Search For Higgs Bosons Research Articles

Constraints on new phenomena via Higgs boson couplings and invisible decays with the ATLAS detector

The ATLAS experiment at the LHC has measured the Higgs boson couplings and mass, and searched for invisible Higgs boson decays, using multiple production and decay channels with up to 4.7 fb$^{-1}$ of $pp$ collision data at $\sqrt{s}=7$ TeV and 20.3 fb$^{-1}$ at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV. In the current study, the measured production and decay rates of the observed Higgs boson in the $\gamma\gamma$, $ZZ$, $WW$, $Z\gamma$, $bb$, $\tau\tau$, and $\mu\mu$ decay channels, along with results from the associated production of a Higgs boson with a top-quark pair, are used to probe the scaling of the couplings with mass. Limits are set on parameters in extensions of the Standard Model including a composite Higgs boson, an additional electroweak singlet, and two-Higgs-doublet models. Together with the measured mass of the scalar Higgs boson in the $\gamma\gamma$ and $ZZ$ decay modes, a lower limit is set on the pseudoscalar Higgs boson mass of $m_{A}>370$ GeV in the "hMSSM" simplified Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. Results from direct searches for heavy Higgs bosons are also interpreted in the hMSSM. Direct searches for invisible Higgs boson decays in the vector-boson fusion and associated production of a Higgs boson with $W/Z$ ($Z\to ll$, $W/Z \to jj$) modes are statistically combined to set an upper limit on the Higgs boson invisible branching ratio of 0.25. The use of the measured visible decay rates in a more general coupling fit improves the upper limit to 0.23, constraining a Higgs portal model of dark matter.

Modelling Z → ττ processes in ATLAS with τ-embedded Z → μμ data

This paper describes the concept, technical realisation and validation of a largely data-driven method to model events with $Z\rightarrow\tau\tau$ decays. In $Z\rightarrow\mu\mu$ events selected from proton--proton collision data recorded at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the LHC in 2012, the $Z$ decay muons are replaced by $\tau$ leptons from simulated $Z\rightarrow\tau\tau$ decays at the level of reconstructed tracks and calorimeter cells. The $\tau$ lepton kinematics are derived from the kinematics of the original muons. Thus, only the well-understood decays of the $Z$ boson and $\tau$ leptons as well as the detector response to the $\tau$ decay products are obtained from simulation. All other aspects of the event, such as the $Z$ boson and jet kinematics as well as effects from multiple interactions, are given by the actual data. This so-called $\tau$-embedding method is particularly relevant for Higgs boson searches and analyses in $\tau\tau$ final states, where $Z\rightarrow\tau\tau$ decays constitute a large irreducible background that cannot be obtained directly from data control samples. In this paper, the relevant concepts are discussed based on the implementation used in the ATLAS Standard Model $H\rightarrow\tau\tau$ analysis of the full datataset recorded during 2011 and 2012.

Missing pT Reconstruction at ATLAS

The missing transverse momentum (EmissT) in particle collider experiments is defined as the momentum imbalance in the plane transverse to the beam axis: the resultant of the negative vectorial sum of the momenta of all the particles that are involved in the pp collision of interest. A precise measurement of the EmissT is essential for many physics studies at the LHC, such as Higgs boson searches and measurements, as well as searches beyond the Standard Model. The EmissT measurement is constructed from the reconstructed and calibrated energy deposits inside the calorimeters, a method that has historically served experiments well, but one which is sensitive to fluctuations from noise and, in particular, additional unrelated collisions within the same event - an effect that is becoming more critical with the increasing luminosity of the LHC. A complementary method for measuring the missing transverse momentum is presented, in which track momenta are used in place of the calorimeter energy measurements, allowing the calculation to be made from particles originating solely from the collision vertex of interest. The reconstruction of this track-based missing transverse momentum, pmissT, and its performance in W and Z boson events, is described here.

Applying exclusion likelihoods from LHC searches to extended Higgs sectors

LHC searches for non-standard Higgs bosons decaying into tau lepton pairs constitute a sensitive experimental probe for physics beyond the Standard Model (BSM), such as Supersymmetry (SUSY). Recently, the limits obtained from these searches have been presented by the CMS collaboration in a nearly model-independent fashion - as a narrow resonance model - based on the full 8 TeV dataset. In addition to publishing a 95% C.L. exclusion limit, the full likelihood information for the narrow resonance model has been released. This provides valuable information that can be incorporated into global BSM fits. We present a simple algorithm that maps an arbitrary model with multiple neutral Higgs bosons onto the narrow resonance model and derives the corresponding value for the exclusion likelihood from the CMS search. This procedure has been implemented into the public computer code HiggsBounds (version 4.2.0 and higher). We validate our implementation by cross-checking against the official CMS exclusion contours in three Higgs benchmark scenarios in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM), and find very good agreement. Going beyond validation, we discuss the combined constraints of the tau tau search and the rate measurements of the SM-like Higgs at 125 GeV in a recently proposed MSSM benchmark scenario, where the lightest Higgs boson obtains SM-like couplings independently of the decoupling of the heavier Higgs states. Technical details for how to access the likelihood information within HiggsBounds are given in the appendix. The program is available at http://higgsbounds.hepforge.org.

