Searches for supersymmetry using the M_T2 variable in hadronic events produced in pp collisions at 8 TeV

Abstract: Searches for supersymmetry (SUSY) are performed using a sample of hadronic events produced in 8 TeV pp collisions at the CERN LHC. The searches are based on the M_T2 variable, which is a measure of the transverse momentum imbalance in an event. The data were collected with the CMS detector and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 19.5 fb⁻¹. Two related searches are performed. The first is an inclusive search based on signal regions defined by the value of the M_T2 variable, the hadronic energy in the event, the jet multiplicity, and the number of jets identified as originating from bottom quarks. The second is a search for a mass peak corresponding to a Higgs boson decaying to a bottom quark-antiquark pair, where the Higgs boson is produced as a decay product of a SUSY particle. For both searches, the principal backgrounds are evaluated with data control samples. No significant excess over the expected number of background events is observed, and exclusion limits on various SUSY models are derived.[Figure not available: see fulltext.]