Higgs vacuum stability, neutrino mass, and dark matter

Abstract

Recent results from ATLAS and CMS point to a narrow range for the Higgs mass: M_H∈(124,126)  GeV. Given this range, a case may be made for new physics beyond the Standard Model (SM) because of the resultant vacuum stability problem, i.e., the SM Higgs quartic coupling may run to negative values at a scale below the Planck scale. We study representative minimal extensions of the SM that can keep the SM Higgs vacuum stable to the Planck scale by introducing new scalar or fermion interactions at the TeV scale while solving other phenomenological problems. In particular, we consider the type-II seesaw model, which is introduced to explain the nonzero Majorana masses of the active neutrinos. Similarly, we observe that if the stability of the SM Higgs vacuum is ensured by the running of the gauge sector couplings, then one may require a series of new electroweak multiplets, the neutral component of which can be a cold dark matter candidate. Stability may also point to a new U(1) gauge symmetry, in which the SM Higgs carries a nonzero charge.