Hadron energy spectrum in polarized top quark decays considering the effects of hadron and bottom quark masses

Abstract

We present the analytical expressions for the next-to-leading order corrections to the partial decay width $t(\uparrow) \rightarrow bW^+$, followed by $b\rightarrow H_bX$, for nonzero b-quark mass ($m_b\neq 0$) in the fixed-flavor-number scheme (FFNs). To make the predictions for the energy distribution of outgoing hadrons $H_b$, as a function of the normalized $H_b$-energy fraction $x_H$, we apply the general-mass variable-flavor-number scheme (GM-VFNs) in a specific helicity coordinate system where the polarization of top quark is evaluated relative to the b-quark momentum. We also study the effects of gluon fragmentation and finite hadron mass on the hadron energy spectrum so that hadron masses are responsible for the low-$x_H$ threshold. In order to describe both the b-quark and the gluon hadronizations in top decays we apply realistic and nonperturbative fragmentation functions extracted through a global fit to $e^+e^-$ annihilation data from CERN LEP1 and SLAC SLC by relying on their universality and scaling violations.