A new search strategy for the Higgs boson

Abstract

We propose a novel mechanism for exclusive diffractive Higgs production $pp \to Hpp$, in which the Higgs carries a significant fraction of the projectile proton's momentum. This mechanism will then provide a clear experimental signal for Higgs production, due to the small background in this kinematic region. The key assumption underlying our analysis is the presence of intrinsic charm (IC) and intrinsic bottom (IB) fluctuations in the proton bound state, whose existence, at high light-cone momentum fraction $x$, has a substantial and growing experimental and theoretical support.