arXiv subjects

Sven Heinemeyer

Publications and source records attributed to Sven Heinemeyer.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2024

First shot of the smoking gun: probing the electroweak phase transition in the 2HDM with novel searches for $A \to ZH$ in $\ell^+ \ell^- t \bar{t}$ and $ννb \bar{b}$ final states

Recently the ATLAS collaboration has reported the first results of searches for heavy scalar resonances decaying into a $Z$ boson and a lighter new scalar resonance, where the $Z$ boson decays leptonically and the lighter scalar decays into a top-quark pair, giving rise to $\ell^+ \ell^- t \bar{t}$ final states. This had previously been identified as a smoking-gun signature at the LHC for a first-order electroweak phase transition (FOEWPT) within the framework of two Higgs doublet models (2HDMs). In addition, ATLAS also presented new limits where the $Z$ boson decays into pairs of neutrinos and the lighter scalar resonance into bottom-quark pairs, giving rise to the $ννb \bar b$ final state. We analyze the impact of these new searches on the 2HDM parameter space, with emphasis on their capability to probe currently allowed 2HDM regions featuring a strong FOEWPT. We also study the complementarity of these new searches with other LHC probes that could target the FOEWPT region of the 2HDM. Remarkably, the ATLAS search in the $\ell^+ \ell^- t \bar{t}$ final state shows a local $2.85\,σ$ excess (for masses of about 650 GeV and 450 GeV for the heavy and light resonance) in the 2HDM parameter region that would yield a FOEWPT in the early universe, which could constitute the first experimental hint of baryogenesis at the electroweak scale. We analyze the implications of this excess, and discuss the detectability prospects for the associated gravitational wave signal from the FOEWPT. Furthermore, we project the sensitivity reach of the $\ell^+ \ell^- t \bar{t}$ signature for the upcoming runs of the LHC. Finally, we introduce the python package thdmTools, a state-of-art tool for the exploration of the 2HDM.

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arXiv2024

Focus topics for the ECFA study on Higgs / Top / EW factories

In order to stimulate new engagement and trigger some concrete studies in areas where further work would be beneficial towards fully understanding the physics potential of an $e^+e^-$ Higgs / Top / Electroweak factory, we propose to define a set of focus topics. The general reasoning and the proposed topics are described in this document.

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arXiv2023

HiggsTools: BSM scalar phenomenology with new versions of HiggsBounds and HiggsSignals

The codes HiggsBounds and HiggsSignals compare model predictions of BSM models with extended scalar sectors to searches for additional scalars and to measurements of the detected Higgs boson at 125 GeV. We present a unification and extension of the functionalities provided by both codes into the new HiggsTools framework. The codes have been re-written in modern C++ with native Python and Mathematica interfaces for easy interactive use. We discuss the user interface for providing model predictions, now part of the new sub-library HiggsPredictions, which also provides access to many cross sections and branching ratios for reference models such as the SM. HiggsBounds now implements experimental limits purely through json data files, can better handle clusters of BSM particles of similar masses (even for complicated search topologies), and features an improved handling of mass uncertainties. Moreover, it now contains an extended list of Higgs-boson pair production searches and doubly-charged Higgs boson searches. In HiggsSignals, the treatment of different types of measurements has been unified, both in the $χ^2$ computation and in the data file format used to implement experimental results.

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arXiv2023

Excesses in the low-mass Higgs-boson search and the W-boson mass measurement

The CDF collaboration recently reported a measurement of the $W$-bosos mass, $M_W$, showing a large positive deviation from the Standard Model (SM) prediction. The question arises whether extensions of the SM exist that can accommodate such large values, and what further phenomenological consequences arise from this. A different type of deviation from the SM has been observed experimentally in the searches for light Higgs bosons. CMS has observed two local $\sim 3\,σ$ excesses in the $γγ$ and $τ^+τ^-$ final states for a hypothetical Higgs-boson mass of $\sim 95$ GeV. These two excesses are compatible with the corresponding ATLAS limits. A third excess was observed in the Higgs-boson searches at LEP in the $b \bar b$ final state at the local $\sim 2\,σ$ confidence level at about the same Higgs-boson mass. It was shown recently that the three excesses can be described the the 2HDM extended with a real singlet (N2HDM) of Yukawa type IV, while being in agreement with all other theoretical and experimental constraints. We demonstrate that the parameter space that accomodates the three excesses can also give a large contribution to $M_W$ in agreement with the recent CDF measurement. We discuss further phenomenological consequences of this scenario.

