Next-to-leading order QCD corrections to spin-dependent hadron-pair photoproduction

We compute the next-to-leading order QCD corrections to the ``direct'' part of the spin-dependent cross section for hadron-pair photoproduction. The calculation is performed using largely analytical methods. We present a brief phenomenological study of our results focussing on the $K$-factors and scale dependence of the next-to-leading order cross sections. This process is relevant for the extraction of the gluon polarization in present and future spin-dependent lepton-nucleon scattering experiments.Comment: 9 pages, 2 eps figure

Heavy quarkonium: progress, puzzles, and opportunities

A golden age for heavy quarkonium physics dawned a decade ago, initiated by the confluence of exciting advances in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and an explosion of related experimental activity. The early years of this period were chronicled in the Quarkonium Working Group (QWG) CERN Yellow Report (YR) in 2004, which presented a comprehensive review of the status of the field at that time and provided specific recommendations for further progress. However, the broad spectrum of subsequent breakthroughs, surprises, and continuing puzzles could only be partially anticipated. Since the release of the YR, the BESII program concluded only to give birth to BESIII; the $B$-factories and CLEO-c flourished; quarkonium production and polarization measurements at HERA and the Tevatron matured; and heavy-ion collisions at RHIC have opened a window on the deconfinement regime. All these experiments leave legacies of quality, precision, and unsolved mysteries for quarkonium physics, and therefore beg for continuing investigations. The plethora of newly-found quarkonium-like states unleashed a flood of theoretical investigations into new forms of matter such as quark-gluon hybrids, mesonic molecules, and tetraquarks. Measurements of the spectroscopy, decays, production, and in-medium behavior of c\bar{c}, b\bar{b}, and b\bar{c} bound states have been shown to validate some theoretical approaches to QCD and highlight lack of quantitative success for others. The intriguing details of quarkonium suppression in heavy-ion collisions that have emerged from RHIC have elevated the importance of separating hot- and cold-nuclear-matter effects in quark-gluon plasma studies. This review systematically addresses all these matters and concludes by prioritizing directions for ongoing and future efforts.Comment: 182 pages, 112 figures. Editors: N. Brambilla, S. Eidelman, B. K. Heltsley, R. Vogt. Section Coordinators: G. T. Bodwin, E. Eichten, A. D. Frawley, A. B. Meyer, R. E. Mitchell, V. Papadimitriou, P. Petreczky, A. A. Petrov, P. Robbe, A. Vair

Inclusive Jet Production in Two-Photon Collisions at LEP

Inclusive jet production, e+e- -> e+e- \ee$ jet X, is studied using 560/pb of data collected at LEP with the L3 detector at centre-of-mass energies between 189 and 209 GeV. The inclusive differential cross section is measured using a k_t jet algorithm as a function of the jet transverse momentum, pt, in the range 3<pt<50 GeV for a pseudorapidity, eta, in the range -1<eta<1. This cross section is well represented by a power law. For high pt, the measured cross section is significantly higher than the NLO QCD predictions, as already observed for inclusive charged and neutral pion production

Quarkonium Physics at a Fixed-Target Experiment using the LHC Beams

We outline the many quarkonium-physics opportunities offered by a multi-purpose fixed-target experiment using the p and Pb LHC beams extracted by a bent crystal. This provides an integrated luminosity of 0.5 fb-1 per year on a typical 1cm-long target. Such an extraction mode does not alter the performance of the collider experiments at the LHC. With such a high luminosity, one can analyse quarkonium production in great details in pp, pd and pA collisions at sqrt(sNN)~115 GeV and at sqrt(sNN)~72 GeV in PbA collisions. In a typical pp (pA) run, the obtained quarkonium yields per unit of rapidity are 2-3 orders of magnitude larger than those expected at RHIC and about respectively 10 (70) times larger than for ALICE. In PbA, they are comparable. By instrumenting the target-rapidity region, the large negative-xF domain can be accessed for the first time, greatly extending previous measurements by Hera-B and E866. Such analyses should help resolving the quarkonium-production controversies and clear the way for gluon PDF extraction via quarkonium studies. The nuclear target-species versatility provides a unique opportunity to study nuclear matter and the features of the hot and dense matter formed in PbA collisions. A polarised proton target allows the study of transverse-spin asymmetries in J/psi and Upsilon production, providing access to the gluon and charm Sivers functions.Comment: Proceedings of the workshop "30 years of strong interactions", Spa, Belgium, 6-8 April 2011. Version to appear in Few-Body Systems. 14 pages, 2 tables, LaTe

