NNLL Resummation of Sudakov Shoulder Logarithms in the Heavy Jet Mass Distribution

Abstract

The heavy jet mass event shape has large perturbative logarithms near the leading order kinematic threshold at $\rho = \frac{1}{3}$. Catani and Webber named these logarithms Sudakov shoulders and resummed them at double-logarithmic level. A resummation to next-to-leading logarithmic level was achieved recently. Here, we extend the resummation using an effective field theory framework to next-to-next-to-leading logarithmic order and show how to combine it with the resummation of dijet logarithms. We also solve the open problem of an unphysical singularity in the resummed momentum space distribution, in a way similar to how it is resolved in the Drell-Yan $q_T$ spectrum: through a careful analysis of the kinematics and scale-setting in position space. The heavy jet mass Sudakov shoulder is the first observable that does not involve transverse momentum for which position space resummation is critical. These advances may lead to a more precise extraction of the strong coupling constant from $e^+ e^-$ data.