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arXiv2023

The trap in the early Universe: impact on the interplay between gravitational waves and LHC physics in the 2HDM

We analyze the thermal history of the 2HDM and determine the parameter regions featuring a first-order electroweak phase transition (FOEWPT) and also much less studied phenomena like high-temperature electroweak (EW) symmetry non-restoration and the possibility of vacuum trapping (i.e. the Universe remains trapped in an EW-symmetric vacuum throughout the cosmological evolution, despite at $T=0$ the EW breaking vacuum is deeper). We show that the presence of vacuum trapping impedes a first-order EW phase transition in 2HDM parameter-space regions previously considered suitable for the realization of electroweak baryogenesis. Focusing then on the regions that do feature such a first-order transition, we show that the 2HDM parameter space that would yield a stochastic gravitational wave signal potentially detectable by the future LISA observatory is very contrived, and will be well probed by direct searches of 2HDM Higgs bosons at the HL-LHC, and (possibly) also via measurements of the self-coupling of the Higgs boson at 125 GeV. This has an important impact on the interplay between LISA and the LHC regarding the exploration of first-order phase transition scenarios in the 2HDM: the absence of new physics indications at the HL-LHC would severely limit the prospects of a detection by LISA. Finally, we demonstrate that as a consequence of the predicted enhancement of the self-coupling of the Higgs boson at 125 GeV the ILC would be able to probe the majority of the 2HDM parameter space yielding a FOEWPT through measurements of the self-coupling, with a large improvement in precision with respect to the HL-LHC.

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arXiv2023

The International Linear Collider: Report to Snowmass 2021

The International Linear Collider (ILC) is on the table now as a new global energy-frontier accelerator laboratory taking data in the 2030s. The ILC addresses key questions for our current understanding of particle physics. It is based on a proven accelerator technology. Its experiments will challenge the Standard Model of particle physics and will provide a new window to look beyond it. This document brings the story of the ILC up to date, emphasizing its strong physics motivation, its readiness for construction, and the opportunity it presents to the US and the global particle physics community.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2022

Non-Holomorphic Soft-Term Contributions to the Higgs-Boson Masses in the Feynman Diagrammatic Approach

We study the effects of non-holomprphic soft SUSY-breaking terms added to the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) on the Higgs-boson masses. The calculation of the non-holomorphic contributions is perfromed at the one-loop level in the Feynman diagramatic approach. After generating a FeynArts model file with the help of SARAH, we calculate the renormalized Higgs-boson self-energies at the one-loop level using the FeynArts/FormCalc setup. The results obtained from FeynArts/FormCalc are fed to FeynHiggs to estimate the contributions to the neutral CP-even Higgs-boson masses, $M_{h,H}$, as well as to the charged Higgs-boson mass, $M_{H^{\pm}}$. For the specific set of parameter points that we choose for this study, the non-holomorphic soft-term contributions to the CP-even light Higgs boson mass $M_h$, contrary to claims in the literature, turn out to be very small. For the CP-even heavy Higgs boson mass, $M_{H}$, as well as for the charged Higgs boson mass, $M_{H^{\pm}}$, the contributions can be substantially larger for some parts of parameter space.

