Search for narrow H$\gamma$ resonances in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV

Abstract

A search for heavy, narrow resonances decaying to a Higgs boson and a photon (H$\gamma$) has been performed in proton-proton collision data at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$ collected with the CMS detector at the LHC in 2016. Events containing a photon and a Lorentz-boosted hadronically decaying Higgs boson that is reconstructed as a single, large-radius jet are considered, and the $\gamma$+jet invariant mass spectrum is analyzed for the presence of narrow resonances. To increase the sensitivity of the search, events are categorized depending on whether the large-radius jet can be identified as a result of the merging of two jets originating from b quarks. Results in both categories are found to agree with the predictions of the standard model. Upper limits on the production of H$\gamma$ resonances are set as a function of the resonance mass in the range of 720-3250 GeV, representing the most stringent constraints to date.