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Tao Han

Publications and source records attributed to Tao Han.

At least 253 records · Page 14Linked to original sources
arXiv2014

Higgs Bosons from Top Quark Decays

In light of the discovery of a Standard Model (SM)-like Higgs boson ($h$) at the LHC, we investigate the top quark to Higgs boson transition $t\rightarrow W^{*}bh$, which is the leading $t\to h$ decay mode in the SM. We find the decay branching fraction to be $1.80\times 10^{-9}$. In comparison, the two-body, loop-induced $t\rightarrow ch$ transition occurs at $\sim10^{-14}$ in the SM. We consider the consequences of gauge invariant dimension-6 operators affecting the $t\bar{t}h$ interaction and find that the decay branching fraction may be increased by a factor of two within current constraints on the coupling parameters from collider experiments. We also extend the calculation to the CP-conserving Type I and Type II Two Higgs Doublet Models (2HDM), including both CP-even and CP-odd Higgs bosons. For neutral scalar masses at about $100$ GeV, the decay rates can be several times larger than the SM result in the allowed range of model parameters. Observation prospects at present and future colliders are briefly addressed.

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arXiv2014

Potential Precision on Higgs Couplings and Total Width at the ILC

We outline a systematic approach to the determination of the Standard Model-like Higgs boson total width and measurable coupling parameters in a model-independent manner at the International Linear Collider (ILC) and illustrate the complementarity for operating the ILC at $250$ GeV near the $Zh$ threshold and at $500$ GeV and $1$ TeV utilizing the $WW, ZZ$ fusion processes. We perform detailed simulations for an important contributing channel to the coupling determination and for invisible decays. Without model assumptions, and combining the information for the coupling ratios from the LHC, the total width can be determined to an accuracy of about $6%$, and the couplings for the observable channels can be measured to the $(3-5)%$ level at 250 GeV, reaching $(1-3)%$ level including the 500 GeV results, with further improvements possible with a $1$ TeV run. The best precision for the branching fraction measurement of the Higgs to invisible modes can be reached at $0.5-0.7%$ around the $Zh$ threshold. Further studies from $ZZ$ fusion at higher energies may provide significant improvement for the measurements. With modest theory assumptions, the width and coupling determinations can be further improved to the percent or sub-percent level.

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arXiv2013

Non-Decoupling MSSM Higgs Sector and Light Superpartners

In the ``non-decoupling'' region of the Higgs sector in MSSM, the heavier CP-even Higgs boson (H^0) is Standard-Model-like and close to the charged Higgs bosons (H^\pm) in mass, while other neutral Higgs bosons (h^0,A^0) are lighter and near the Z mass. This scenario is consistent with the current Higgs search limits, although the improved sensitivity for a light charged Higgs boson search t -> H^+ b may result in certain degree of tension. We demonstrate that it can pass the stringent flavor constraints, provided there are other light SUSY particles to contribute in the loop induced processes. In turn, the non-decoupling Higgs sector implies the existence of light (left-handed) stop, sbottom and Wino-like gauginos, with mass all below 250 GeV. These light super-partners can still escape the current SUSY searches at the LHC. Dedicated searches for soft decay products should be devised for the LHC experiments to improve the searching sensitivity. The ILC would be able to cover the full spectrum region. The solutions for the viable SUSY parameters result from subtle cancellations and are often missed by the generic multiple dimensional scans, highlighting the importance of theoretical guidance in search for such special cases.

