding of rotational discontinuities in the internal part of the exhausts then perform the final switch-off. Both the slow shocks and the rotational discontinuities are characterized as such through the analysis of their Rankine-Hugoniot jump conditions. A moderate guide field is used to suppress the development of the firehose instability in the exhaust.

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One of the goals of machine learning is to eliminate tedious and arduous repetitive work. The manual and semi-automatic classification of millions of hours of solar wind data from multiple missions can be replaced by automatic algorithms that can discover, in mountains of multi-dimensional data, the real differences in the solar wind properties. In this paper we present how unsupervised clustering techniques can be used to segregate different types of solar wind. We propose the use of advanced data reduction methods to pre-process the data, and we introduce the use of Self-Organizing Maps to visualize and interpret 14 years of ACE data. Finally, we show how these techniques can potentially be used to uncover hidden information, and how they compare with previous empirical categorizations.

We present a systematic attempt to study magnetic null points and the associated magnetic energy conversion in kinetic particle-in-cell simulations of various plasma configurations. We address three-dimensional simulations performed with the semi-implicit kinetic electromagnetic code iPic3D in different setups: variations of a Harris current sheet, dipolar and quadrupolar magnetospheres interacting with the solar wind,and a relaxing turbulent configuration with multiple null points. Spiral nulls are more likely created in space plasmas: in all our simulations except lunar magnetic anomaly (LMA) and quadrupolar mini-magnetosphere the number of spiral nulls prevails over the number of radial nulls by a factor of 3-9. We show that often magnetic nulls do not indicate the regions of intensive energy dissipation. Energy dissipation events caused by topological bifurcations at radial nulls are rather rare and short-lived. The so-called X-lines formed by the radial nulls in the Harris current sheet and LMA simulations are rather stable and do not exhibit any energy dissipation. Energy dissipation is more powerful in the vicinity of spiral nulls enclosed by magnetic flux ropes with strong currents at their axes (their crosssections resemble 2D magnetic islands). These null lines reminiscent of Z-pinches efficiently dissipate magnetic energy due to secondary instabilities such as the two-stream or kinking instability, accompanied by changes in magnetic topology. Current enhancements accompanied by spiral nulls may signal magnetic energy conversion sites in the observational data.