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arXiv2022

Mounting evidence for a 95 GeV Higgs boson

In 2018 CMS reported an excess in the light Higgs-boson search in the diphoton decay mode at about 95GeV based on Run 1 and first year Run 2 data. The combined local significance of the excess was $2.8\,σ$. The excess is compatible with the limits obtained in the ATLAS searches from the diphoton search channel. Recently, CMS reported another local excess with a significance of $3.1\,σ$ in the light Higgs-boson search in the di-tau final state, which is compatible with the interpretation of a Higgs boson with a mass of about 95GeV. We show that the observed results can be interpreted as manifestations of a Higgs boson in the Two-Higgs Doublet Model with an additional real singlet (N2HDM). We find that the lightest Higgs boson of the N2HDM can fit both excesses simultaneously, while the second-lightest state is such that it satisfies the Higgs-boson measurements at 125GeV, and the full Higgs-boson sector is compatible with all Higgs exclusion bounds from the searches at LEP, the Tevatron and the LHC as well as with other theoretical and experimental constraints. Finally, we demonstrate that it is furthermore possible to accommodate the excesses observed by CMS in the two search channels together with a local $2.3\,σ$ excess in the $b \bar b$ final state observed at LEP in the same mass range.

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arXiv2022

A Grand Scan of the pMSSM Parameter Space for Snowmass 2021

We present a flexible framework for interpretation of SUSY sensitivity studies for future colliders in terms of the phenomenological minimal supersymmetric standard model (pMSSM). We perform a grand scan of the pMSSM 19-dimensional parameter space that covers the accessible ranges of many collider scenarios, including electron, muon, and hadron colliders at a variety of center of mass energies. This enables comparisons of sensitivity and complementarity across different future experiments, including both colliders and precision measurements in the Cosmological and Rare Frontiers. The details of the scan framework are discussed, and the impact of future precision measurements on Higgs couplings, the anomalous muon magnetic moment, and dark matter quantities is presented. The next steps for this ongoing effort include performing studies with simulated events in order to quantitatively assess the sensitivity of selected future colliders in the context of the pMSSM.

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arXiv2022

Possible indications for new Higgs bosons in the reach of the LHC: N2HDM and NMSSM interpretations

In several searches for additional Higgs bosons at the LHC, in particular in a CMS search exploring decays to pairs of top quarks, $t \bar t$, and in an ATLAS search studying tau leptons, $τ^+τ^-$, local excesses of about $3\,σ$ standard deviations or above have been observed at a mass scale of approximately $ 400$GeV. We investigate to what extent a possible signal in these channels could be accommodated in the Next-to-Two-Higgs-Doublet Model (N2HDM) or the Next-to Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM). In a second step we analyze whether such a model could be compatible with both a signal at around $400$GeV and $96$GeV, where the latter possibility is motivated by observed excesses in searches for the $b \bar b$ final state at LEP and the di-photon final state at CMS. The analysis for the N2HDM reveals that the observed excesses at $400GeV$ in the $t \bar t$ and $τ^+τ^-$ channels point towards different regions of the parameter space, while one such excess and an additional Higgs boson at around $96$GeV could simultaneously be accommodated. In the context of the NMSSM an experimental confirmation of a signal in the $t \bar t$ final state would favour the alignment-without-decoupling limit of the model, where the Higgs boson at $125$GeV could be essentially indistinguishable from the Higgs boson of the standard model. In contrast, a signal in the $τ^+τ^-$ channel can only be accommodated outside of this limit, and parts of the investigated parameter space could be probed with Higgs signal-rate measurements at the (HL-)LHC.

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arXiv2022

Vacuum (meta-)stability in the $μν$SSM

We perform an analysis of the vacuum stability of the neutral scalar potential of the $μ$-from-$ν$ Supersymmetric Standard Model ($μν$SSM). As an example scenario, we discuss the alignment-without-decoupling limit of the $μν$SSM, for which the required conditions on the Higgs sector are derived. We demonstrate that in this limit large parts of the parameter space feature unphysical minima that are deeper than the electroweak minimum. In order to estimate the lifetime of the electroweak vacuum, we calculate the rates for the tunneling process into each unphysical minimum. We find that in many cases the resulting lifetime is longer than the age of the universe, such that the considered parameter region is not excluded. On the other hand, we also find parameter regions in which the electroweak vacuum is short-lived. We investigate how the different regions of stability are related to the presence of light right-handed sneutrinos. Accordingly, a vacuum stability analysis that accurately takes into account the possibility of long-lived metastable vacua is crucial for a reliable assessment of the phenomenological viability of the parameter space of the $μν$SSM and its resulting phenomenology at the (HL)-LHC.