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arXiv2013

Dark matter and Higgs bosons in the MSSM

We investigate dark matter (DM) in the context of the minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard model (MSSM). We scan through the MSSM parameter space and search for solutions that (a) are consistent with the Higgs discovery and other collider searches; (b) satisfy the flavor constraints from $B$ physics; (c) give a DM candidate with the correct thermal relic density; and (d) are allowed by the DM direct detection experiments. For the surviving models with our parameter scan, we find the following features: (1) The DM candidate is largely a Bino-like neutralino with non-zero but less than $20\%$ Wino and Higgsino fractions; (2) The relic density requirement clearly pins down the solutions from the $Z$ and Higgs resonances ($Z,h,H,A$ funnels) and co-annihilations; (3) Future direct search experiments will likely fully cover the $Z,h$ funnel regions, and $H,A$ funnel regions as well except for the "blind spots"; (4) Future indirect search experiments will be more sensitive to the CP-odd Higgs exchange due to its $s$-wave nature; (5) The branching fraction for the SM-like Higgs decay to DM can be as high as $10\%$, while those from heavier Higgs decays to neutralinos and charginos can be as high as $20\%$. We show that collider searches provide valuable information complementary to what may be obtained from direct detections and astroparticle observations. In particular, the $Z$- and $h$-funnels with a predicted low LSP mass should be accessible at future colliders. Overall, the Higgs bosons may play an essential role as the portal to the dark sector.

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arXiv2013

Electroweakino Searches: A Comparative Study for LHC and ILC (A Snowmass White Paper)

We make a systematic and comparative study for the LHC and ILC for the electroweakino searches in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. We adopt a general bottom-up approach and scan over the parameter regions for all the three cases of the lightest supersymmetric particle being Bino-, Wino-, and Higgsino-like. The electroweakino signal from pair production and subsequent decay to Wh (h to b\bar b) final state may yield a sensitivity of 95% C.L. exclusion (5sigma discovery) to the mass scale M_2, mu ~ 250-400 GeV (200-250 GeV) at the 14 TeV LHC with an luminosity of 300 fb^{-1}. Combining with all the other decay channels, the 95% C.L. exclusion (5sigma discovery) may be extended to M_2, mu ~ 480-700 GeV (320-500 GeV). At the ILC, the electroweakinos could be readily discovered once the kinematical threshold is crossed, and their properties could be thoroughly studied.

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arXiv2013

Diagnosis of a New Neutral Gauge Boson at the LHC and ILC for Snowmass 2013

A U(1)' or Z' is generic in many scenarios of physics beyond the Standard Model, such as string theory compactifications, GUTs, extra-dimensions, compositeness, dynamical electroweak symmetry breaking, dark-sector models, etc. We study the potential of probing a TeV-scale Z' with electroweak couplings in future experiments. In particular, we focus on two scenarios: (1) If a Z' is discovered at the LHC, what is the potential of measuring its mass and width and to distinguish between benchmark models utilizing various observables, especially asymmetries, at a high luminosity LHC and the ILC. (2) If the Z' is not accessible as a clear resonance signal, what is the exclusion reach at the ILC.

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arXiv2013

The Case for a Muon Collider Higgs Factory

We propose the construction of a compact Muon Collider Higgs Factory. Such a machine can produce up to \sim 14,000 at 8\times 10^{31} cm^-2 sec^-1 clean Higgs events per year, enabling the most precise possible measurement of the mass, width and Higgs-Yukawa coupling constants.

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arXiv2013

Low-Mass Higgs Bosons in the NMSSM and Their LHC Implications

We study the Higgs sector of the Next to Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM) in light of the discovery of the SM-like Higgs boson at the LHC. We perform a broad scan over the NMSSM parameter space and identify the regions that are consistent with current Higgs search results at colliders. In contrast to the commonly studied "decoupling" scenario in the literature where the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model CP-odd Higgs boson mass is large mA >> mZ, we pay particular attention to the light Higgs states in the case when mA <~ 2mZ . The Higgs bosons in the NMSSM, namely three CP-even states, two CP-odd states, and two charged Higgs states, could all be rather light, near or below the electroweak scale, although the singlet-like states can be heavier. The SM-like Higgs boson could be either the lightest CP-even scalar or the second lightest CP-even scalar, but is unlikely to be the heaviest scalar. These NMSSM parameter regions have unique properties and offer rich phenomenology. The decay branching fractions for the SM-like Higgs boson may be modified appreciably. The correlations of gamma gamma/V V and V V/b b can be substantially altered. The new Higgs bosons may be readily produced at the LHC and may decay to non-standard distinctive final states, most notably a pair of Higgs bosons when kinematically accessible. We evaluate the production and decay of the Higgs bosons and comment on further searches at the LHC to probe the Higgs sector of the NMSSM.

