Many Light Higgs Bosons in the NMSSM

Abstract

The next-to-minimal supersymmetric model with a light doublet-like CP-odd Higgs boson and small $\tan \beta$ can satisfy all experimental limits on Higgs bosons even with light superpartners. In these scenarios, the two lightest CP-even Higgs bosons, $\hi$ and $\hii$, and the charged Higgs boson, $\hp$, can all be light enough to be produced at LEP and yet have decays that have not been looked for or are poorly constrained by existing collider experiments. The channel $\hi\to \ai\ai$ (where $\ai$ is the lightest CP-odd boson and has mass below $2m_b$) with $\ai\to \tau^+\tau^-$ or $2j$ is still awaiting LEP constraints for $\mhi>86\gev$ or $82\gev$, respectively. LEP data may also contain $\epem\to \hii\ai$ events where $\hii\to Z\ai$ is the dominant decay, a channel that was never examined. Decays of the charged Higgs bosons are often dominated by $H^\pm \to W^{\pm (\star)} \ai$ with $\ai \to gg,c \bar c, \tau^+ \tau^-$. This is a channel that has so far been ignored in the search for $t\to \hp b$ decays at the Tevatron. A specialized analysis might reveal a signal. The light $\ai$ might be within the reach of $B$ factories via $\Upsilon\to \gamma \ai$ decays. We study typical mass ranges and branching ratios of Higgs bosons in this scenario and compare these scenarios where the $\ai$ has a large doublet component to the more general scenarios with arbitrary singlet component for the $\ai$.