Standard Model-like Higgs Boson Research Articles

Standard model with a complex scalar singlet: Cosmological implications and theoretical considerations

We analyze the theoretical and phenomenological considerations for the electroweak phase transition and dark matter in an extension of the Standard Model with a complex scalar singlet (cxSM). In contrast with earlier studies, we use a renormalization group improved scalar potential and treat its thermal history in a gauge invariant manner. We find that the parameter space consistent with a strong first order electroweak phase transition (SFOEWPT) and present dark matter phenomenological constraints is significantly restricted compared to results of a conventional, gauge non-invariant analysis. In the simplest variant of the cxSM, recent LUX data and a SFOEWPT require a dark matter mass close to half the mass of the Standard Model-like Higgs boson. We also comment on various caveats regarding the perturbative treatment of the phase transition dynamics.

MSSM-inspired multifield inflation

Despite the fact that experimentally with a high degree of statistical significance only a single Standard Model-like Higgs boson is discovered at the LHC, extended Higgs sectors with multiple scalar fields not excluded by combined fits of the data are more preferable theoretically for internally consistent realistic models of particle physics. We analyze the inflationary scenarios which could be induced by the two-Higgs-doublet potential of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) where five scalar fields have non-minimal couplings to gravity. Observables following from such MSSM-inspired multifield inflation are calculated and a number of consistent inflationary scenarios are constructed. Cosmological evolution with different initial conditions for the multifield system leads to consequences fully compatible with observational data on the spectral index and the tensor-to-scalar ratio. It is demonstrated that the strong coupling approximation is precise enough to describe such inflationary scenarios.

Lepton flavor violating Higgs boson decays in seesaw models: New discussions

The lepton flavor violating decay of the Standard Model-like Higgs boson (LFVHD), h→μτ, is discussed in seesaw models at the one-loop level. Based on particular analytic expressions of Passarino–Veltman functions, the two unitary and 't Hooft Feynman gauges are used to compute the branching ratio of LFVHD and compare with results reported recently. In the minimal seesaw (MSS) model, the branching ratio was investigated in the whole valid range 10−9–1015 GeV of new neutrino mass scale mn6. Using the Casas–Ibarra parameterization, this branching ratio enhances with large and increasing mn6. But the maximal value can reach only order of 10−11. Interesting relations of LFVHD predicted by the MSS and inverse seesaw (ISS) model are discussed. The ratio between two LFVHD branching ratios predicted by the ISS and MSS is simply mn62μX−2, where μX is the small neutrino mass scale in the ISS. The consistence between different calculations is shown precisely from analytical approach.

Precise predictions for the Higgs-boson masses in the NMSSM

The particle discovered in the Higgs-boson searches at the LHC with a mass of about 125 , mathrm{GeV} can be identified with one of the neutral Higgs bosons of the Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM). We calculate predictions for the Higgs-boson masses in the NMSSM using the Feynman-diagrammatic approach. The predictions are based on the full NMSSM one-loop corrections supplemented with the dominant and sub-dominant two-loop corrections within the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). These include contributions at mathcal {O}{(alpha _t alpha _s, alpha _b alpha _s, alpha _t^2,alpha _talpha _b)}, as well as a resummation of leading and subleading logarithms from the top/scalar top sector. Taking these corrections into account in the prediction for the mass of the Higgs boson in the NMSSM that is identified with the observed signal is crucial in order to reach a precision at a similar level as in the MSSM. The quality of the approximation made at the two-loop level is analysed on the basis of the full one-loop result, with a particular focus on the prediction for the Standard Model-like Higgs boson that is associated with the observed signal. The obtained results will be used as a basis for the extension of the code FeynHiggs to the NMSSM.

750 GeV diphotons from supersymmetry with Dirac gauginos

Motivated by the recent excess in the diphoton invariant mass near 750 GeV, we explore a supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model that includes the minimal set of superpartners as well as additional Dirac partner chiral superfields in the adjoint representation for each gauge group. The bino partner pseudoscalar is identified as the 750 GeV resonance, while superpotential interactions between it and the gluino (wino) partners yield production via gluon fusion (decay to photon pairs) at one-loop. The gauginos and these additional adjoint superpartners are married by a Dirac mass and must also have Majorana masses. While a large wino partner Majorana mass is necessary to explain the excess, the gluino can be approximately Dirac-like, providing benefits consistent with being both "supersoft" (loop corrections to the scalar masses from Dirac gauginos are free of logarithmic enhancements) and "supersafe" (the experimental limits on the squark/gluino masses can be relaxed due to the reduced production rate). Consistency with the measured Standard Model-like Higgs boson mass is imposed, and a numerical exploration of the parameter space is provided. Models that can account for the diphoton excess are additionally characterized by having couplings that can remain perturbative up to very high scales, while remaining consistent with experimental constraints, the Higgs boson mass, and an electroweak scale which is not excessively fine tuned.