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arXiv2013

Potential precision of a direct measurement of the Higgs boson total width at a muon colliderr

In the light of the discovery of a 126 GeV Standard-Model-like Higgs boson at the LHC, we evaluate the achievable accuracies for direct measurements of the width, mass, and the s-channel resonant production cross section of the Higgs boson at a proposed muon collider. We find that with a beam energy resolution of R=0.01% (0.003%) and integrated luminosity of 0.5 fb^{-1} (1 fb^{-1}), a muon collider would enable us to determine the Standard-Model-like Higgs width to +/- 0.35 MeV (+/- 0.15 MeV) by combining two complementary channels of the WW^* and b\bar b final states. A non-Standard-Model Higgs with a broader width is also studied. The unparalleled accuracy potentially attainable at a muon collider would test the Higgs interactions to a high precision.

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arXiv2013

Lepton Number Violation and W' Chiral Couplings at the LHC

We study the observability for a heavy Majorana neutrino N along with a new charged gauge boson W' at the LHC. We emphasize the complementarity of these two particles in their production and decay to unambiguously determine their properties. We show that the Majorana nature of N can be verified by the lepton-number violating like-sign dilepton process, and by polar and azimuthal angular distributions. The chirality of the W' coupling to leptons and to quarks can be determined by a polar angle distribution in the reconstructed frame and an azimuthal angle distribution.

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arXiv2012

New Physics from the Top at the LHC

The top quark may hold the key to new physics associated with the electroweak symmetry-breaking sector, given its large mass and enhanced coupling to the Higgs sector. We systematically categorize generic interactions of a new particle that couples to the top quark and a neutral particle, which is assumed to be heavy and stable, thus serving as a candidate for cold dark matter. The experimental signatures for new physics involving top quarks and its partners at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) may be distinctive, yet challenging to disentangle. We optimize the search strategy at the LHC for the decay of the new particle to a top quark plus missing energy and propose the study of its properties, such as its spin and couplings. We find that, at 14 TeV with an integrated luminosity of 100 fb^-1, a spin-zero top partner can be observed at the 5-sigma level for a mass of 675 GeV. A spin-zero particle can be differentiated from spin-1/2 and spin-1 particles at the 5-sigma level with a luminosity of 10 fb^-1.

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arXiv2012

Pair Production of MSSM Higgs Bosons in the Non-decoupling Region at the LHC

We consider the Higgs boson signals from pair production at the LHC within the framework of the MSSM in the non-decoupling (low-m_A) region. In light of the recent observation of a SM-like Higgs boson, we argue that the exploration for Higgs pair production at the LHC is a crucial next step to probe the MSSM Higgs sector. We emphasize that the production of H^\pm A^0 and H^{+}H^{-} depends only on the electroweak gauge couplings while all the leading Higgs production channels via gluon fusion, vector-boson fusion, and Higgsstrahlung depend on additional free Higgs sector parameters. In the non-decoupling region, the five MSSM Higgs bosons are all relatively light and pair production signals may be accessible. We find that at the 8 TeV LHC, a 5σsignal for H^\pm A^0, H^\pm h^0 -> τ^{\pm}νb\bar b and H^{+}H^{-} -> τ^{+}ντ^{-}νare achievable with an integrated luminosity of 7 (11) fb^{-1} and 24 (48) fb^{-1}, respectively for m_A=95 (130) GeV. At the 14 TeV LHC, a 5σsignal for these two channels would require as little as 4 (7) fb^{-1} and 10 (19) fb^{-1}, respectively.

