Decays of the Higgs boson into a Z boson and a J/$\psi$ or $\psi$(2S) meson are searched for in four-lepton final states with the CMS detector at the LHC. A data set of proton-proton collisions corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$ is used. Using the same data set, decays of the Higgs and Z boson into quarkonium pairs are also searched for. An observation of such decays with this sample would indicate the presence of physics beyond the standard model. No evidence for these decays has been observed and upper limits at the 95% confidence level are placed on the corresponding branching fractions ($\mathcal{B}$). Assuming longitudinal polarization of the Higgs boson decay products, 95% confidence level observed upper limits for $\mathcal{B}$(H $\to$ J/$\psi$) and $\mathcal{B}$(H $\to$ Z$\psi$(2S)) are 1.9$\times$10$^{-3}$ and 6.6$\times$10$^{-3}$, respectively.

A search is conducted for a low-mass charged Higgs boson produced in a top quark decay and subsequently decaying into a charm and a strange quark. The data sample was recorded in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV by the CMS experiment at the LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$. The search is performed in the process of top quark pair production, where one top quark decays to a bottom quark and a charged Higgs boson, and the other to a bottom quark and a W boson. With the W boson decaying to a charged lepton (electron or muon) and a neutrino, the final state comprises an isolated lepton, missing transverse momentum, and at least four jets, of which two are tagged as b jets. To enhance the search sensitivity, one of the jets originating from the charged Higgs boson is required to satisfy a charm tagging selection. No significant excess beyond standard model predictions is found in the dijet invariant mass distribution. An upper limit in the range 1.68-0.25% is set on the branching fraction of the top quark decay to the charged Higgs boson and bottom quark for a charged Higgs boson mass between 80 and 160 GeV.

A search for long-lived particles decaying into jets is presented. Data were collected with the CMS detector at the LHC from proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV in 2016, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$. The search examines the distinctive topology of displaced tracks and secondary vertices. The selected events are found to be consistent with standard model predictions. For a simplified model in which long-lived neutral particles are pair produced and decay to two jets, pair production cross sections larger than 0.2 fb are excluded at 95% confidence level for a long-lived particle mass larger than 1000 GeV and proper decay lengths between 3 and 130 mm. Several supersymmetry models with gauge-mediated supersymmetry breaking or $R$-parity violation, where pair-produced long-lived gluinos or top squarks decay to several final-state topologies containing displaced jets, are also tested. For these models, in the mass ranges above 200 GeV, gluino masses up to 2300-2400 GeV and top squark masses up to 1350-1600 GeV are excluded for proper decay lengths approximately between 10 and 100 mm. These are the most restrictive limits to date on these models.

A measurement of the W$^+$W$^-$ boson pair production cross section in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV is presented. The data used in this study are collected with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$. The W$^+$W$^-$ candidate events are selected by requiring two oppositely charged leptons (electrons or muons). Two methods for reducing background contributions are employed. In the first one, a sequence of requirements on kinematic quantities is applied allowing a measurement of the total production cross section: 117.6 $\pm$ 6.8 pb, which agrees well with the theoretical prediction. Fiducial cross sections are also reported for events with zero or one jet, and the change in the zero-jet fiducial cross section with the jet transverse momentum threshold is measured. Normalized differential cross sections are reported within the fiducial region. A second method for suppressing background contributions employs two random forest classifiers. The analysis based on this method includes a measurement of the total production cross section and also a measurement of the normalized jet multiplicity distribution in W$^+$W$^-$ events. Finally, a dilepton invariant mass distribution is used to probe for physics beyond the standard model in the context of an effective field theory, and constraints on the presence of dimension-6 operators are derived.

This Letter describes a search for Higgs boson pair production using the combined results from four final states: bb$\gamma\gamma$, bb$\tau\tau$, bbbb, and bbVV, where V represents a W or Z boson. The search is performed using data collected in 2016 by the CMS experiment from LHC proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$. Limits are set on the Higgs boson pair production cross section. A 95% confidence level observed (expected) upper limit on the nonresonant production cross section is set at 22.2 (12.8) times the standard model value. A search for narrow resonances decaying to Higgs boson pairs is also performed in the mass range 250-3000 GeV. No evidence for a signal is observed, and upper limits are set on the resonance production cross section.