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arXiv2022

Simple and statistically sound recommendations for analysing physical theories

Physical theories that depend on many parameters or are tested against data from many different experiments pose unique challenges to statistical inference. Many models in particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology fall into one or both of these categories. These issues are often sidestepped with statistically unsound ad hoc methods, involving intersection of parameter intervals estimated by multiple experiments, and random or grid sampling of model parameters. Whilst these methods are easy to apply, they exhibit pathologies even in low-dimensional parameter spaces, and quickly become problematic to use and interpret in higher dimensions. In this article we give clear guidance for going beyond these procedures, suggesting where possible simple methods for performing statistically sound inference, and recommendations of readily-available software tools and standards that can assist in doing so. Our aim is to provide any physicists lacking comprehensive statistical training with recommendations for reaching correct scientific conclusions, with only a modest increase in analysis burden. Our examples can be reproduced with the code publicly available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4322283.

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arXiv2022

Constraining the CP structure of Higgs-fermion couplings with a global LHC fit, the electron EDM and baryogenesis

CP violation in the Higgs couplings to fermions is an intriguing, but not yet extensively explored possibility. We use inclusive and differential LHC Higgs boson measurements to fit the CP structure of the Higgs Yukawa couplings. Starting with simple effective models featuring CP violation in a single Higgs-fermion coupling, we probe well-motivated models with up to nine free parameters. We also investigate the complementarity of LHC constraints with the electron electric dipole moment bound, taking into account the possibility of a modified electron Yukawa coupling, and assess to which extent CP violation in the Higgs-fermion couplings can contribute to the observed baryon asymmetry of the universe. Even after including the recent analysis of angular correlations in $H\toτ^+τ^-$ decays, we find that a complex tau Yukawa coupling alone may be able to account for the observed baryon asymmetry, but with large uncertainties in the baryogenesis calculation. A combination of complex top and bottom quark Yukawa couplings yields a result four times larger than the sum of their separate contributions, but remains insufficient to account for the observed baryon asymmetry.

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arXiv2022

SUSY Dark Matter Direct Detection Prospects based on $(g-2)_μ$

An electroweak (EW) sector of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) with masses of a few hundred GeV can account for variety of experimental data, assuming the lightest neutralino to be the lightest supersymmetric (SUSY) particle: the non-observation at the LHC searches owing to their small production cross sections, the results for the (upper limit of the) Dark Matter (DM) relic abundance and the DM Direct Detection (DD) limits. Such a light EW sector can in particular explain the reinforced $4.2\,σ$ discrepancy between the experimental result for $(g-2)_μ$, and its Standard Model (SM) prediction. Using the improved limits on $(g-2)_μ$, we review the predictions for the future prospects of the DD experiments. This analysis is performed for several different realizations of DM in the MSSM: bino, bino/wino, wino and higgsino DM. We find that higgsino, wino and one type of bino scenario can be covered by future DD experiments. Mixed bino/wino and another type of bino DM can reach DD cross sections below the neutrino floor. In these cases future collider experiments must cover the remaining parameter space.

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arXiv2021

$(g-2)_μ$ and SUSY Dark Matter: Direct Detection and Collider Search Complementarity

