30 October 1975 | John Ellis, Mary K. Gaillard, D.V. Nanopoulos
This paper discusses the production, decay, and observability of the Higgs boson in the context of weak and electromagnetic interactions. It reviews experimental limits on the Higgs boson mass and presents a speculative cosmological argument for a small mass. The paper explores various decay modes and production processes, including reactions such as π→Hη, γ→Hη, and K decays, where the Higgs boson may be present with branching ratios of O(10⁻⁷) or O(10⁻⁴). For masses around 4 GeV, the Higgs boson may be visible in pp→H+X and H→μ⁺μ⁻ reactions. The paper also discusses the decay branching ratios and lifetimes of the Higgs boson, noting that for masses around 10 GeV, the lifetime decreases rapidly to O(10⁻²⁰) seconds. The paper emphasizes the importance of understanding Higgs boson couplings to fundamental fermions and the role of scale invariance in estimating decay rates. It concludes that the Higgs boson's mass is likely to be small, and that experimental searches for its production and decay could provide important insights into the underlying physics.This paper discusses the production, decay, and observability of the Higgs boson in the context of weak and electromagnetic interactions. It reviews experimental limits on the Higgs boson mass and presents a speculative cosmological argument for a small mass. The paper explores various decay modes and production processes, including reactions such as π→Hη, γ→Hη, and K decays, where the Higgs boson may be present with branching ratios of O(10⁻⁷) or O(10⁻⁴). For masses around 4 GeV, the Higgs boson may be visible in pp→H+X and H→μ⁺μ⁻ reactions. The paper also discusses the decay branching ratios and lifetimes of the Higgs boson, noting that for masses around 10 GeV, the lifetime decreases rapidly to O(10⁻²⁰) seconds. The paper emphasizes the importance of understanding Higgs boson couplings to fundamental fermions and the role of scale invariance in estimating decay rates. It concludes that the Higgs boson's mass is likely to be small, and that experimental searches for its production and decay could provide important insights into the underlying physics.