On messengers and metastability in gauge mediation

One notoriously difficult problem in perturbative gauge mediation of supersymmetry breaking via messenger fields is the generic presence of a phenomenologically unacceptable vacuum with messenger vevs, with a lower energy than the desired (“MSSM”) vacuum. We investigate the possibility that quantum corrections promote the latter to the ground state of the theory, and find that this is indeed feasible. For this to happen, the couplings of the messengers to the goldstino superfield must be small, and this implies an additional suppression of the MSSM soft terms with respect to the supersymmetry breaking scale. This in turn sets a lower limit on the masses of the messengers and of the supersymmetry breaking fields, which makes both sectors inaccessible at colliders. Contrary to other scenarios like direct gauge mediation, gaugino masses are unsuppressed with respect to scalar masses.     

Fixed point and anomaly mediation in partial N=2 supersymmetric standard models

Motivated by the simple toroidal compactification of extra-dimensional SUSY theories, we investigate a partial N =2 supersymmetric(SUSY) extension of the standard model which has an N =2 SUSY sector and an N =1 SUSY sector. We point out that below the scale of the partial breaking of N = 2 to N = 1, the ratio of Yukawa to gauge couplings embedded in the original N =2 gauge interaction in the N =2 sector becomes greater due to a fixed point. Since at the partial breaking scale the sfermion masses in the N = 2 sector are suppressed due to the N = 2 non-renormalization theorem, the anomaly mediation effect becomes important. If dominant, the anomaly-induced masses for the sfermions in the N = 2 sector are almost UV-insensitive due to the fixed point. Interestingly, these masses are always positive, i.e. there is no tachyonic slepton problem. From an example model, we show interesting phenomena differing from ordinary MSSM. In particular, the dark matter particle can be a sbino, i.e. the scalar component of the N = 2 vector multiplet of U(1)_Y. To obtain the correct dark matter abundance, the mass of the sbino, as well as the MSSM sparticles in the N =2 sector which have a typical mass pattern of anomaly mediation, is required to be small. Therefore, this scenario can be tested and confirmed in the LHC and may be further confirmed by the measurement of the N = 2 Yukawa couplings in future colliders. This model can explain dark matter, the muon g-2 anomaly, and gauge coupling unification, and relaxes some ordinary problems within the MSSM. It is also compatible with thermal leptogenesis.     

Can the LHC rule out the MSSM?

If supersymmetry (SUSY) exists in nature and is a solution to the hierarchy problem then it should be detectable at the TeV energy scale which the large hadron collider (LHC) is now exploring. One of the main goals of the LHC is the discovery or exclusion of the R-parity conserving minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM). So far, the SUSY search results are presented in the context of the constrained MSSM and other specific simplified SUSY models. A model-independent analysis necessarily relies on the trigger-system of the LHC detectors. By using the posterior samples of a 20-parameter MSSM, the phenomenological MSSM, from a fit to indirect collider and cosmological data we find that there is a significant volume in the MSSM parameter space that would escape the standard trigger-systems of the detectors. As such, in the absence of discovery in the current and future LHC runs, it would be difficult if not impossible to exclude the MSSM unless some dedicated and special triggers are commissioned or a Higgs boson with mass as predicted by the supersymmetric models is not found.     

Gauge unification in type I/I′ models

We discuss whether the (MSSM) unification of gauge couplings can be accommodated in string theories with a low (TeV) string scale. This requires either power law running of the couplings or logarithmic running extremely far above the string scale. In both cases it is difficult to arrange for the multiplet structure to give the MSSM result. For the case of power law running there is also enhanced sensitivity to the spectrum at the unification scale. For the case of logarithmic running there is a fine tuning problem associated with the light closed string Kaluza Klein spectrum which requires gauge mediated supersymmetry breaking on the “visible” brane with a dangerously low scale of supersymmetry breaking. Evading these problems in low string scale models requires a departure from the MSSM structure, which would imply that the success of gauge unification in the MSSM is just an accident.     

Mechanisms of supersymmetry breaking in the minimal supersymmetric standard model

We provide a bird’s eyeview of current ideas on supersymmetry breaking mechanisms in the MSSM. The essentials of gauge, gravity, anomaly and gaugino/higgsino mediation mechanisms are covered briefly and the phenomenology of the associated models is touched upon. A few statement are also made on braneworld supersymmetry breaking.     

