Are light sneutrinos buried in LEP data?

Supersymmetry may resolve the disagreement between the precision electroweak data and the direct limit on the higgs mass, if there are light sneutrinos in the mass range 55 GeV < m_{\snu} < 80 GeV. Such sneutrinos should decay invisibly with 100% branching ratio and contribute to the $\gamma$ + missing energy signal, investigated by all the LEP groups. It is shown that while the data accumulated by a single group may not be adequate to reveal such sneutrinos, a combined analysis of the data collected by all four groups will be sensitive to m_{\snu} in the above range. If no signal is found a lower bound on m_{\snu} stronger than that obtained from the $Z$-pole data may emerge.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX, 1 postscript figure included, uses epsfig.sty Minor revisions in the discussion of future prospects, 1 ref adde

h→γγh \rightarrow \gamma \gamma in U(1)R−U(1)_{R}- lepton number model with a right-handed neutrino

We perform a detailed study of the signal rate of the lightest Higgs boson in the diphoton channel ($\mu_{\gamma \gamma}$), recently analyzed by both the ATLAS and CMS collaborations at the Large Hadron Collider, in the framework of $U(1)_R-$ lepton number model with a right handed neutrino superfield. The corresponding neutrino Yukawa coupling, `$f$', plays a very important role in the phenomenology of this model. A large value of $f\sim\mathcal O(1)$ provides an additional tree level contribution to the lightest Higgs boson mass along with a very light (mass $\sim$ a few hundred MeV) bino like neutralino and a small tree level mass of one of the active neutrinos that is compatible with various experimental results. In the presence of this light neutralino, the invisible decay width of the Higgs boson can become important. We studied this scenario in conjunction with the recent LHC results. The signal rate $\mu_{\gamma\gamma}$ obtained in this scenario is compatible with the recent results from both the ATLAS and the CMS collaborations at 1$\sigma$ level. A small value of `$f$', on the other hand, is compatible with a sterile neutrino acting as a 7 keV dark matter that can explain the observation of a mono-energetic X-ray photon line by the XMM-Newton X-ray observatory. We also study the impact of $\mu_{\gamma\gamma}$ in this case.Comment: 45 pages, Corrected a sign error in the numerical code and included the correct symmetry factor in Eq.(B.8). One figure removed, some modifications in the text, conclusions partially changed. Erratum published in JHE

Effects of SO(10) D-Terms on SUSY Signals at the Tevatron

We study signals for the production of superparticles at the Tevatron in supergravity scenarios based on the Grand Unified group SO(10). The breaking of this group introduces extra contributions to the masses of all scalars, described by a single new parameter. We find that varying this parameter can considerably change the size of various expected signals studied in the literature, with different numbers of jets and/or charged leptons in the final state. The ratios of these signal can thus serve as a diagnostic to detect or constrain deviations from the much--studied scenario where all scalar masses are universal at the GUT scale. Moreover, under favorable circumstances some of these signals, and/or new signals involving hard $b-$jets, should be observable at the next run of the Tevatron collider even if the average scalar mass lies well above the gluino mass.Comment: 17 pages, LaTeX including 3 postscript figures, uses equation.st

Associated Higgs Production in CP-violating supersymmetry: probing the `open hole' at the Large Hadron Collider

A benchmark CP-violating supersymmetric scenario (known in the literature as `CPX-scenario') is studied in the context of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It is shown that the LHC, with low to moderate accumulated luminosity, will be able to probe the existing `hole' in the $m_{h_1}$-$\tan\beta$ plane, which cannot be ruled out by the Large Electron Positron Collider data. This can be done through associated production of Higgs bosons with top quark and top squark pairs leading to the signal \emph{dilepton + $\leq{5}$ jets (including 3 b-jets) + missing ${p_T}$}. Efficient discrimination of such a CP-violating supersymmetric scenario from other contending ones is also possible at the LHC with a moderate volume of data.Comment: LaTeX, 19 pages, 5 figures, added references for section 2, typos correcte

LHC Signature of the Minimal SUGRA Model with a Large Soft Scalar Mass

Thanks to the focus point phenomenon, it is quite {\it natural} for the minimal SUGRA model to have a large soft scalar mass m_0 > 1 TeV. A distinctive feature of this model is an inverted hierarchy, where the lighter stop has a significantly smaller mass than the other squarks and sleptons. Consequently, the gluino is predicted to decay dominantly via stop exchange into a channel containing 2b and 2W along with the LSP. We exploit this feature to construct a robust signature for this model at the LHC in leptonic channels with 3-4 b-tags and a large missing-E_T.Comment: Small clarifications added. Final version to appear in Phys. Lett.

Exploring viable vacua of the Z3Z_3-symmetric NMSSM

We explore the vacua of the $Z_3$-symmetric Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (NMSSM) and their stability by going beyond the simplistic paradigm that works with a tree-level neutral scalar potential and adheres to some specific flat directions in the field space. Key effects are demonstrated by first studying the profiles of this potential under various circumstances of physical interest via a semi-analytical approach. The results thereof are compared to the ones obtained from a dedicated package like \veva ~which further incorporates the thermal effects to the potential. Regions of the phenomenological NMSSM (pNMSSM) parameter space that render the desired symmetry breaking (DSB) vacuum absolutely stable, long- or short-lived (in relation to the age of the Universe) under quantum/thermal tunneling are delineated. Regions that result in color and charge breaking (CCB) minima are also presented. It is demonstrated that light singlet scalars along with a light LSP (lightest supersymmetric particle) having an appreciable singlino admixture are compatible with a viable DSB vacuum and are much relevant for the collider experiments.Comment: 52 pages, 19 figures, 4 tables; matches with published versio

Testing Gauge-Gravitino Coupling in Gauge-Mediated Supersymmetry Breaking Through Single Photon Events

We show that the process $e^+e^- \to \gamma+$ missing energy, arising from the pair production of neutralinos, can probe the \gamma-\tilde\gamma- \gravitino as well as the Z-\tilde Z-\gravitino couplings in Gauge Mediated Supersymmetry Breaking models. This enables one to study the mutual relationship of the Goldstino couplings of the different gauginos, a feature whose testability has not been emphasized so far. The Standard Model backgrounds get suppresed with the use of a right polarized electron beam. The energy and angular distribution of the emitted photon can distinguish such models from the minimal supersymmetric theory and its variants.Comment: Revised version to be published in Physics Letters B. Some minor changes were mad