Tevatron experiments double-team Higgs boson

Scientists from the CDF and DZero collaborations at DOE's Fermilab have combined Tevatron data from their two experiments to increase sensitivity for their search for the Higgs boson. While no Higgs boson has been found yet, the results announced today exclude a mass for the Higgs of 170 GeV/c2 with 95 percent probability (see graphs). This is the first time that the Tevatron experiments directly restrict the Higgs mass. Earlier experiments at the Large Electron-Positron Collider at CERN excluded a Higgs boson with a mass of less than 114 GeV/c2 at 95 percent probability. The results show that CDF and DZero are sensitive to potential Higgs signals. The Fermilab experimenters will test more and more of the available mass range for the Higgs as their experiments record more collision data and as they continue to refine their experimental analyses. The expected exclusion limit (red-dotted line with green and yellow bands in lower graph) will move up as the two collaborations collect and analyze more data. Credit: Fermilab