Flavor and LHC searches for new physics

Uncovering the physics of electroweak symmetry breaking (EWSB) is the raison-d’etre of the LHC. Flavor questions, it would seem, are of minor relevance for this quest, apart from their role in constraining the possible structure of EWSB physics. In this short review article, we outline, using flavor-dependent slepton physics as an example, how flavor can affect both searches for supersymmetry, and future measurements aimed at understanding the nature of any new discoveries. If the production cross-sections for supersymmetry are relatively low, as indicated by the fact that it has not revealed itself yet in standard searches, the usual assumptions about the superpartner spectra need rethinking. Furthermore, one must consider more intricate searches, such as lepton-based searches, which could be susceptible to flavor effects. We start by reviewing the flavor structure of existing frameworks for mediating supersymmetry breaking, emphasizing flavor-dependent models proposed recently. We use the kinematic endpoints of invariant mass distributions to demonstrate how flavor dependence can impact both searches for supersymmetry and the Inverse Problem. We also discuss methods for measuring small-mass splittings and mixings at the LHC, both in models with a neutralino LSP and in models with a charged slepton (N)LSP.     

Leptonic dipole moments in the left-right supersymmetric model

The observation of neutrino oscillations imposes a pattern of mixing in both the sneutrino and charged slepton sectors. On the other hand, the apparent 2.6 deviation of the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon from the standard model value favors a scenario beyond the standard model. We show that, in a supersymmetric model with left-right symmetry, which provides an explanation for both phenomena, the relationship between flavor conserving dipole moments, such as the magnetic and the electric dipole moments, and flavor violating dipole moments, such as and , is quite different from that in the MSSM. From general analytic considerations, we derive bounds on the fractional sneutrino mass splittings , and the fractional charged slepton splittings . For , the mixing is allowed to be maximal. We also comment on the magnitudes and correlations between CP-violating angles coming from electric dipole moments. We supplement the analytical considerations by detailed numerical calculations. Received: 6 September 2001 / Revised version: 30 October 2001 / Published online: 7 December 2001     

Two-loop QCD amplitude for gg-->h, H in the minimal supersymmetric standard model

We present the two-loop QCD amplitude for the interaction of two gluons and a CP-even Higgs boson in the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM). We apply a novel numerical method for the evaluation of Feynman diagrams with infrared, ultraviolet, and threshold singularities. We discuss subtleties in the ultraviolet renormalization of the amplitude with conventional dimensional regularization, dimensional reduction, and the four dimensional helicity scheme. Finally, we show numerical results for scenarios of supersymmetry breaking with a rather challenging phenomenology in which the Higgs signal in the MSSM is suppressed in comparison to the standard model.     

Type 1 2HDM as Effective Theory of Supersymmetry

It is generally believed that the low energy effective theory of the minimal supersymmetric standard model is the type 2 two Higgs doublet model. We will show that the type 1 two Higgs doublet model can also be as the effective of supersymmetry in a specific case with high scale supersymmetry breaking and gauge mediation. If the other electroweak doublet obtain the vacuum expectation value after the electroweak symmetry breaking, the Higgs spectrum is quite different. A remarkable feature is that the physical Higgs boson mass can be 125 GeV unlike in the ordinary models with high scale supersymmetry in which the Higgs mass is generally around 140 GeV.     

Type 1 2HDM as Effective Theory of Supersymmetry

It is generally believed that the low energy effective theory of the minimal supersymmetric standard model is the type 2 two Higgs doublet model.We will show that the type 1 two Higgs doublet model can also be as the effective of supersymmetry in a specific case with high scale supersymmetry breaking and gauge mediation.If the other electroweak doublet obtain the vacuum expectation value after the electroweak symmetry breaking,the Higgs spectrum is quite different.A remarkable feature is that the physical Higgs boson mass can be 125 GeV unlike in the ordinary models with high scale supersymmetry in which the Higgs mass is generally around 140 GeV.     

A non-commutative version of the minimal supersymmetric standard model

A minimal supersymmetric standard model on non-commutative space-time (NC MSSM) is proposed. The model fulfills the requirements of non-commutative gauge invariance and the absence of anomaly. The existence of supersymmetry with a scale of its breaking lower than the non-commutative scale is crucial in order to achieve consistent gauge symmetry breaking.     

Higgs boson couplings to bottom quarks: two-loop supersymmetry-QCD corrections

We present two-loop supersymmetry (SUSY) QCD corrections to the effective bottom Yukawa couplings within the minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard model (MSSM). The effective Yukawa couplings include the resummation of the nondecoupling corrections Deltam_{b} for large values of tanbeta. We have derived the two-loop SUSY-QCD corrections to the leading SUSY-QCD and top-quark-induced SUSY-electroweak contributions to Deltam_{b}. The scale dependence of the resummed Yukawa couplings is reduced from O(10%) to the percent level. These results reduce the theoretical uncertainties of the MSSM Higgs branching ratios to the accuracy which can be achieved at a future linear e;{+}e;{-} collider.     

