Dimension-6 Operator Constraints from Boosted VBF Higgs

Abstract

We discuss the constraints on new physics from Higgs production through vector boson fusion in the context of an effective field theory that preserves Standard Model gauge symmetries. We find that the constraints on dimension-6 operators are significantly improved over those from the VBF signal strength by studying the Higgs transverse momentum distribution. Focusing on the $\mathcal{O}_{HW}$ operator, we find that boosted VBF decaying to photons yields constraints competitive with boosted WW production in the fully leptonic final state, and calculate projected limits for both at the 14 TeV LHC. The $p_T$ cuts required to maximize the the reach of VBF searches are substantially softer, making the use of the effective field theory more robust than in the case of WW production which requires very high $p_T$ cuts to obtain similar limits. Boosted VBF Higgs is thus an important probe of new physics.