Modelling Z → ττ processes in ATLAS with τ-embeddedZ → μμ data

This paper describes the concept, technical realisation and validation of a largely data-driven method to model events with Z→ττ decays. In Z→μμ events selected from proton-proton collision data recorded at √s=8 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the LHC in 2012, the Z decay muons are replaced by τ leptons from simulated Zarrowττ decays at the level of reconstructed tracks and calorimeter cells. The τ lepton kinematics are derived from the kinematics of the original muons. Thus, only the well-understood decays of the Z boson and τ leptons as well as the detector response to the τ decay products are obtained from simulation. All other aspects of the event, such as the Z boson and jet kinematics as well as effects from multiple interactions, are given by the actual data. This so-called τ-embedding method is particularly relevant for Higgs boson searches and analyses in ττ final states, where Zarrowττ decays constitute a large irreducible background that cannot be obtained directly from data control samples. In this paper, the relevant concepts are discussed based on the implementation used in the ATLAS Standard Model H→ττ analysis of the full datataset recorded during 2011 and 2012.

Searches for additional Higgs bosons in multi-top-quarks events at the LHC and the International Linear Collider

We study direct searches of additional Higgs bosons in multi-top-quarks events at the LHC Run-II, its luminosity upgraded version with 3000 fb−1, and the International Linear Collider (ILC) with the collision energy of 1 TeV. Additional Higgs bosons are predicted in all kinds of extended Higgs sectors, and their detection at collider experiments is a clear signature of the physics beyond the standard model. We consider two Higgs doublet models with the discrete symmetry as benchmark models. If these additional Higgs bosons are heavy enough, the decay modes including top quarks can be dominant, and the searches in multi-top-quarks events become an important probe of the Higgs sector. We evaluate the discovery reach in the parameter space of the model, and find that there are parameter regions where the searches at the LHC with 3000 fb−1 cannot survey, but the searches at the ILC 1 TeV run can. The combination of direct searches at the LHC and the ILC is useful to explore extended Higgs sectors.

Higgs physics: Review of recent results and prospects from ATLAS and CMS

An overview of recent results in Higgs boson physics obtained with the ATLAS and CMS experiments at the Large Hadron Collider located at CERN, Geneva, is presented. The focus is on measurements of the properties of the recently discovered Higgs boson with a mass of about 125 GeV. A brief selection of results in searches for Higgs bosons beyond the Standard Model is given, and prospects of future Higgs boson measurements and searches at the LHC are discussed.

Lepton-specific two Higgs doublet model as a solution of muon g − 2 anomaly

We discuss the Type-X (lepton-specific) two Higgs doublet model as a solution of the anomaly of the muon g − 2. We consider various experimental constraints on the parameter space such as direct searches for extra Higgs bosons at the LEP II and the LHC Run-I, electroweak precision observables, the decay of B s → μ+μ−, and the leptonic decay of the tau lepton. We find that the measurement of the tau decay provides the most important constraint, which excludes the parameter region that can explain the muon g − 2 anomaly at the 1σ level. We then discuss the phenomenology of extra Higgs bosons and the standard model-like Higgs boson (h) to probe the scenario favored by the g − 2 data at the collider experiments. We find that the 4τ , 3τ and 4τ + W/Z signatures are expected as the main signal of the extra Higgs bosons at the LHC. In addition, we clarify that the value of the hττ coupling is predicted to be the standard model value times about −1.6 to −1.0, and the branching fraction of the h → γγ mode deviates from the standard model prediction by −30% to −15%. Furthermore, we find that the exotic decay mode, h decaying into the Z boson and a light CP-odd scalar boson, is allowed, and its branching fraction can be a few percent. These deviations in the property of h will be tested by the precision measurements at future collider experiments.

Doubly-charged Higgs and vacuum stability in left-right supersymmetry

We present an analysis of supersymmetric left-right symmetric models with Higgs fields lying in the adjoint representation of SU(2) R . These models feature a doubly-charged Higgs boson which gets its mass only at the loop level. We present, for the first time, a complete one-loop calculation of this mass and show that contributions that have been neglected so far can shift it by a few hundreds of GeV. We then combine this observation with LHC bounds deduced from extra charged gauge boson and doubly-charged Higgs boson searches. In particular, we point out that existing limits get substantially modified by the presence of singly-charged Higgs bosons that are also predicted in these models. In addition, we address constraints stemming from vacuum stability considerations and show how the considered class of models could be ruled out at the next LHC run in the absence of any signal.

