Higgs Searches at LEP and at the Tevatron

TL;DR

This paper reviews the search for the Higgs boson at LEP and Tevatron, highlighting the hints of a 115 GeV/c2 signal, the upgrades made, and the timeline for confirmation of the discovery.

Contribution

It provides a comparative overview of Higgs search efforts at LEP and Tevatron, emphasizing the experimental hints and technological upgrades involved.

Findings

Hints of a Higgs boson at 115 GeV/c2 observed at LEP

LEP's potential for unambiguous discovery was limited by operational time

Tevatron's upgrades are crucial for confirming the Higgs signal

Abstract

After years of efforts to push the LEP performance to, and indeed beyond, the limits of what had been believed possible, hints of signal of a Higgs boson at 115GeV/c2 appeared in June 2000, were confirmed in September, and confirmed again in November. Spending an additional six-month period with LEP would have given the unambiguous opportunity of a fundamental discovery. Instead, this possibilty was handed over to the Tevatron, for which at least si more years will be needed to confirm the existence of a Higgs boson around 115GeV/c2. The upgrades performed at LEP and needed at the Tevatron, together with the physics outcomes, are briefly mentioned in turn.