Can the 750-GeV diphoton resonance be the singlet Higgs boson of custodial Higgs triplet model?

The observation of diphoton excess around the mass of 750 GeV in LHC Run-II motivates us to consider whether the singlet Higgs boson in the custodial Higgs triplet model can serve as a good candidate because an earlier study of comprehensive parameter scan shows that it can have the right mass in the viable mass spectra. By assuming the singlet Higgs mass at 750 GeV, its total width less than 50 GeV and imposing constraints from the LHC 8-TeV data, we identify an approximately linear region on the $(v_\Delta, \alpha)$ plane along which the exotic Higgs boson masses satisfy a specific hierarchy and have lower possible spectra, where $v_\Delta$ denotes the triplet vacuum expectation value and $\alpha$ is the mixing angle between the singlet Higgs boson and the standard model-like Higgs boson. Although the diphoton decay rate can be enhanced by charged Higgs bosons running in the loop in this region, it is mostly orders of magnitude smaller than that required for the observed production rate, except for the small $v_\Delta$ region when the diphoton fusion production mechanism becomes dominant. Nonetheless, this part of parameter space suffers from the problems of breakdown of perturbativity and large uncertainties in the photon parton distribution function of proton.

Higgs phenomenology in the minimalSU(3)L×U(1)Xmodel

We investigate the phenomenology of a model based on the $SU(3)_c\times SU(3)_L\times U(1)_X$ gauge theory, the so-called 331 model. In particular, we focus on the Higgs sector of the model which is composed of three $SU(3)_L$ triplet Higgs fields, and this corresponds to the minimal form to realize phenomenologically acceptable scenario. After the spontaneous symmetry breaking $SU(3)_L\times U(1)_X\to SU(2)_L\times U(1)_Y$, our Higgs sector effectively becomes that with two $SU(2)_L$ doublet scalar fields, in which the first and the second generation quarks couple to the different Higgs doublet from that couples to the third generation quarks. This structure causes the flavour changing neutral current mediated by Higgs bosons at the tree level. By taking an alignment limit of the mass matrix for the CP-even Higgs bosons, which is naturally realized in the case with the breaking scale of $SU(3)_L\times U(1)_X$ to be much larger than that of $SU(2)_L\times U(1)_Y$, we can avoid current constraints from flavour experiments such as the $B^0$-$\bar{B}^0$ mixing even for the Higgs bosons masses being ${\cal O}(100)$ GeV. In this allowed parameter space, we clarify that a characteristic deviation in quark Yukawa couplings of the standard model-like Higgs boson is predicted, which has a different pattern from that seen in two Higgs doublet models with a softly-broken $Z_2$ symmetry. We also find that the flavour violating decay modes of the extra Higgs boson, e.g., $H/A \to tc$ and $H^\pm \to ts$ can be dominant, and they yield the important signature to distinguish our model from the two Higgs doublet models.

LHC signals of aB−Lsupersymmetric standard modelCP-even Higgs boson

We study the scope of the Large Hadron Collider in accessing a neutral Higgs boson of the $B-L$ Supersymmetric Standard Model. After assessing the surviving parameter space configurations following the Run 1 data taking, we investigate the possibilities of detecting this object during Run 2. For the model configurations in which the mixing between such a state and the discovered Standard Model-like Higgs boson is non-negligible, there exist several channels enabling its discovery over a mass range spanning from $\approx 140$ to $\approx$ 500 GeV. For a lighter Higgs state, with mass of order 140 GeV, three channels are accessible: $\gamma\gamma$, $Z\gamma$ and $ZZ$, wherein the $Z$ boson decays leptonically. For a heavier Higgs state, with mass above 250 GeV (i.e., twice the mass of the Higgs state discovered in 2012), the hallmark signature is its decay in two such 125 GeV scalars, $h'\to hh$, where $hh\to b\bar b \gamma\gamma$. In all such cases, significances above discovery can occur for already planned luminosities at the CERN machine.

Singlet extensions of the standard model at LHC Run 2: benchmarks and comparison with the NMSSM

The Complex singlet extension of the Standard Model (CxSM) is the simplest extension that provides scenarios for Higgs pair production with different masses. The model has two interesting phases: the dark matter phase, with a Standard Model-like Higgs boson, a new scalar and a dark matter candidate; and the broken phase, with all three neutral scalars mixing. In the latter phase Higgs decays into a pair of two different Higgs bosons are possible. In this study we analyse Higgs-to-Higgs decays in the framework of singlet extensions of the Standard Model (SM), with focus on the CxSM. After demonstrating that scenarios with large rates for such chain decays are possible we perform a comparison between the NMSSM and the CxSM. We find that, based on Higgs-to-Higgs decays, the only possibility to distinguish the two models at the LHC run 2 is through final states with two different scalars. This conclusion builds a strong case for searches for final states with two different scalars at the LHC run 2. Finally, we propose a set of benchmark points for the real and complex singlet extensions to be tested at the LHC run 2. They have been chosen such that the discovery prospects of the involved scalars are maximised and they fulfil the dark matter constraints. Furthermore, for some of the points the theory is stable up to high energy scales. For the computation of the decay widths and branching ratios we developed the Fortran code, sHDECAY, which is based on the implementation of the real and complex singlet extensions of the SM in HDECAY.

