Browsing by Author "Ferreira, Pedro Miguel"
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- Abelian symmetries in the two-Higgs-doublet model with fermionsPublication . Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Silva, João PauloWe classify all possible implementations of an Abelian symmetry in the two-Higgs-doublet model with fermions. We identify those symmetries which are consistent with nonvanishing quark masses and a Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa quark-mixing matrix (CKM), which is not block-diagonal. Our analysis takes us from a plethora of possibilities down to 246 relevant cases, requiring only 34 distinct matrix forms. We show that applying Z(n) with n >= 4 to the scalar sector leads to a continuous U(1) symmetry in the whole Lagrangian. Finally, we address the possibilities of spontaneous CP violation and of natural suppression of the flavor-changing neutral currents. We explain why our work is relevant even for non-Abelian symmetries.
- Are there hidden scalars in LHC Higgs results?Publication . Arhrib, A.; Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Santos, RuiThe Higgs boson recently discovered at the Large Hadron Collider has shown to have couplings to the remaining particles well within what is predicted by the Standard Model. The search for other new heavy scalar states has so far revealed to be fruitless, imposing constraints on the existence of new scalar particles. However, it is still possible that any existing heavy scalars would preferentially decay to final states involving the light Higgs boson thus evading the current LHC bounds on heavy scalar states. Moreover, decays of the heavy scalars could increase the number of light Higgs bosons being produced. Since the number of light Higgs bosons decaying to Standard Model particles is within the predicted range, this could mean that part of the light Higgs bosons could have their origin in heavy scalar decays. This situation would occur if the light Higgs couplings to Standard Model particles were reduced by a concomitant amount. Using a very simple extension of the SM - the two-Higgs doublet model we show that in fact we could already be observing the effect of the heavy scalar states even if all results related to the Higgs are in excellent agreement with the Standard Model predictions.
- Automatic vehicle detection and classificationPublication . Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Marques, Gonçalo; Jorge, Pedro; Abrantes, Arnaldo; Amador, AntónioThis paper presents a proposal for an automatic vehicle detection and classification (AVDC) system. The proposed AVDC should classify vehicles accordingly to the Portuguese legislation (vehicle height over the first axel and number of axels), and should also support profile based classification. The AVDC should also fulfill the needs of the Portuguese motorway operator, Brisa. For the classification based on the profile we propose:he use of Eigenprofiles, a technique based on Principal Components Analysis. The system should also support multi-lane free flow for future integration in this kind of environments.
- Benchmarking di-Higgs production in various extended Higgs sector modelsPublication . Abouabid, Hamza; Arhrib, Abdesslam; Azevedo, Duarte; Falaki, Jaouad El; Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Muhlleitner, Milada; Santos, RuiWe present a comprehensive study on Higgs pair production in various archetypical extended Higgs sectors such as the real and the complex 2-Higgs-Doublet Model, the 2-Higgs-Doublet Model augmented by a real singlet field and the Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model. We take into account all relevant theoretical and experimental constraints, in particular the experimental limits on non-resonant and resonant Higgs pair production. We present the allowed cross sections for Standard Model (SM)-like Higgs pair production and the ranges of the SM-like Yukawa and trilinear Higgs self-coupling that are still compatible with the applied constraints. Furthermore, we give results for the pair production of a SM-like with a non-SM-like Higgs boson and for the production of a pair of non-SM-like Higgs bosons. We find that di-Higgs production in the models under investigation can exceed the SM rate substantially, not only in the non-resonance region but also due to resonant enhancement. We give several benchmarks with interesting features such as large cross sections, the possibility to test CP violation, Higgs-to-Higgs cascade decays or di-Higgs production beating single Higgs production. In all of our benchmark points, the next-to-leading order QCD corrections are included in the large top-mass limit. For these points, we found that, depending on the model and the Higgs pair final state, the corrections increase the leading order cross section by a factor of 1.79 to 2.24. We also discuss the relation between the description of Higgs pair production in an effective field theory approach and in the specific models investigated here
- CP in the darkPublication . Azevedo, Duarte; Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Muhlleitner, Milada; Patel, Shruti; Santos, Rui; Wittbrodt, JonasWe build a model containing two scalar doublets and a scalar singlet with a specific discrete symmetry. After spontaneous symmetry breaking, the model has Standard Model-like phenomenology, as well as a hidden scalar sector which provides a viable dark matter candidate. We show that CP violation in the scalar sector occurs exclusively in the hidden sector, and consider possible experimental signatures of this CP violation. In particular, we study contribution to anomalous gauge couplings from the hidden scalars.
