Higgs bosons inE 6 and intermediate mass scales

Considering the importance ofE ₆ as the grand unification group in superstring theories, several breakdown patterns ofE ₆ through maximal subgroups are studied. The Higgs which break the low energy group and give masses to the fermions are determined in each case. At each scale we consider minimal Higgs and apply extended survival hypothesis to determine the limits on the mass scales. The combination of intermediate mass scales that give rise to acceptable electroweak mixing angle and unification mass is determined. Proton decay rate is found to be acceptable in all cases except one.