Enhancement of new physics signal sensitivity with mistagged charm quarks

We investigate the potential for enhancing search sensitivity for signals having charm quarks in the final state, using the sizable bottom-mistagging rate for charm quarks at the LHC. Provided that the relevant background processes contain light quarks instead of charm quarks, the application of b-tagging on charm quark-initiated jets enables us to reject more background events than signal ones due to the relatively small mistagging rate for light quarks. The basic idea is tested with two rare top decay processes: i) t -> c h -> c b bbar and ii) t -> b H+ -> b bbar c where h and H+ denote the Standard Model-like higgs boson and a charged higgs boson, respectively. The major background source is a hadronic top quark decay such as t -> b W+ -> b sbar c. We test our method with Monte Carlo simulation at the LHC 14TeV, and find that the signal-over-background ratio can be increased by a factor of O(6-7) with a suitably designed (heavy) flavor tagging algorithm and scheme.

Higgs Phenomenology of the Supersymmetric Grand Unification with the Hosotani Mechanism

The supersymmetric S U(5) grand unified theory with the gauge symmetry broken by the Hosotani mechanism naturally solves the mass hierarchy problem between the colored Higgs triplet and the electroweak Higgs doublet, and predicts the existence of adjoint chiral superfields with masses of the order of the supersymmetry breaking scale as a byproduct. In addition to the two SU(2)L Higgs doublets of the minimal supersymmetric standard model, the Higgs sector is extended by an SU(2)L triplet chiral supermultiplet with hypercharge zero and a neutral singlet one. Such new triplet and singlet chiral supermultiplets deviate the standard model-like Higgs boson couplings and the additional Higgs boson masses from their Standard Model predictions. We show that this model can be distinguished from other new physics models using by precisely measuring such Higgs couplings and masses, and that our model is a good example of grand unification testable at the luminosity up-graded Large Hadron Collider and future electron-positron colliders.

Higgs mass predictions of public NMSSM spectrum generators

The publicly available spectrum generators for the NMSSM often lead to different predictions for the mass of the standard model-like Higgs boson, even though they all implement two-loop computations in the DR¯ renormalization scheme. Depending on the parameter point, the differences can exceed 5 GeV, and even reach 8 GeV for moderate superparticle masses of up to 2 TeV. It is shown here that these differences can be traced back to the calculation of the running standard model parameters entering all calculations, to the approximations used in the two-loop corrections included in the different codes, and to different choices for the renormalization conditions and scales. In particular, the importance of the calculation of the top Yukawa coupling is pointed out.

The Higgs transverse momentum distribution in gluon fusion as a multiscale problem

We consider Higgs production in gluon fusion and in particular the prediction of the Higgs transverse momentum distribution. We discuss the ambiguities affecting the matching procedure between fixed order matrix elements and the resummation to all orders of the terms enhanced by $\log(p_T^H/m_H)$ factors. Following a recent proposal (Grazzini et al., hep-ph/1306.4581), we argue that the gluon fusion process, computed considering two active quark flavors, is a multiscale problem from the point of view of the resummation of the collinear singular terms. We perform an analysis at parton level of the collinear behavior of the $\mathcal{O}(\alpha_s)$ real emission amplitudes; relying on the collinear singularities structure of the latter, we derive an upper limit to the range of transverse momenta where the collinear approximation is valid. This scale is then used as the value of the resummation scale in the analytic resummation framework or as the value of the $h$ parameter in the POWHEG-BOX code. A variation of this scale can be used to generate an uncertainty band associated to the matching procedure. Finally, we provide a phenomenological analysis in the Standard Model, in the Two Higgs Doublet Model and in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. In the two latter cases, we provide an ansatz for the central value of the matching parameters not only for a Standard Model-like Higgs boson, but also for heavy scalars and in scenarios where the bottom quark may play the dominant role.

