Search for exotic decays of the Higgs boson to a pair of pseudoscalars in the $μμ bb$ and $ττ bb$ final states
A search for exotic decays of the Higgs boson (H) with a mass of 125 GeV to a pair of light pseudoscalars a1 is performed in final states where one pseudoscalar decays to two quarks and the other to a pair of muons or leptons. A data sample of proton–proton collisions at $$\sqrt{s}$$ = 13 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb-1 recorded with the CMS detector is analyzed. No statistically significant excess is observed over the standard model backgrounds. Upper limits are set at 95% confidence level (CL) on the Higgs boson branching fraction to μ μ b b and to τ τ b b via a pair of a1s. The limits depend on the pseudoscalar mass ma1 and are observed to be in the range (0.17–3.3) x 10-4 and (1.7–7.7) x 10-2 in the μ μ b b and τ τ b b final states, respectively. In the framework of models with two Higgs doublets and a complex scalar singlet (2HDM+S), the results of the two final states are combined to determine upper limits on the branching fraction $${\mathcal {B}}(\text {H} \rightarrow \text {a}_{1} \text {a}_{1} \rightarrow \ell \ell \text{ b } \text{ b})$$ at 95% CL, with ℓ being a muon or a τ lepton. For different types of 2HDM+S, upper bounds on the branching fraction $${\mathcal {B}}(\text {H} \rightarrow \text {a}_{1} \text {a}_{1} )$$ are extracted from the combination of the two channels. In most of the Type II 2HDM+S parameter space $${\mathcal {B}}(\text {H} \rightarrow \text {a}_{1} \text {a}_{1} )$$, values above 0.23 are excluded at 95% CL for ma1 values between 15 and 60 GeV.
- Research Organization:
- ABC Federal U.; AGH-UST, Cracow; AUM, Kuwait; Aachen, Tech. Hochsch.; Adiyaman U.; Ain Shams U., Cairo; Alabama U.; Andes U., Bogota; Annecy, LAPP; Antioquia U.; Antwerp U.; Athens U.; Bangalore, Indian Inst. Sci.; Bari U.; Baylor U.; Beihang U.; Beijing, Inst. High Energy Phys.; Belgrade U.; Bethel Coll.; Bhubaneswar, Inst. Phys.; Bhubaneswar, NISER; Bingöl U.; Bogazici U.; Boskovic Inst., Zagreb; Boston U.; Brandenburg Tech. U.; Bristol U.; British U. in Egypt; Brown U.; Brunel U.; Brussels U.; Bucharest, IFIN-HH; Budapest, RMKI; CERN; CHEP, Taegu; CINVESTAV, IPN; Cairo U.; Cairo, Acad. Sci. Res. Tech.; Caltech; Cantabria Inst. of Phys.; Canterbury U.; Carnegie Mellon U.; Catania U.; Catholic U. America; Charles U.; Chonnam Natl. U.; Chulalongkorn U.; Colombo U.; Colorado U.; Conacyt, Mexico; Cornell U.; Cukurova U.; Cyprus U.; DESY; Debrecen, Inst. Nucl. Res.; Delhi U.; Democritos Nucl. Res. Ctr.; EKU KRC, Gyongyos; ENEA, Bologna; Ecole Polytechnique; Eotvos U.; Erzincan U.; Fayoum U.; Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States); Florence U.; Florida Inst. Tech.; Florida State U.; Florida U.; Frascati; Fudan U.; GTU, Tbilisi; Gent U.; Guglielmo Marconi U.; Hacettepe U.; Hamburg U.; Hanyang U.; Haute Alsace U.; Hefei, CUST; Helsinki Inst. of Phys.; Helsinki U.; Helwan U.; Higher Sch. of Economics, Moscow; IAS, Julich; IISER, Pune; INFN, Bari; INFN, Bologna; INFN, Catania; INFN, Florence; INFN, Genoa; INFN, Milan