Threshold resummation effects in Higgs boson pair production at the LHC

Abstract: We investigate the resummation effects in the Standard Model Higgs boson pair production through gluon-gluon fusion at the LHC with soft-collinear effective theory. We calculate the total cross section and the invariant mass distribution at Next-to-Next-to-Leading-Logarithmic level with $\pi^2$-enhanced terms resummed, which are matched to the QCD Next-to-Leading Order results. In the high order QCD predictions exact top quark mass effects are included in full form factors. Our results show that the resummation effects increase the Next-to-Leading Order results by about $20% \sim 30%$, and the scale uncertainty is reduced to 8%, which lead to increased confidence on the theoretical predictions. The PDF+$\as$ uncertainties are almost not changed after including resummation effects. We also study the sensitivities of the total cross section and the invariant mass distribution to the Higgs boson self-coupling. We find that the total cross section and the invariant mass distribution shape depend strongly on the Higgs boson self-coupling, and therefore it is possible to extract Higgs boson self-coupling from the total cross section and invariant mass distribution when the measurement precision increases at the LHC.

Analysis of Threshold Resummation Effects in Higgs Boson Pair Production at the LHC

The study conducted by Shao, Li, Li, and Wang offers an in-depth analysis of the resummation effects on Higgs boson pair production at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) through gluon-gluon fusion. Utilizing soft-collinear effective theory (SCET), the authors advance the precision of theoretical predictions by calculating the cross-section and invariant mass distribution to Next-to-Next-to-Leading-Logarithmic (NNLL) level. The integration of $\pi^2$-enhanced terms ensures a significant improvement in the reliability of predictions, achieving a reduction in the theoretical scale uncertainty to approximately 8%.

Key Findings and Methodologies

The paper delineates a notable enhancement of the Next-to-Leading-Order (NLO) results, with resummation effects increasing theoretical predictions by about 20% to 30%. This progression is crucial as it bolsters confidence in theoretical estimations required for experimental verification at the LHC. Notably, exact top quark mass effects are incorporated within the form factors, ensuring that predictions hold greater fidelity compared to approaches based solely on infinite top mass approximations.

The authors emphasize the strong dependence of the total cross section and invariant mass distribution on the Higgs boson self-coupling, thereby underscoring the potential to measure or constrain this coupling at future LHC runs with enhanced precision. The analysis suggests that with improved measurement accuracy, it becomes feasible to evaluate the Higgs self-coupling from accessible observables like the total cross section and invariant mass distribution.

Implications and Future Prospects

This research carries significant implications for both theoretical and experimental advancements at the LHC and beyond. On the theoretical front, the methodology of resumming both threshold and $\pi^2$-enhanced logarithms represents a critical step forward in precision high-energy physics calculations. This method can potentially be applied to various other processes involving complex multi-scale dynamics.

From a practical standpoint, the findings have direct implications on the planning and analysis of LHC experiments concerning Higgs boson physics. By reducing uncertainties, the study aids in refining the characterization of the Higgs sector and enhances the search for potential new physics beyond the standard model.

In light of ongoing experimental efforts, future developments in this domain will likely be directed towards further reducing theoretical uncertainties, incorporating higher order QCD corrections, and validating these models against empirical data. Such advancements could pave the way for a deeper understanding of electroweak symmetry breaking and the fundamental interactions governing particle physics.

In conclusion, this paper constitutes an essential contribution to the field of high-energy physics and challenges existing computational frameworks by successfully implementing advanced resummation techniques in the context of Higgs boson pair production. Its findings set the stage for enhanced precision analyses at the LHC, with implications that resonate across the theoretical and experimental spectrums of particle physics.