Search for the Standard Model Higgs boson decay to μ+μ− with the ATLAS detector

Abstract

A search is reported for Higgs boson decay to μ+μ− using data with an integrated luminosity of 24.8 fb−1 collected with the ATLAS detector in pp collisions at √s = 7 and 8 TeV at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The observed dimuon invariant mass distribution is consistent with the Standard Model background-only hypothesis in the 120–150 GeV search range. For a Higgs boson with a mass of 125.5 GeV, the observed (expected) upper limit at the 95% confidence level is 7.0 (7.2) times the Standard Model expectation. This corresponds to an upper limit on the branching ratio BR(H → μ+μ−) of <math><mn is="true">1.5</mn><mo is="true">×</mo><msup is="true"><mrow is="true"><mn is="true">10</mn></mrow><mrow is="true"><mo is="true">−</mo><mn is="true">3</mn></mrow></msup></math>.