Prospects for Higgs coupling measurements in SUSY with radiatively-driven naturalness

In the post-LHC8 world-- where a Standard Model-like Higgs boson has been established but there is no sign of supersymmetry (SUSY)-- the detailed profiling of the Higgs boson properties has emerged as an important road towards discovery of new physics. We present calculations of the expected deviations in Higgs boson couplings $\kappa_{\tau ,b}$, $\kappa_t$, $\kappa_{W,Z}$, $\kappa_g$ and $\kappa_\gamma$ versus the naturalness measure $\Delta_{\rm EW}$. Low values of $\Delta_{\rm EW}\sim 10-30$ give rise to a natural Little Hierarchy characterized by light higgsinos with a mass of $\mu\sim m_Z$ while top squarks are highly mixed but lie in the several TeV range. For such models with radiatively-driven naturalness, one expects the Higgs boson $h$ to look very SM-like although deviations can occur. The more promising road to SUSY discovery requires direct higgsino pair production at a high energy $e^+e^-$ collider operating with the center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s}>2\mu\sim \sqrt{2\Delta_{\rm EW}}m_Z$.

Light sparticles from a light singlet in gauge mediation

We revisit a simple model that combines minimal gauge mediation and the next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model. We show that one can obtain a 125 GeV Standard Model-like Higgs boson with stops as light as 1.1 TeV, thanks to the mixing of the Higgs with a singlet state at O(90-100) GeV. Sparticle searches at the LHC may come with additional b-jets or taus and may involve displaced vertices. The sparticle production cross-section at the 13 TeV LHC can be O(10-100) fb, leading to great prospects for discovery in the early phase of LHC Run II.

Search for a pseudoscalar boson decaying into a Z boson and the 125 GeV Higgs boson in [formula omitted] final states

Results are reported on a search for decays of a pseudoscalar A boson into a Z boson and a light scalar h boson, where the Z boson decays into a pair of oppositely-charged electrons or muons, and the h boson decays into bb‾. The search is based on data from proton–proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy s=8 TeV collected with the CMS detector, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.7 fb−1. The h boson is assumed to be the standard model-like Higgs boson with a mass of 125 GeV. With no evidence for signal, upper limits are obtained on the product of the production cross section and the branching fraction of the A boson in the Zh channel. Results are also interpreted in the context of two Higgs doublet models.

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.

The hunt for the rest of the Higgs bosons

We assess the current state of searches at the LHC for additional Higgs bosons in light of both direct limits and indirect bounds coming from coupling measurements of the Standard Model-like Higgs boson. Given current constraints, we identify and study three LHC searches that are critical components of a comprehensive program to investigate extended electroweak symmetry breaking sectors: production of a heavy scalar or pseudoscalar with decay to $$ t\overline{t} $$ ; $$ b\overline{b} $$ and $$ t\overline{t} $$ associated production of a heavy scalar or pseudoscalar with decay to invisible final states; and $$ t\overline{b} $$ associated production of a charged Higgs with decay to $$ t\overline{b} $$ . Systematic experimental searches in these channels would contribute to robust coverage of the possible single production modes of additional heavy Higgs bosons.

Search for long-lived particles decaying to jet pairs.

A search is presented for long-lived particles with a mass between 25 and 50 mathrm{GeV}/mathrm{c}^{2} and a lifetime between 1 and 200mathrm{,ps} in a sample of proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of sqrt{s}=7 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 0.62 text{ fb }^{-1}, collected by the LHCb detector. The particles are assumed to be pair-produced by the decay of a standard model-like Higgs boson. The experimental signature of the long-lived particle is a displaced vertex with two associated jets. No excess above the background is observed and limits are set on the production cross-section as a function of the long-lived particle mass and lifetime.

Constraints on parameter space from perturbative unitarity in models with three scalar doublets

We calculate an $s$-wave amplitude matrix for all the possible two-to-two body scalar boson elastic scatterings in models with three scalar doublets, including contributions from the longitudinal component of weak gauge bosons via the equivalence theorem approximation. Specifically, we concentrate on the two cases with two(one) active plus one(two) inert doublet fields, referred to as $\mathrm{I}(1+2)\mathrm{HDM}[\mathrm{I}(2+1)\mathrm{HDM}]$, under $CP$ conservation. We obtain three analytically irreducible submatrices with the $3\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}3$ form and 18 eigenvalues for the amplitude matrix as an independent set, where the same formula can be applied to both models. By requiring a perturbative unitarity condition, we can constrain the magnitude of quartic coupling constants in the Higgs potential. This constraint, in particular in the $\mathrm{I}(1+2)\mathrm{HDM}$, can be translated into a bound on masses of extra active scalar bosons. Furthermore, when Standard Model-like Higgs boson couplings with weak gauge bosons are deviated from the Standard Model predictions, the unitarity condition provides an upper limit on the masses. We find that stronger upper bounds on the masses of the active $CP$-even and $CP$-odd Higgs bosons are obtained under the constraints from the unitarity and vacuum stability conditions, as well as the electroweak $S$, $T$ and $U$ parameters, as compared to those in two-Higgs doublet models with a softly broken ${Z}_{2}$ symmetry.