Searches for light CP-odd Higgs bosons and dark photons at BaBar

Recent results are presented on searches for light CP-odd Higgs bosons and dark photons using data from the BaBar experiment at the PEP II asymmetric energy e+e− collider. The light Higgs bosons are sought via their production in radiative ϒ(1S) decays and their subsequent decays to gg and ss¯ final states. The search for dark photons A′ involves radiative production e+e−→γA′ with A′→e+e− or μ+μ−. No signals are observed.

Complementarity of LHC and EDMs for exploring Higgs CP violation

We analyze the constraints on a CP-violating, flavor conserving, two Higgs doublet model from the measurements of Higgs properties and from the search for heavy Higgs bosons at LHC, and show that the stronger limits typically come from the heavy Higgs search channels. The limits on CP violation arising from the Higgs sector measurements are complementary to those from EDM measurements. Combining all current constraints from low energy to colliders, we set generic upper bounds on the CP violating angle which parametrizes the CP odd component in the 126 GeV Higgs boson.

CP-odd component of the lightest neutral Higgs boson in the MSSM

The Higgs sector of the Minimal Supersymmetric Extension of the Standard Model may be described with a two Higgs doublet model with properties that depend on the soft supersymmetry breaking parameters. For instance, flavor independent CP-violating phases associated with the gaugino masses, the squark trilinear mass parameters and the Higgsino mass parameter $\mu$ may lead to sizable CP-violation in the Higgs sector. For these CP-violating effects to affect the properties of the recently observed SM-like Higgs resonance, the non-standard charged and neutral Higgs bosons masses must be of the order of the weak scale, and both $\mu$ as well as the trilinear stop mass parameter $A_t$ must be of the order or larger than the stop mass parameters. Constraints on this possibility come from direct searches for non-standard Higgs bosons, precision measurements on the lightest neutral Higgs properties, including its mass, and electric dipole moments. In this article, we discuss these constraints within the MSSM, trying to evaluate the possible size of the CP-odd component of the lightest neutral Higgs boson, and the possible experimental tests of this CP-violating effect at the LHC.

Beyond-the-Standard Model Higgs Physics using the ATLAS Experiment

The discovery of a Higgs boson with a mass of about 125 GeV has prompted the question of whether or not this particle is part of a larger and more complex Higgs sector than that envisioned in the Standard Model. In this report, the latest Run 1 results from the ATLAS Experiment on Beyond-the-Standard Model Higgs searches are outlined. Searches for additional Higgs bosons are presented and interpreted in well motivated Beyond-the-Standard Model Higgs frameworks, including the two-Higgs-doublet Models and the Minimal and Next to Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model.

Higgs decays into charginos and neutralinos in the complex MSSM: a full one-loop analysis

For the search for additional Higgs bosons in the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) as well as for future precision analyses in the Higgs sector a precise knowledge of their decay properties is mandatory. We evaluate all two-body decay modes of the Higgs bosons into charginos and neutralinos in the MSSM with complex parameters (cMSSM). The evaluation is based on a full one-loop calculation of all decay channels, also including hard QED radiation. We restricted ourselves to a version of our renormalization scheme which is valid for \(|M_1| < |M_2|, |\mu |\) and \(M_2 \ne \mu \) to simplify the analysis, even though we are able to switch to other parameter regions. The dependence of the Higgs boson predictions on the relevant cMSSM parameters is analyzed numerically. We find sizable contributions to many partial decay widths. They are roughly of 10 % of the tree-level results, but they can go up to 20 % or higher. The full one-loop contributions are important for the correct interpretation of heavy Higgs boson search results at the LHC and, if kinematically allowed, at a future linear \(e^+e^-\) collider. There are plans to implement the evaluation of the branching ratios of the Higgs bosons into the Fortran code FeynHiggs, together with an automated choice of the renormalization scheme valid for the full cMSSM parameter space.

Results of Beyond-the-Standard Model 2HDM Higgs Searches using the ATLAS detector in Run-I

One of the most alluring models used to probe Beyond the Standard Model physics in run-I at ATLAS stems from a simple extension of the Higgs sector. Models where the Higgs sector is assumed to have two Higgs doublets, known as two-Higgs-Doublet-Models (2HDMs), give rise to five Higgs bosons: two neutral CP-even (h,H) bosons, two charged (H±) bosons, and one neutral CP-odd (A) boson. Direct searches for the additional Higgs bosons became an ever more promising prospect after the Higgs boson discovery, and various such searches have already been conducted in Run-I ATLAS data. The most recent 2HDM search is for the A boson in the sensitive Zh decay, where h is assumed to be the LHC discovered Higgs boson, within the mass range of 220 — 1000 GeV. In such a search, upper limits on the cross section times branching ratio of the A boson decaying to Zh are set for various 2HDM scenarios. Where no excess is observed, exclusion limits are set on ranges of the 2HDM phase-space. In this note the search for A → Zh → ℓℓττ with fully hadronic tau decay is presented in detail, along with summaries from two of the most recent 2HDM searches in ATLAS.