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arXiv2012

MSSM Higgs Bosons at The LHC

Accepting the existence of a SM-like Higgs boson in the range 123GeV-127GeV as indicated by the observed ga,ga events, there are two distinct regions left in the Minimal Supersymmetric (SUSY) Standard Model (MSSM) Higgs sector: (a) the lighter CP-even Higgs boson SM-like and the non-SM-like Higgs bosons all heavy and nearly degenerate above 300GeV; (b) the heavier CP-even Higgs boson being SM-like and the neutral non-SM-like Higgs bosons all nearly degenerate around 100GeV (a non-decoupling region). Due to the strong correlation between the Higgs decays to W+W- and to ga,ga predicted in the MSSM, the deficit of a W+W- final state signal would be in direct conflict with the ga,ga peak. If we consider W+W- on its own, the absence of the W+W- signal would imply that the SM-like Higgs boson has reduced coupling to W+-, and that the other non-SM-like Higgs bosons should not be too heavy and do not decouple. If both the ga,ga excess and the absence of W+W- continue, new physics beyond the MSSM will be required. A similar correlation exists between the W+W- and tau+tau- channels: a reduced W+W- channel would force the tau+tau- channel to be larger. Future searches for the SM-like Higgs boson at the LHC will provide critical tests for the MSSM prediction. We emphasize the potential importance of the electroweak processes pp->H+H-, H+-A0, which are independent of the SUSY parameters except for their masses. In addition, there may be sizable contributions from pp->H+-h0, A0h0 and W+-H0, ZH0 in the non-decoupling region, which may serve to discriminate the model parameters. We vary the relevant SUSY parameters in a broad range and demonstrate the correlations and constraints on these parameters and associated SUSY particles.

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arXiv2012

Kinematic Cusps With Two Missing Particles I: Antler Decay Topology

The kinematics of a final state system with two invisible particles and two visible particles can develop cusped peak structures. This happens when the system has a fixed invariant mass (such as from a narrow resonant particle decay or with a fixed collision c.m. energy) and undergoes decays of two on-shell intermediate particles. Focusing on the "antler decay topology", we derive general analytic expressions for the invariant mass distribution and the kinematic cusp position. The sharp cusp peaks and the endpoint positions can help to determine the masses of the missing particles and the intermediate particles. We also consider transverse momentum variables and angular variables. In various distributions the kinematic cusp peaks are present and pronounced. We also study the effects on such kinematic cusp structures from realistic considerations including finite decay widths, the longitudinal boost of the system, and spin correlations.

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arXiv2012

Kinematic Cusps with Two Missing Particles II: Cascade Decay Topology

Three-step cascade decays into two invisible particles and two visible particles via two intermediate on-shell particles develop cusped peak structures in several kinematic distributions. We study the basic properties of the cusps and endpoints in various distributions and demonstrate that the masses of the missing particles and the intermediate particles can be determined by the cusp and endpoint positions. Effects from realistic considerations such as finite decay widths, longitudinal boost of the parent particle, and spin correlations are shown to be under control for the processes illustrated.

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arXiv2011

Phenomenology of a lepton triplet

The most general phenomenological model involving a lepton triplet with hypercharge $\pm 1$ is constructed. A distinctive feature of this model is the prediction of a doubly charged lepton, and a new heavy Dirac neutrino. We study the phenomenology of these exotic leptons in both low-energy experiments and at the LHC. The model predicts FCNC processes such as rare muon decays, which are studied in detail in order to constrain the model parameters. All the decay channels of the exotic leptons are described for a wide range of parameters. It is found that, if the mixing parameters between the exotic and light leptons are not too small ($>10^{-6}$), then they can be observable to a $3-5σ$ statistical significance at the 7 TeV LHC with 10-50 fb$^{-1}$ luminosity for a 400 GeV mass, and 14 TeV with 100-300 fb$^{-1}$ luminosity for a 800 GeV mass.

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arXiv2011

Discovery in Drell-Yan Processes at the LHC

We study the Drell-Yan process mediated by a new bosonic resonance at the LHC. The bosons of spin-0, 1, and 2 with the most general leading-order couplings to Standard Model fermions and gluons are considered, which provide a model-independent formulation for future exploration of the resonance properties, such as its spin, mass and couplings. In the case of neutral resonances, we demonstrate how the shapes of the kinematical distributions change as one varies the chiral couplings of the quarks and leptons, and show how to analyze the couplings by making use of the forward-backward asymmetry. In the case of charged resonances, we propose a novel technique to effectively reconstruct the angular distribution in the center-of-mass frame, to a large extent avoiding the two-fold ambiguity due to the missing neutrino. Similar to the case of a neutral resonance, the spin information of the resonance can be extracted unambiguously, and chiral couplings and the asymmetries can be explored in a statistical manner. With the current LHC data, we present bounds on the mass and cross section times branching fraction of the new resonance and estimate the future reach.

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