Gravitational waves from $\rm{SU(}$$N$$\rm{)/Sp(}$$N$$\rm{)}$ composite Higgs models

TL;DR

This paper investigates the potential for strong first-order electroweak phase transitions in Composite Higgs models derived from strongly interacting gauge theories, and assesses their detectability via future gravitational wave experiments.

Contribution

It analyzes a broad class of Composite Higgs models with fermion partial compositeness and identifies parameter regions producing detectable gravitational wave signals.

Findings

Many models exhibit strong first-order phase transitions.

Most of these transitions are within reach of future GW detectors.

Models include complex scalar dark matter candidates for N>4.

Abstract

We study possible strong first-order electroweak phase transitions in Composite Higgs models and we quantify the part of parameter space that can be probed with future gravitational Wave experiments. We focus on models where the Composite Higgs sector arises from underlying four-dimensional strongly interacting gauge theories with fermions, and where the Standard Model fermion masses are induced via linear mixing terms with composite fermions -- the so-called fermion partial compositeness framework. We perform our analysis for the general class of Composite Higgs models arising from $ N $ Weyl fermions in a pseudo-real representation of the new strongly interacting gauge group that dynamically triggers the global chiral symmetry breaking pattern $\rm{SU(}$$N$$\rm{)}\rightarrow \rm{Sp(}$$N$$\rm{)}$. The minimal model has $ N=4 $ and for $ N>4 $ the models feature complex scalar dark matter candidates arising as pseudo-Nambu-Goldstone bosons. We find a large number of points in the models parameter space which yield strong first-order electroweak phase transitions and identify the most important operators characterizing the strength of the phase transition. Almost all of these points are testable with future GW detectors such as LISA, Taiji, Tianqin, BBO, DECIGO and Ultimate-DECIGO.