Search for the Standard Model Higgs boson produced in association with a vector boson and decaying into a tau pair in $pp$ collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 8$ TeV with the ATLAS detector

TL;DR

This paper reports a search for the Standard Model Higgs boson produced with a vector boson and decaying into tau pairs, using 8 TeV proton-proton collision data from ATLAS, setting upper limits on the process.

Contribution

First search for Higgs production with a vector boson decaying into tau pairs at 8 TeV with ATLAS, providing upper limits and measuring the signal strength.

Findings

No significant excess over background observed.

95% CL upper limit on signal strength is 5.6.

Measured signal strength is 2.3 ± 1.6.

Abstract

A search for the Standard Model Higgs boson produced in association with a vector boson with the decay $H\rightarrow \tau\tau$ is presented. The data correspond to 20.3 fb$^{-1}$ of integrated luminosity from proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 8$ TeV recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC during 2012. The data agree with the background expectation, and 95% confidence-level upper limits are placed on the cross section of this process. The observed (expected) limit, expressed in terms of the signal strength $\mu = \sigma/\sigma_{\mathrm{SM}}$ for $m_\mathrm{H} = 125 GeV$, is $\mu <$ 5.6 (3.7). The measured value of the signal strength is $\mu = 2.3\pm1.6$.