Bicocca; INFN, Naples; INFN, Padua; INFN, Pavia; INFN, Perugia; INFN, Pisa; INFN, Rome; INFN, Trieste; INFN, Turin; IP2I, Lyon; IPM, Tehran; IRFU, Saclay; Iberoamericana U.; Illinois U., Chicago; Imperial Coll., London; Indian Inst. Tech., Bhubaneswar; Indian Inst. Tech., Madras; Inst. Scintill. Mat., Kharkiv; Ioannina U.; Iowa U.; Isfahan Tech. U.; Istanbul Tech. U.; Istanbul U.; Johns Hopkins U.; KIT, Karlsruhe, EKP; KIT, Karlsruhe, IKP; Kafkas U.; Kansas State U.; Kansas U.; Karamanoglu Mehmetbey U., Karaman; Kharkov, KIPT; Korea U.; Kyung Hee U.; LIP, Lisbon; Lappeenranta U. Tech.; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Louvain U.; MIT; Madrid, Autonoma U.; Madrid, CIEMAT; Malaya U.; Marmara U.; Maryland U.; Middle East Tech. U., Ankara; Minnesota U.; Mississippi U.; Monash U.; Montenegro U.; NCBJ, Swierk; NICPB, Tallinn; Nanjing Normal U.; Naples U.; Natl. Tech. U., Athens; Naval Academy, Annapolis; Nebraska U.; Northeastern U.; Northwestern U.; Notre Dame U.; Ohio State U.; Oviedo U.; PSI, Villigen; Padua U.; Panjab U.; Peking U.; Perugia U.; Piemonte Orientale U., Alessandria; Pisa U.; Pisa, Scuola Normale Superiore; Princeton U.; Princeton Univ., NJ (United States); Princeton University, NJ (United States); Puebla U., Inst. Fis.; Puerto Rico U., Mayaguez; Purdue U.; Purdue U., Calumet; Quaid-i-Azam U.; Quito, Escuela Politecnica Natl.; Rice U.; Riga Tech. U.; Rio Grande do Sul U.; Rio de Janeiro State U.; Rio de Janeiro, CBPF; Rochester U.; Rockefeller U.; Rome U.; Ruhuna U.; Rutgers U., Piscataway; Rutherford; SUNY, Buffalo; SYSU, Guangzhou; Saha Inst.; San Francisco de Quito U.; Sejong U.; Seoul Natl. U.; Seoul U.; Sharif U. of Tech.; Sinop U.; Sofiya U.; Sofiya, Inst. Nucl. Res.; Sonora U.; Southampton U.; Split Tech. U.; Split U.; Stefan Meyer Inst. Subatomare Phys.; Strasbourg, IPHC; Sungkyunkwan U.; TIFR, Mumbai, DHEP; TU Vienna; Taiwan, Natl. Central U.; Taiwan, Natl. Taiwan U.; Tarapaca U.; Tashkent, IYF; Tata Inst.; Tennessee U.; Texas A&M U. Qatar, Doha; Texas A-M; Texas Tech.; Tsinghua U., Beijing; Turin U.; U. Campinas; U. Debrecen, Inst. Phys.; UC, Davis; UC, Riverside; UC, San Diego; UC, Santa Barbara; UCAS, Beijing; UCLA; USTM, Behshahr; University Coll., Dublin; Unlisted; VINCA Inst. Nucl. Sci., Belgrade; Vanderbilt U.; Vienna, OAW; Vilnius U.; Virginia U.; Visva Bharati U.; Vrije U., Brussels; Warsaw U.; Warsaw U. of Tech.; Wayne State U.; Wisconsin U., Madison; Yerevan Phys. Inst.; Yildiz Tech. U.; Yonsei U.; Zhejiang U.; Zurich U.; Zurich, ETH
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US Department of Energy; USDOE; USDOE Office of Science (SC), High Energy Physics (HEP)
- Contributing Organization:
- CMS Collaboration
- Grant/Contract Number:
- 89243024CSC000002; AC02-07CH11359; SC0007968
- OSTI ID:
- 2349245
- Report Number(s):
- CERN-EP-2023-284; CMS-HIG-22-007; FERMILAB-PUB-24-0093-CMS
- Journal Information:
- European Physical Journal. C, Particles and Fields (Online), Journal Name: European Physical Journal. C, Particles and Fields (Online) Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 84; ISSN 1434-6052
- Publisher:
- Springer NatureCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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