Search for a Standard Model-like Higgs boson decaying into WW to l nu qqbar in exclusive jet bins in pp collisions at sqrt s = 8 TeV

A search for a Standard Model Higgs boson decaying into the WW final state is performed with an integrated luminosity of up to 19.3~${\rm fb}^{-1}$ of pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}$~=~8~TeV in the high mass region $600 < m_{\rm H} < 1000$~GeV. This search is performed in the semi-leptonic channel, where the hadronically decaying W boson is highly boosted and its decay products are contained in one jet. Jet substructure techniques are used in identifying the hadronically decaying W. The analysis is divided into categories of additional jet activity in order to highlight the gluon fusion and vector boson fusion production mechanisms improving the sensitivity. No evidence for a standard model-like Higgs boson has been found in the investigated mass region. The results are also interpreted in a beyond the Standard Model Higgs scenario, based on an effective theory which predicts the existence of heavy Higgs singlet, with the mass of the lighter one being around 125 GeV.