A measurement is presented of the production of $Z$ bosons that decay into two electrons or muons in association with jets, in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The data were recorded by the CMS Collaboration at the LHC with an integrated luminosity of $35.9{\mathrm{fb}}^{-1}$. The differential cross sections are measured as a function of the transverse momentum ($p_{\mathrm{T}}$) of the $Z$ boson and the transverse momentum and rapidities of the five jets with largest $p_{\mathrm{T}}$. The jet multiplicity distribution is measured for up to eight jets. The hadronic activity in the events is estimated using the scalar sum of the $p_{\mathrm{T}}$ of all the jets. All measurements are unfolded to the stable-particle level and compared with predictions from various Monte Carlo event generators, as well as with expectations at leading and next-to-leading orders in perturbative quantum chromodynamics.

• Received 5 May 2022
• Accepted 10 January 2023

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.108.052004

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