In this paper we probe the inert Higgs doublet model at the LHC using vector boson fusion (VBF) search strategy. We optimize the selection cuts and investigate the parameter space of the model and we show that the VBF search has a better reach when compared with the monojet searches. We also investigate the Drell-Yan type cuts and show that they can be important for smaller charged Higgs masses. We determine the $3\sigma$ reach for the parameter space using these optimized cuts for a luminosity of $3000{\mathrm{fb}}^{-1}$.

• Received 4 December 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.97.055045

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI. Funded by SCOAP³.

Published by the American Physical Society