Search for the Standard Model Higgs Boson in the bbH Production Mode with Machine Learning Techniques at CMS

DASHH Doctoral Researcher: Maryam Bayat Makou

Supervisors: Prof. Elisabetta Gallo (DESY, UHH), Dr. Rainer Mankel (DESY), Dr. Roberval Walsh (DESY), Prof. Peer Stelldinger (HAW)

The standard model Higgs particle has been discovered by now in all production modes, except in the so-called bbH production process, in which the Higgs boson is accompanied by the presence of two b-quarks. The process is studied in this project for the first time at the LHC, using proton-proton collision data collected by the CMS experiment in 2016-2018. The signal is overwhelmed by several background processes and machine learning techniques are needed to extract a significant limit on the cross section. The analysis employs a multiclass boosted decision tree and the combination of several Higgs decay channels.