A search for an extended Higgs sector, characterized by a massive resonance X decaying to a pair of spin-0 bosons $\phi$ that themselves decay to pairs of bottom quarks, is presented. The analysis is restricted to the mass ranges $m_\phi$ from 25 to 100 GeV and $m_\mathrm{X}$ from 1 to 3 TeV. For these mass ranges, the decay products of each $\phi$ boson are expected to merge into a single large-radius jet. Jet substructure and flavor identification techniques are used to identify these jets. The search is based on CERN LHC proton-proton collision data at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV, collected with the CMS detector in 2016-2018, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb$^{-1}$. Model-specific limits are set on the product of the production cross section and branching fraction for X $\to$$\phi\phi$$\to$$(\mathrm{b\bar{b}})(\mathrm{b\bar{b}})$ as a function of mass, where both the X $\to$$\phi\phi$ and $\phi$$\to$$\mathrm{b\bar{b}}$ branching fractions are assumed to be 100%. These limits are the first of their kind on this process, ranging between 30 and 1 fb at 95% confidence level for the considered mass ranges.

A search for leptoquarks produced singly and in pairs in proton-proton collisions is presented. We consider the leptoquark (LQ) to be a scalar particle of charge -1/3$e$ coupling to a top quark plus a tau lepton ($\mathrm{t}\tau$) or a bottom quark plus a neutrino ($\mathrm{b}\nu$), or a vector particle of charge +2/3$e$, coupling to $\mathrm{t}\nu$ or $\mathrm{b}\tau$. These choices are motivated by models that can explain a series of anomalies observed in the measurement of B meson decays. In this analysis the signatures $\mathrm{t}\tau\nu\mathrm{b}$ and $\mathrm{t}\tau\nu$ are probed, using data recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC at $\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV and that correspond to an integrated luminosity of 137 fb$^{-1}$. These signatures have not been previously explored in a dedicated search. The data are found to be in agreement with the standard model prediction. Lower limits at 95% confidence level are set on the LQ mass in the range 0.98-1.73 TeV, depending on the LQ spin and its coupling $\lambda$ to a lepton and a quark, and assuming equal branching fractions for the two LQ decay modes considered. These are the most stringent constraints to date on the existence of leptoquarks in this scenario.

A search is performed for neutral non-standard-model Higgs bosons decaying to two muons in the context of the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM). Proton-proton collision data recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV were used, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$. The search is sensitive to neutral Higgs bosons produced via the gluon fusion process or in association with a $\mathrm{b\overline{b}}$ quark pair. No significant deviations from the standard model expectation are observed. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are set in the context of the $m_\mathrm{h}^{\text{mod+}}$ and phenomenological MSSM scenarios on the parameter $\tan\beta$ as a function of the mass of the pseudoscalar A boson, in the range from 130 to 600 GeV. The results are also used to set a model-independent limit on the product of the branching fraction for the decay into a muon pair and the cross section for the production of a scalar neutral boson, either via gluon fusion, or in association with b quarks, in the mass range from 130 to 1000 GeV.

The results of a search for a standard model-like Higgs boson in the mass range between 70 and 110 GeV decaying into two photons are presented. The analysis uses the data set collected with the CMS experiment in proton-proton collisions during the 2012 and 2016 LHC running periods. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 19.7 (35.9) fb$^{-1}$ at $\sqrt{s} =$8 (13) TeV. The expected and observed 95% confidence level upper limits on the product of the cross section and branching fraction into two photons are presented. The observed upper limit for the 2012 (2016) data set ranges from 129 (161) fb to 31 (26) fb. The statistical combination of the results from the analyses of the two data sets in the common mass range between 80 and 110 GeV yields an upper limit on the product of the cross section and branching fraction, normalized to that for a standard model-like Higgs boson, ranging from 0.7 to 0.2, with two notable exceptions: one in the region around the Z boson peak, where the limit rises to 1.1, which may be due to the presence of Drell-Yan dielectron production where electrons could be misidentified as isolated photons, and a second due to an observed excess with respect to the standard model prediction, which is maximal for a mass hypothesis of 95.3 GeV with a local (global) significance of 2.8 (1.3) standard deviations.

A search for a new $Z'$ gauge boson predicted by $L_{\mu}-L_{\tau}$ models, based on charged-current Drell-Yan production, $pp \rightarrow W^{\pm(*)} \rightarrow Z' \mu^{\pm} \nu \rightarrow \mu^{\pm}\mu^{\mp}\mu^{\pm}\nu$, is presented. The data sample used corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 140 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 13$ TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The search examines a final state of $3\mu$ plus large missing transverse momentum. Upper limits are set on the $Z'$ production cross-section times branching ratio in the mass range of 5-81 GeV. After combining with the previous $Z'$ search using the neutral-current Drell-Yan production with a $4\mu$ final state, the most stringent exclusion limits to date are achieved in the parameter space of the $Z'$ coupling strength and mass.