Isolated prompt photon photoproduction at NLO

We present a full next-to-leading order code to calculate the photoproduction of prompt photons. The code is a general purpose program of partonic event generator type with large flexibility. We study the possibility to constrain the photon structure functions and comment on isolation issues. A comparison to ZEUS data is also shown.Comment: 22 pages LaTeX, 15 figure

Is a Large Intrinsic k_T Needed to Describe Photon + Jet Photoproduction at HERA?

We study the photoproduction of an isolated photon and a jet based on a code of partonic event generator type which includes the full set of next-to-leading order corrections. We compare our results to a recent ZEUS analysis in which an effective k_T of the incoming partons has been determined. We find that no additional intrinsic k_T is needed to describe the data.Comment: 23 pages LaTeX, 12 figure

A NLO calculation of the hadron-jet cross section in photoproduction reactions

We study the photoproduction of large-p_T charged hadrons in e p collisions, both for the inclusive case and for the case where a jet in the final state is also measured. Our results are obtained by a NLO generator of partonic events. We discuss the sensitivity of the cross section to the renormalisation and factorisation scales, and to various fragmentation function parametrisations. The possibility to constrain the parton densities in the proton and in the photon is assessed. Comparisons are made with H1 data for inclusive charged hadron production.Comment: 28 pages LaTeX, 14 figure

Next-To-Leading Order Determination of Fragmentation Functions

We analyse LEP and PETRA data on single inclusive charged hadron cross-sections to establish new sets of Next-to-Leading order Fragmentation Functions. Data on hadro-production of large-$p_{\bot}$ hadrons are also used to constrain the gluon Fragmentation Function. We carry out a critical comparison with other NLO parametrizations

Stable One-Dimensional Integral Representations of One-Loop N-Point Functions in the General Massive Case: I - Three Point Functions

In this article we provide representations for the one-loop three point functions in 4 and 6 dimensions in the general case with complex masses. The latter are part of the GOLEM library used for the computation of one-loop multileg amplitudes. These representations are one-dimensional integrals designed to be free of instabilites induced by inverse powers of Gram determinants, therefore suitable for stable numerical implementations.Comment: 40 pages, 1 figur

A next-to-leading order study of photon-pion and pion pair hadro-production in the light of the Higgs boson search at the LHC

We discuss the production of photon-pion and pion pairs with a large invariant mass at collider energies. We present a study based on a perturbative QCD calculation at full next-to-leading order accuracy, implemented in the computer programme DIPHOX. We give estimations for various observables, which concern the reducible background to the Higgs boson search in the channel H --> gamma gamma, in the mass range 80-140 GeV at the LHC. We critically discuss the reliability of these estimates due to our imperfect knowledge of fragmentation functions at high z and a subtle interplay between higher order corrections and realistic experimental cuts. We conclude that, whereas the invariant mass spectrum of photon-pion pairs is theoretically better under control, in the dipion case large uncertainties remain.Comment: 26 pages Latex, 14 eps figures, replaced by published versio

A full Next to Leading Order study of direct photon pair production in hadronic collisions

We discuss the production of photon pairs in hadronic collisions, from fixed target to LHC energies. The study which follows is based on a QCD calculation at full next-to-leading order accuracy, including single and double fragmentation contributions, and implemented in the form of a general purpose computer program of "partonic event generator" type. To illustrate the possibilities of this code, we present the comparison with observables measured by the WA70 and D0 collaborations, and some predictions for the irreducible background to the search of Higgs bosons at LHC in the channel $h \to \gamma \gamma$. We also discuss theoretical scale uncertainties for these predictions, and examine several infrared sensitive situations which deserve further study.Comment: 45 pages Latex, 16 eps files plus some metafont files; replaced by the version to appear in Eur. Phys. J.

Large-p_T Inclusive pi^0 Cross Sections and Next-to-Leading-Order QCD Predictions

We review the phenomenology of pi^0 production at large transverse momentum in proton-induced collisions. Uncertainties in the next-to-leading-order predictions of Quantum Chromodynamics are discussed. The comparison with data reveals that the disagreement between theory and experiment lies essentially in an overall normalization factor. The situation for pi^0 production is contrasted with that of prompt-photon production in hadronic collisions.Comment: 21 pages (Latex), 13 figures (Postscript