Heavy Higgs decays into sfermions in the complex MSSM: a full one-loop analysis

For the search for additional Higgs bosons in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) as well as for future precision analyses in the Higgs sector a precise knowledge of their decay properties is mandatory. We evaluate all two-body decay modes of the heavy Higgs bosons into sfermions in the MSSM with complex parameters (cMSSM). The evaluation is based on a full one-loop calculation of all decay channels, also including hard QED and QCD radiation. The dependence of the heavy Higgs bosons on the relevant cMSSM parameters is analyzed numerically. We find sizable contributions to many partial decay widths. They are roughly of O(15%) of the tree-level results, but can go up to 30% or higher. The size of the electroweak one-loop corrections can be as large as the QCD corrections. The full one-loop contributions are important for the correct interpretation of heavy Higgs boson search results at the LHC and, if kinematically allowed, at a future linear e+e- collider. The evaluation of the branching ratios of the heavy Higgs bosons will be implemented into the Fortran code FeynHiggs.

On-shell interference effects in Higgs boson final states

Top quark loops in Higgs production via gluon fusion at large invariant final state masses can induce important interference effects in searches for additional Higgs bosons as predicted in, e.g., Higgs portal scenarios and the MSSM when the heavy scalar is broad or the final state resolution is poor. Currently, the limit setting as performed by both ATLAS and CMS is based on injecting a heavy Higgs-like signal neglecting interference effects. In this paper, we perform a study of such "on-shell" interference effects in $pp\to ZZ$ and find that they lead to a $\lesssim{\cal{O}}(30%)$ width scheme-dependent modification of the signal strength. Including the continuum contributions to obtain e.g. the full $pp\to ZZ \to 4\ell$ final state, this modification is reduced to the 10% level in the considered intermediate mass range.

Improved cross-section predictions for heavy charged Higgs boson production at the LHC

In most extensions of the Standard Model, heavy charged Higgs bosons at the LHC are dominantly produced in association with heavy quarks. An up-to-date determination of the next-to-leading order total cross section in a type-II two-Higgs-doublet model is presented, including a thorough estimate of the theoretical uncertainties due to missing higher-order corrections, parton distribution functions and physical input parameters. Predictions in the four- and five-flavour schemes are compared and reconciled through a recently proposed scale-setting prescription. A four- and five-flavour scheme matched prediction is provided for the interpretation of current and future experimental searches for heavy charged Higgs bosons at the LHC.

LHC searches for theCP-odd Higgs boson with a jet substructure analysis

The LHC searches for the CP-odd Higgs boson is studied (with masses from 300 GeV to 1 TeV) in the context of the general two-Higgs-doublet model. With the discovery of the 125 GeV Higgs boson at the LHC, we highlight one promising discovery channel of the hZ. This channel can become significant after the global signal fitting to the 125 GeV Higgs boson in the general two-Higgs-doublet model. It is particularly important in the scenario where two CP-even Higgs bosons in the two-Higgs-doublet model have the common mass of 125 GeV. Since the final states involve a Standard-Model-like Higgs boson, we apply the jet substructure analysis of the fat Higgs jet in order to eliminate the Standard Model background sufficiently. After performing the kinematic cuts, we present the LHC search sensitivities for the CP-odd Higgs boson with mass up to 1 TeV via this channel.

Dark matter in split SUSY with intermediate higgses

The searches for heavy Higgs bosons and supersymmetric (SUSY) particles at the LHC have left the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) with an unusual spectrum of SUSY particles, namely, all squarks are beyond a few TeV while the Higgs bosons other than the one observed at 125 GeV could be relatively light. In light of this, we study a scenario characterized by two scales: the SUSY breaking scale or the squark-mass scale $(M_S)$ and the heavy Higgs-boson mass scale $(M_A)$.We perform a survey of the MSSM parameter space with $M_S < 10^{10}$ GeV and $M_A < 10^4$ GeV such that the lightest Higgs boson mass is within the range of the observed Higgs boson as well as satisfying a number of constraints. The set of constraints include the invisible decay width of the $Z$ boson and that of the Higgs boson, the chargino-mass limit, dark matter relic abundance from Planck, the spin-independent cross section of direct detection by LUX, and gamma-ray flux from dwarf spheroidal galaxies and gamma-ray line constraints measured by Fermi LAT. Survived regions of parameter space feature the dark matter with correct relic abundance, which is achieved through either coannihilation with charginos, $A/H$ funnels, or both. We show that future measurements, e.g., XENON1T and LZ, of spin-independent cross sections can further squeeze the parameter space.