- Electroweak vacuum lifetime in two Higgs doublet modelsPublication . Branchina, V.; Contino, F.; Ferreira, Pedro MiguelWe study the stability of neutral electroweak vacua in two Higgs doublet models, and calculate the lifetime of these states when the parameters are such that they are false vacua. As the two Higgs doublet model is invariant under a sign change of both doublets, degenerate true vacua exist. It is shown that this degeneracy, despite the fact that each of these minima locally describes the same physics, can immensely affect their lifetime. We apply these calculations to the parameter space of the models which is allowed by recent LHC searches, and infer combinations of parameters which should be excluded on grounds of a tunneling time inferior to the age of the universe.
- Five models for lepton mixingPublication . Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Lavoura, L.; Ludl, P. O.We produce five flavour models for the lepton sector. All five models fit perfectly well - at the 1 sigma level - the existing data on the neutrino mass-squared differences and on the lepton mixing angles. The models are based on the type I seesaw mechanism, on a Z(2) symmetry for each lepton flavour, and either on a (spontaneously broken) symmetry under the interchange of two lepton flavours or on a (spontaneously broken) CP symmetry incorporating that interchange - or on both symmetries simultaneously. Each model makes definite predictions both for the scale of the neutrino masses and for the phase delta in lepton mixing; the fifth model also predicts a correlation between the lepton mixing angles theta(12) and theta(23).
- Flavour symmetries in a renormalizable SO(10) modelPublication . Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Grimus, W.; Jurciukonis, D.; Lavoura, L.In the context of a renormalizable supersymmetric SO(10) Grand Unified Theory, we consider the fermion mass matrices generated by the Yukawa couplings to a 10 circle plus 120 circle plus (126) over bar representation of scalars. We perform a complete investigation of the possibilities of imposing flavour symmetries in this scenario; the purpose is to reduce the number of Yukawa coupling constants in order to identify potentially predictive models. We have found that there are only 14 inequivalent cases of Yukawa coupling matrices, out of which 13 cases are generated by 74 symmetries, with suitable n, and one case is generated by a Z(2) x Z(2) symmetry. A numerical analysis of the 14 cases reveals that only two of them-dubbed A and B in the present paper allow good fits to the experimentally known fermion masses and mixings. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
- g − 2Þμ in the 2HDM and slightly beyond: an updated viewPublication . Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Gonçalves, B. L.; Joaquim, F. R.; Sher, MarcThe recent measurement of the muon g - 2 anomaly continues to defy a Standard Model explanation but can be accommodated within the framework of two-Higgs doublet models, although the pseudoscalar mass must be fairly light. If one further includes extra fermion content in the form of a generation of vectorlike leptons, the allowed parameter range that explains the anomaly is even further extended, and clashes with B-decay constraints may be avoided. We show how the muon magnetic moment anomaly can be fit within these models, under the assumption that the vectorlike leptons do not mix with the muon. We update previous analyses and include all theoretical and experimental constraints, including searches for extra scalars. It is shown that the inclusion of vectorlike fermions allows the lepton-specific and muon-specific models to perform much better in fitting the muon's g - 2. However, these fits do require the Yukawa coupling between the Higgs and the vectorlike leptons to be large, causing potential problems with perturbativity and unitarity, and thus, models in which the vectorlike leptons mix with the muon may be preferred.
- High scale impact in alignment and decoupling in two-Higgs-doublet modelsPublication . Basler, Philipp; Ferreira, Pedro Miguel; Muehlleitner, Milada Margarete; Santos, RuiThe two-Higgs-doublet model (2HDM) provides an excellent benchmark to study physics beyond the Standard Model (SM). In this work, we discuss how the behavior of the model at high-energy scales causes it to have a scalar with properties very similar to those of the SM-which means the 2HDM can be seen to naturally favor a decoupling or alignment limit. For a type II 2HDM, we show that requiring the model to be theoretically valid up to a scale of 1 TeV, by studying the renormalization group equations (RGE) of the parameters of the model, causes a significant reduction in the allowed magnitude of the quartic couplings. This, combined with B-physics bounds, forces the model to be naturally decoupled. As a consequence, any nondecoupling limits in type II, like the wrong-sign scenario, are excluded. On the contrary, even with the very constraining limits for the Higgs couplings from the LHC, the type I model can deviate substantially from alignment. An RGE analysis similar to that made for type II shows, however, that requiring a single scalar to be heavier than about 500 GeV would be sufficient for the model to be decoupled. Finally, we show that the 2HDM is stable up to the Planck scale independently of which of the CP-even scalars is the discovered 125 GeV Higgs boson.