Search for the Standard Model Higgs boson in the H to tau+ tau- decay mode in sqrt(s) = 7 TeV pp collisions with ATLAS

TL;DR

This paper reports a search for the Standard Model Higgs boson decaying into tau pairs using ATLAS data at 7 TeV, setting upper limits on production cross sections without observing a significant signal.

Contribution

First search for H to tau+ tau- decays at 7 TeV with ATLAS, providing upper limits on cross section times branching ratio in the 100-150 GeV range.

Findings

No significant excess observed over background.

Upper limits on cross section times branching ratio are between 2.9 and 11.7 times the Standard Model prediction.

Results constrain Higgs boson production in the tau decay channel.

Abstract

A search for the Standard Model Higgs boson decaying into a pair of tau leptons is reported. The analysis is based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions collected by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.7 fb^-1. No significant excess over the expected background is observed in the Higgs boson mass range of 100-150 GeV. The observed (expected) upper limits on the cross section times the branching ratio for H to tau+ tau- are found to be between 2.9 (3.4) and 11.7 (8.2) times the Standard Model prediction for this mass range.