Symmetry breaking patterns in 3HDM

TL;DR

This paper systematically analyzes how discrete symmetry groups in three-Higgs-doublet models (3HDM) break at the vacuum level, revealing patterns with implications for CP-violation and broader multi-scalar theories.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive classification of symmetry breaking patterns in 3HDM, including all allowed discrete groups and their vacuum alignments, advancing understanding of symmetry breaking in multi-Higgs models.

Findings

Classified all possible symmetry breaking patterns in 3HDM.

Identified the relationship between symmetry breaking and CP-violation.

Revealed general features applicable to multi-scalar sectors.

Abstract

An attractive feature of New Physics models with multiple Higgs fields is that they are equipped with discrete symmetry groups in the Higgs and flavour sectors. These symmetry groups are often broken at the global minimum of the Higgs potential, either completely or to a proper subgroup, with certain phenomenological consequences. Here, we systematically explore these symmetry breaking patterns in the scalar sector of the three-Higgs-doublet model (3HDM). We use the full list of discrete symmetry groups allowed in 3HDM, and for each group we find all possible ways it can break by the Higgs vacuum expectation value alignment. We also discuss the interplay between these symmetry groups and various forms of CP-violation in the scalar sector of 3HDM. Not only do our results solve the problem for 3HDM, but they also hint at several general features in multi-scalar sectors.