Generalized CP symmetries in three-Higgs-doublet models

We study the scalar and Yukawa sectors of three Higgs doublets models with a generalized <a:math xmlns:a="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><a:mi>C</a:mi><a:mi>P</a:mi></a:math> symmetry. Imposing the symmetry on the quadratic and quartic couplings of the scalar potential, we show that there are only four classes of scalar potentials, merely one more than in two-Higgs-doublet models (2HDM). Two 3HDM cases are analogs of two 2HDM cases, while the other 2HDM case splits here into two distinct potentials. In 2HDM with generalized <c:math xmlns:c="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><c:mi>C</c:mi><c:mi>P</c:mi></c:math> symmetries extended to the Yukawa sector, there are only two possible cases: the usual <e:math xmlns:e="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><e:mi>C</e:mi><e:mi>P</e:mi></e:math>, with 18 real Yukawa couplings; and a minimal generalized <g:math xmlns:g="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><g:mi>C</g:mi><g:mi>P</g:mi></g:math> model, with 12 real Yukawa parameters. In contrast, with three Higgs there is a rich variety of allowed models. We classify all possible Yukawa textures, showing that there are 40 possibilities, several of which have only 10 real Yukawa couplings.