Measurement of the Photon Structure Function F2gamma with the L3 Detector at LEP

The e+e- -> e+e- hadrons reaction, where one of the two electrons is detected in a low polar-angle calorimeter, is analysed in order to measure the hadronic photon structure function F2gamma . The full high-energy and high-luminosity data set, collected with the L3 detector at centre-of-mass energies 189-209GeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 608/pb is used. The Q^2 range 11-34GeV^2 and the x range 0.006-0.556 are considered. The data are compared with recent parton density functions

Collider aspects of flavour physics at high Q

This review presents flavour related issues in the production and decays of heavy states at LHC, both from the experimental side and from the theoretical side. We review top quark physics and discuss flavour aspects of several extensions of the Standard Model, such as supersymmetry, little Higgs model or models with extra dimensions. This includes discovery aspects as well as measurement of several properties of these heavy states. We also present public available computational tools related to this topic.Comment: Report of Working Group 1 of the CERN Workshop ``Flavour in the era of the LHC'', Geneva, Switzerland, November 2005 -- March 200

Dijet production in √s = 7 TeV pp collisions with large rapidity gaps at the ATLAS experiment

A 6.8 nb−¹ sample of pp collision data collected under low-luminosity conditions at √s = 7 TeV by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider is used to study diffractive dijet production. Events containing at least two jets with pT > 20 GeV are selected and analysed in terms of variables which discriminate between diffractive and non-diffractive processes. Cross sections are measured differentially in ΔηF, the size of the observable forward region of pseudorapidity which is devoid of hadronic activity, and in an estimator, ξ˜, of the fractional momentum loss of the proton assuming single diffractive dissociation (pp → p X). Model comparisons indicate a dominant non-diffractive contribution up to moderately large ηF and small ξ˜, with a diffractive contribution which is significant at the highest ΔηF and the lowest ξ˜. The rapidity-gap survival probability is estimated from comparisons of the data in this latter region with predictions based on diffractive parton distribution functions

Reservoir characterisation using process-response simulations: The Lower Cretaceous Rijn Field, West Netherlands Basin

Petroleum geologists always need to deal with large gaps in data resolution and coverage during reservoir characterisation. Seismic data shows only large geological structures, whereas small-scale structures and reservoir properties can be observed only at well locations. In the area between wells, these properties are often estimated by means of geostatistics. Numerical simulations of sedimentary processes offer an alternative method to predict these properties and can improve the understanding of the controls on reservoir heterogeneity. Although this kind of modelling is widely used on basin scale in exploration geology, its application on field scale in production geology is virtually non-existent. We have assessed whether the recent developments in numerical modelling can also aid petroleum geologists in the interpretation of the reservoir geology. Seismic data, well data and a process-response model for coastal environments were used to characterise the Lower Cretaceous oil-bearing Rijn Field. Interpretation of seismic and well data led to a definition of the structural setting and the depositional model of the Rijn Member in the area. From the sedimentological interpretation the sea-level history could be estimated, which is the one of the most important input parameters for the process-response model. Application of the process-response simulator to the Rijn Field resulted in approval of the depositional model. The output was presented in a 2-dimensional north-south profile, which corresponds very well to the well logs along this section. The results demonstrate that numerical simulations of geological processes can be very useful as a tool to explore many likely geological scenarios. While it cannot be used to supply a unique solution in many cases, it forms a helpful guide during reservoir characterisations to find an optimal scenario of the controls on deposition of the Rijn Member, which contributes to the understanding of the inter-well reservoir heterogeneityCivil Engineering and Geoscience