The electroweak (EW) sector of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) can account for variety of experimental data. The EW particles with masses of a few hundred GeV evade the LHC searches owing to their small production cross sections. Such a light EW sector can in particular explain the reinforced $4.2\,σ$ discrepancy between the experimental result for the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon, \gmin2, and its Standard Model (SM) prediction. The lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP), assumed to be the lightest neutralino, $\tildeχ_1^0$, as a Dark Matter (DM) candidate is furthermore in agreement with the observed limits on the DM content of the universe. Here the Next-to LSP (NLSP) serves as a coannihilation partner and is naturally close in mass to the LSP. Such scenarios are also to a large extent in agreement with negative results from Direct Detection (DD) experiments. The DM relic density can fully be explained by a nearly pure bino or a mixed bino/wino LSP. Relatively light wino and higgsino DM, on the other hand, remains easily below the DM relic density upper bound. Using the improved limits on $(g-2)_μ$, we explore the mass ranges of the LSP and the NLSP in their correlation with the DM relic density for bino, bino/wino, wino and higgsino DM. In particular analyze the sensitivity of future DM DD experiments to these DM scenarios. We find that higgsino, wino and one type of bino scenario can be covered by future DD experiments. Mixed bino/wino and another type of bino DM can reach DD cross sections below the neutrino floor. In these cases we analyze the complementarity with the (HL-)LHC and future $e^+e^-$ linear colliders. We find that while the prospects for the HL-LHC are interesting, but not conclusive, an $e^+e^-$ collider with $\sqrt{s} \le 1$ TeV can cover effectively all points of the MSSM that may be missed by DD experiments.

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arXiv2021

SUSY in the light of the new "MUON G-2" Result

The recently published result from the Fermilab "MUON G-2" experiment has confirmed the persistent 3-4 $σ$ discrepancy between the experimental result from BNL for the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon, $(g-2)_μ$ , and its Standard Model (SM) prediction. The combination of the two measurements yields a deviation of 4.2 $σ$ from the SM value. Here, we review the parameter space of the electroweak (EW) sector of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM), that can accommodate the anomaly while being in full agreement with other experimental data, particularly the direct searches for EW particles at the LHC and dark matter (DM) relic density and direct detection constraints. We find that the combined constraints set an upper limit of ~ 600 GeV for the LSP and NLSP masses establishing clear targets for the future collider searches.

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arXiv2021

Indirect $\mathcal{CP}$ probes of the Higgs-top-quark interaction: current LHC constraints and future opportunities

The $\mathcal{CP}$ structure of the Higgs boson in its coupling to the particles of the Standard Model is amongst the most important Higgs boson properties which have not yet been constrained with high precision. In this study, all relevant inclusive and differential Higgs boson measurements from the ATLAS and CMS experiments are used to constrain the $\mathcal{CP}$-nature of the top-Yukawa interaction. The model dependence of the constraints is studied by successively allowing for new physics contributions to the couplings of the Higgs boson to massive vector bosons, to photons, and to gluons. In the most general case, we find that the current data still permits a significant $\mathcal{CP}$-odd component in the top-Yukawa coupling. Furthermore, we explore the prospects to further constrain the $\mathcal{CP}$ properties of this coupling with future LHC data by determining $tH$ production rates independently from possible accompanying variations of the $t\bar t H$ rate. This is achieved via a careful selection of discriminating observables. At the HL-LHC, we find that evidence for $tH$ production at the Standard Model rate can be achieved in the Higgs to diphoton decay channel alone.

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arXiv2021

The new $(g-2)_μ$ result and the $μν$SSM

The $μν$SSM is a highly predictive alternative model to the MSSM. In particular, the electroweak sector of the model can explain the longstanding discrepancy between the experimental result for the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon, $(g-2)_μ$, and its Standard Model prediction, while being in agreement with all other theoretical and experimental constraints. The recently published MUON G-2 result is within $0.8\,σ$ in agreement with the older BNL result on $(g-2)_μ$. The combined result was announced as $a_μ^{\rm exp} = (11659206.1 \pm 4.1) \times 10^{-10}$, yielding a new deviation from the Standard Model prediction of $Δa_μ= (25.1 \pm 5.9) \times 10^{-10}$, corresponding to $4.2\,σ$. Using this improved bound we update the analysis in the $μν$SSM as presented in Ref. [1] and set new limits on the allowed parameters space of the electroweak sector of the model. We conclude that significant regions of the model can explain the new $(g-2)_μ$ data.

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