PUB - Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld

Replacing elementary Higgs exchange in vector-boson scattering by an angular-momentum-zero unitarity-saturating partial wave amplitude described by a dispersion relation which incorporates low-energy gauge theory and high-energy partial-wave unitarity constraints, we find an upper bound of LAMBDA less than or similar to LAMBDA(max) congruent-to 0.8 TeV for the scale, LAMBDA, at which saturation of partial wave unitarity is to occur. Upon inserting the partial wave amplitude into a novel integral representation for the bosonic vacuum polarization contribution to the electroweak rho parameter, DELTA(rhob), we establish an upper bound on -DELTA(rhob)(less than or similar to 0.033), while for the case of the elementary Higgs scalar, the integral representation reproduces the well known m(H)/m(W) formula for DELTA(rhob). The upper bound on -DELTA(rhob) implies that the value of the mass of the top quark extracted from LEP1 measurements becomes justified even in the case when the Higgs scalar is replaced by a strong-interaction-like J = 0 partial wave.