Higgs bosons in supersymmetric models (II). Implications for phenomenology

We discuss a wide range of phenomenological issues involving the production and decay of Higgs bosons. We focus on a minimal two-doublet supersymmetry model with soft supersymmetry breaking.     

Higgs bosons in supersymmetric models (III). Decays into neutralinos and charginos

We give explicit formulae for the decays of the Higgs bosons of the minimal supersymmetric model to neutralinos and charginos. The important features of these decays are illustrated and their phenomenological implications discussed. Particular attention is given to the decays of heavy Higgs bosons (with masses larger than m_Z) which can only be observed at a future supercollider. When phase-space allowed, Higgs decays into neutralinos and charginos are at least as important as, and often dominate, other types of Higgs decay modes, such as WW, ZZ, and heavy quark (or lepton) pairs.     

Higgs bosons in the simplest SUSY models

Nowadays, in the MSSM, the moderate values of tan β are almost excluded by the LEP II lower bound on the mass of the lightest Higgs boson. In the next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model (NMSSM), the theoretical upper bound on it increases and reaches a maximal value in the limit of strong Yukawa coupling, where all solutions to renormalization-group equations are concentrated near the quasifixed point. For a calculation of the Higgs boson spectrum, the perturbation-theory method can be applied. We investigate the particle spectrum within the modified NMSSM, which leads to the self-consistent solution in the limit of strong Yukawa coupling. This model allows one to get m _h～125 GeV at tan β≥1.9. In the model under investigation, the mass of the lightest Higgs boson does not exceed 130.5±3.5 GeV. The upper bound on the mass of the lightest CP-even Higgs boson in more complicated supersymmetric models is also discussed.     

Searches for neutral Higgs bosons in extended models

Searches for neutral Higgs bosons produced at LEP in association with Z bosons, in pairs and in the Yukawa process are presented in this paper. Higgs boson decays into b quarks, leptons, or other Higgs bosons are considered, giving rise to four-b, four-b + jets, six-b and four- final states, as well as mixed modes with b quarks and leptons. The whole mass domain kinematically accessible at LEP in these topologies is searched. The analysed data set covers both the LEP1 and LEP2 energy ranges and exploits most of the luminosity recorded by the DELPHI experiment. No convincing evidence for a signal is found, and results are presented in the form of mass-dependent upper bounds on coupling factors (in units of model-independent reference cross-sections) for all processes, allowing interpretation of the data in a large class of models.Received: 26 October 2003, Revised: 1 September 2004, Published online: 28 October 2004     

Effective two Higgs doublets in nonminimal supersymmetric models

The Higgs sectors of supersymmetric extensions of the Standard Model have two doublets in the minimal version (MSSM), and two doublets plus a singlet in two others: with (UMSSM) and without (NMSSM) an extra U(1)′. A very concise comparison of these three models is possible if we assume that the singlet has a somewhat larger breaking scale compared to the electroweak scale. In that case, the UMSSM and the NMSSM become effectively two-Higgs-doublet models (THDM), like the MSSM. In this approach the well-known upper mass bounds on the lightest CP-even neutral Higgs boson can be derived in a very simple and transparent way.     

Search for heavy neutral Higgs bosons in two-doublet models

A search for pair production of neutral heavy Higgs bosons decaying into has been carried out in a study of hadronic decays of the Z boson into four jet final states using data taken by DELPHI in 1991 and 1992. The two production mechanisms present in the two Higgs doublets scheme, bremsstrahlung production of hZ^* and associated production of hA, may lead to four beauty jets well recognizable using the precise microvertex detector measurements. No evidence for a signal was found, leading to limits on BR(ZhA4b) from 3.5 to 5.5×10^–4 at 95% contidence level, depending on the mass of the ligthest Higgs. When combined with the results of the recent DELPHI standard Higgs search, this result allows the kinematical limit to be reached for the masses of h and A in the minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (MSSM) scheme. It also allows the tan1 domain to be explored, and a region above the kinematic limit for direct hA production is constrained by considering virtual hA production. Results are also given in the general two-doublet scheme.     

Radiative corrections to Higgs boson masses in supersymmetric models

The effect of radiative corrections on the Higgs masses and couplings in supersymmetric models is summarized. Radiative corrections in both the minimal and nonminimal models are discussed. It is pointed out that large singlet Higgs vacuum expectation values are screened out from the radiative corrections to the lightest Higgs mass in nonminimal models. In supersymmetric models the crucial mass limit for the Higgs search may be around 150 GeV.     

Radiative corrections to Higgs boson masses in supersymmetric models

The effect of radiative corrections on the Higgs masses and couplings in supersymmetric models is summarized. Radiative corrections in both the minimal and nonminimal models are discussed. It is pointed out that large singlet Higgs vacuum expectation values are screened out from the radiative corrections to the lightest Higgs mass in nonminimal models. In supersymmetric models the crucial mass limit for the Higgs search may be around 150 GeV.     

Search for charged Higgs bosons at LEP in general two Higgs doublet models

A search for pair-produced charged Higgs bosons was performed in the data collected by the DELPHI detector at LEP II at centre-of-mass energies from 189 GeV to 209 GeV. Five different final states, , , , and were considered, accounting for the major expected decays in type I and type II Two Higgs Doublet Models. No significant excess of data compared to the expected Standard Model processes was observed. The existence of a charged Higgs boson with mass lower than 76.7 GeV/c² (type I) or 74.4 GeV/c² (type II) is excluded at the 95% confidence level, for a wide range of the model parameters. Model independent cross-section limits have also been calculated.Received: 30 September 2003, Revised: 12 February 2004, Published online: 8 April 2004     

Charged Higgs bosons in the next-to MSSM (NMSSM)

The charged Higgs boson decays H^±→W^±A₁ and H^±→W^±H_i are studied in the framework of the next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model (NMSSM). It is found that the decay rate for H^±→W^±A₁ can exceed the rates for the τ^±ν and tb channels both below and above the top–bottom threshold. The dominance of H^±→W^±A₁ is most readily achieved when A₁ has a large doublet component and small mass. We also study the production process pp→H^±A₁ at the LHC followed by the decay H^±→W^±A₁, which leads to the signature W^±A₁A₁. We suggest that pp→H^±A₁ is a promising discovery channel for a light charged Higgs boson in the NMSSM with small or moderate tanβ and dominant decay mode H^±→W^±A₁. This W^±A₁A₁ signature can also arise from the Higgsstrahlung process pp→W^±H₁ followed by the decay H₁→A₁A₁. It is shown that there exist regions of parameter space where these processes can have comparable cross sections and we suggest that their respective signals can be distinguished at the LHC by using appropriate reconstruction methods. PACS  12.60.Fr; 14.80.Cp