The role of the top quark in the stability of the SM Higgs potential

I discuss the stability of the SM scalar potential in view of the discovery of a Higgs boson with mass around 125 GeV. The role played by the top quark mass in the choice between the full stability and the metastability conditions is analyzed in detail. The present experimental value of the top mass do not support the possibility that the SM potential is stable up to the Planck scale but favor an electroweak vacuum sufficiently long-lived to be metastable.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures. To appear on the Proceedings of LC13 Workshop: exploring QCD from the infrared regime to heavy flavour scales at B-factories, the LHC and a Linear Collider, 16-20 September 2013, ECT*, Villa Tambosi, Villazzano (TN), Ital

Accurate prediction of electroweak observables and impact on the Higgs mass bound

I discuss the importance of the O(g^4 m_t^2/\mw^2) corrections to the effective electroweak angle and Mw in the indirect determination of the Higgs mass. I emphasize the r\^ole of a very precise Mw measurement on the Mh estimate.Comment: 9 pages, LaTex, uses appb.sty. Talk presented at the Zeuthen Workshop on Elementary Particle Theory "Loops and Legs in Gauge Theories" Rheinsberg, Germany, April 19-24, 199

Two-loop heavy top effects on the MZ-MW interdependence

The O(alpha^2 mt^2/mw^2) correction to the relation between G_\mu and the vector boson masses is computed in the MSbar scheme, and the results are used to investigate the magnitude of the effect on the theoretical prediction of mw and sin^2\theta_\msbar(mz) from alpha, G_\mu, and mz.Comment: 11 pages, LaTeX, includes 1 LaTeX figure, uses equations.sty and cite.sty, one minor comment and interpolation function for variable mtop added, no change in the result

Current Algebra Approach to Heavy Top Effects in Z→b+bˉZ \rightarrow b+ \bar{b}

The $O(\alpha m_t^2/m_w^2)$ and $O(\alpha \alpha_s m_t^2/m_w^2)$ corrections to the partial decay width $\Gamma(Z \rightarrow b + \bar{b})$ are computed using the current algebra formulation of radiative corrections. This framework allows one to easily enforce the relevant Ward identity that greatly simplifies the calculations. As a result, the one-loop $O(\alpha m_t^2/m_w^2)$ contribution is computed through the investigation of only two convergent diagrams. The computation of the QCD corrections to the one-loop $O(\alpha m_t^2/m_w^2)$ term involves fewer diagrams than in the standard approach. In particular, the number of infrared divergent contribution is reduced. The calculation is performed in the dimensional regularization scheme and no term more divergent than $\frac{1}{n-4}$ is found. Our result confirms the screening of the one-loop top mass effect recently found by Fleischer {\em et al.}.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figures (not included) available upon request, LaTex, DFPD 93/TH/0

Constraints on the trilinear Higgs self coupling from precision observables

We present the constraints on the trilinear Higgs self coupling that arise from loop effects in the $W$ boson mass and the effective sine predictions. We compute the contributions to these precision observables of two-loop diagrams featuring an anomalous trilinear Higgs self coupling. We explicitly show that the same anomalous contributions are found if the analysis of $m_{ \scriptscriptstyle W}$ and \mbox{\sin^2 \theta^{{\rm lep}}_{{\rm eff}}} is performed in a theory in which the scalar potential in the Standard Model Lagrangian is modified by an (in)finite tower of $(\Phi^\dagger \Phi)^n$ terms with $\Phi$ the Higgs doublet. We find that the bounds on the trilinear Higgs self coupling from precision observables are competitive with those coming from Higgs pair production.Comment: 23 pages, 4 figures; V2: References added, version published on JHE

Probing the Higgs self coupling via single Higgs production at the LHC

We propose a method to determine the trilinear Higgs self coupling that is alternative to the direct measurement of Higgs pair production total cross sections and differential distributions. The method relies on the effects that electroweak loops featuring an anomalous trilinear coupling would imprint on single Higgs production at the LHC. We first calculate these contributions to all the phenomenologically relevant Higgs production ($gg{\rm F}$, VBF, $WH$, $ZH$, $t\bar tH$) and decay ($\gamma \gamma$, $WW^{*}/ZZ^{*}\to 4f$, $b\bar b$, $\tau \tau$) modes at the LHC and then estimate the sensitivity to the trilinear coupling via a one-parameter fit to the single Higgs measurements at the LHC 8 TeV. We find that the bounds on the self coupling are already competitive with those from Higgs pair production and will be further improved in the current and next LHC runs.Comment: 34 pages, 13 figures, 5 tables; V2: New appendix A added on the comparison with the Effective Field Theory approach; V3: Journal versio

Higgs boson pair production at NLO in the POWHEG approach and the top quark mass uncertainties

We present a new Monte Carlo code for Higgs boson pair production at next-to-leading order in the POWHEG-BOX Monte Carlo approach. The code is based on analytic results for the two loop virtual corrections which include the full top quark mass dependence. This feature allows to freely assign the value of all input parameters, including the trilinear Higgs boson self coupling, as well as to vary the renormalization scheme employed for the top quark mass. We study the uncertainties due to the top-mass renormalization scheme allowing the trilinear Higgs boson self coupling to vary around its Standard Model value including parton shower effects. Results are presented for both inclusive and differential observables.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figure

Precise calculation of MW, sin^2 theta_MSbar, and sin^2 theta_eff

The two-loop O(g^4 mt^2/mw^2) corrections are incorporated in the theoretical calculation of MW, sin^2 theta_MSbar(MZ), and sin^2 theta_eff, as functions of MH. The analysis is carried out in a previously proposed MSbar formulation and two novel on-shell resummation schemes. It is found that the inclusion of the new effects sharply decreases the scheme and residual scale dependence of the calculations. QCD corrections are incorporated in two different approaches. Comparison with the world average of sin^2 theta_eff leads to MH= 127 +143 -71 GeV and MW= 80.367 +/- 0.048 GeV, with small variations among the six calculations.Comment: 10 pages, Latex, 3 table

Two-loop electroweak corrections to the Higgs-boson decay H -> gamma gamma

The complete set of two-loop electroweak corrections to the decay width of the Higgs boson into two photons is presented. Two-loop contributions involving weak bosons and the top quark are computed in terms of an expansion in the Higgs external momentum. Adding these results to the previously known light fermion contributions, we find that the total electroweak corrections for a Higgs boson with 100 GeV <m_H < 150 GeV are moderate and negative, between -4% < delta_EW < 0%. Combination with the QCD corrections, which are small and positive, gives a total correction to the one-loop results of | delta_{EW+QCD}|< 1.5 %.Comment: 15 page