Search for dark matter produced in association with a pair of bottom quarks in proton-proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV

A search for dark matter (DM) particles produced in association with bottom quarks is presented. The analysis uses proton-proton collision data at a center-of-mass energy of √s = 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 fb⁻¹. The search is performed in the final state with large missing transverse momentum and a pair of jets originating from bottom quarks. No significant excess of data is observed with respect to the standard model expectation. Results are interpreted in the context of a type-II two-Higgs-doublet model with an additional light pseudoscalar (2HDM+a). An upper limit is set on the mass of the lighter pseudoscalar, excluding masses up to 260 GeV at 95% confidence level. This is the first search at the LHC to probe DM produced in association with two nonresonant bottom quarks in the 2HDM+a model. Sensitivity to the parameter space with the ratio of the vacuum expectation values of the two Higgs doublets, tanβ, greater than 15 is achieved, capitalizing on the enhancement of couplings between pseudoscalars and bottom quarks with high tanβ.