Upper bounds on superpartner masses from upper bounds on the Higgs boson mass

The LHC is putting bounds on the Higgs boson mass. In this Letter we use those bounds to constrain the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) parameter space using the fact that, in supersymmetry, the Higgs mass is a function of the masses of sparticles, and therefore an upper bound on the Higgs mass translates into an upper bound for the masses for superpartners. We show that, although current bounds do not constrain the MSSM parameter space from above, once the Higgs mass bound improves big regions of this parameter space will be excluded, putting upper bounds on supersymmetry (SUSY) masses. On the other hand, for the case of split-SUSY we show that, for moderate or large tanβ, the present bounds on the Higgs mass imply that the common mass for scalars cannot be greater than 10(11) GeV. We show how these bounds will evolve as LHC continues to improve the limits on the Higgs mass.     

Constraints from charge and colour breaking minima in the (M+1)SSM

We study the constraints on the parameter space of the supersymmetric standard model extended by a gauge singlet, which arise from the absence of global minima of the effective potential with slepton or squark vevs. Particular attention is paid to the so-called “UFB” directions in field space, which are F-flat in the MSSM. Although these directions are no longer F-flat in the (M+1)SSM, we show that the corresponding MSSM-like constraints on m₀/M_1/2 apply also to the (M+1)SSM. The net effect of all constraints on the parameter space are more dramatic than in the MSSM. We discuss the phenomenological implications of these constraints.     

Phenomenology of SU(3)⊗SU(2)⊗U(1) supersymmetric model with Dirac neutrino masses

We consider a minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard electroweak model with Dirac neutrino masses. In such a model for a significant region of the parameters the right-handed tau sneutrino is the lightest superparticle and the right-handed charged tau slepton is the next-to-lightest superparticle. Due to the smallness of the neutrino masses the right-handed tau slepton is a long-lived particle that alters the standard signatures used in the search for supersymmetry at supercolliders. The most striking signatures of such a scenario is the existence of highly ionized tracks and an excess of multilepton events that is similar to the phenomenology of gauge-mediated supersymmetry-breaking models. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 67, No. 10, 727–729 (25 May 1998) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Higgs phenomenology of the supersymmetric model with a gauge singlet

We discuss the Higgs sector of the supersymmetric standard model extended by a gauge singlet for the range of parameters, which is compatible with universal soft supersymmetry breaking terms at the GUT scale. We present results for the masses, couplings and decay properties of the lightest Higgs bosons, in particular with regard to Higgs boson searches at LEP. The prospects differ significantly from the ones within the MSSM.     

SUSY CP problem in gauge mediation model

SUSY CP problem in the gauge mediation supersymmetry breaking model is reconsidered. We pay particular attention to two sources of CP violating phases whose effects were not seriously studied before; one is the effect of the breaking of the GUT relation among the gaugino masses due to the field responsible for the GUT symmetry breaking, and the other is the supergravity effect on the supersymmetry breaking parameters, in particular, on the bi-linear supersymmetry breaking Higgs mass term. We show that both of them can induce too large electric dipole moments of electron, neutron, and so on, to be consistent with the experimental bounds.     

Lepton flavor violating leptonic and semileptonic decays of charged leptons in the minimal supersymmetric standard model

We consider the leptonic and semileptonic (SL) lepton-flavor violating (LFV) decays of the charged leptons in the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) with right-handed neutrinos. The parameters of the MSSM model are determined in the framework of the minimal supersymmetric SO(10) GUT model assuming the minimal supergravity model of supersymmetry breaking. The free parameters of the model are constrained adopting the WMAP cold dark matter constraint and adjusting the neutrino oscillation data. So constrained, the SO(10) GUT model gives a definite prediction for the Dirac-neutrino Yukawa matrix, which induces all LFV effects in the MSSM model through renormalization group equations of soft SUSY breaking parameters. A very detailed numerical analysis has been made to define numerically all MSSM parameters necessary for the evaluation of the LFV amplitudes. The basic LFV amplitudes in MSSM were rederived and improved. The formalism for the evaluation of all SL LFV amplitudes is given. Numerical results for dominant SL LFV branching ratios, the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon and the ℓ→ℓ’γ branching ratios are given.     

Charged current universality in the minimal supersymmetric standard model

We compute the complete one-loop contributions to low-energy charged current weak interaction observables in the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM). We obtain the constraints on the MSSM parameter space which arise when precision low-energy charged current data are analyzed in tandem with measurements of the muon anomaly. While the data allow the presence of at least one light neutralino, they also imply a pattern of mass splittings among first and second generation sleptons and squarks which contradicts predictions of widely used models for supersymmetry-breaking mediation.     

SUSY Virtual Effects on the Production of tq at LEPPI

Virtual effects of supersymmetry on the-flavor changing process at LEPII are calculated in the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM). We analyze the cross section of e⁺e^- → γ, Z⁰ → tq, and find that even for the most distinguishable mode e⁺e^- → γ, Z⁰ → tc, the effect is small compared with the SM expectation.