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Paolo Nason

Publications and source records attributed to Paolo Nason.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
arXiv2012

Next-to-Leading-Order Event Generators

We review the methods developed for combining the parton shower approximation to QCD with fixed-order perturbation theory, in such a way as to achieve next-to-leading-order (NLO) accuracy for inclusive observables. This has made it possible to generate fully-simulated hadronic final states with the precision and stability of NLO calculations. We explain the underlying theory of the existing methods, MC@NLO and POWHEG, together with their similarities, differences, achievements and limitations. For illustration we mainly compare results on Higgs boson production at the LHC, with particular emphasis on the residual uncertainties arising from the different treatment of effects beyond NLO. We also briefly summarize the difference between these NLO + parton shower methods and matrix-element + parton shower matching, and current efforts to combine the two approaches.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2011

W+W-, WZ and ZZ production in the POWHEG BOX

We present an implementation of the vector boson pair production processes ZZ, W+W- and W Z within the POWHEG framework, which is a method that allows the interfacing of NLO calculations to shower Monte Carlo programs. The implementation is built within the POWHEG BOX package. The Z/γ^* interference, as well as singly resonant contributions, are properly included. We also considered interference terms arising from identical leptons in the final state. As a result, all contributions leading to the desired four-lepton system have been included in the calculation, with the sole exception of the interference between ZZ and W+W- in the production of a pair of same-flavour, oppositely charged fermions and a pair of neutrinos, which we show to be fully negligible. Anomalous trilinear couplings can be also set in the program, and we give some examples of their effect at the LHC. We have made the relevant code available at the POWHEG BOX web site.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2011

W^+W^+ plus dijet production in the POWHEGBOX

We present an implementation of the calculation of the production of W^+W^+ plus two jets at hadron colliders, at next-to-leading order (NLO) in QCD, in the POWHEG framework, which is a method that allows the interfacing of NLO calculations to shower Monte Carlo programs. This is the first 2 -> 4 process to be described to NLO accuracy within a shower Monte Carlo framework. The implementation was built within the POWHEGBOX package. We discuss a few technical improvements that were needed in the POWHEGBOX to deal with the computer intensive nature of the NLO calculation, and argue that further improvements are possible, so that the method can match the complexity that is reached today in NLO calculations. We have interfaced our POWHEG implementation with PYTHIA and HERWIG, and present some phenomenological results, discussing similarities and differences between the pure NLO and the POWHEG+PYTHIA calculation both for inclusive and more exclusive distributions. We have made the relevant code available at the POWHEGBOX web site.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2010

Jet pair production in POWHEG

We present an implementation of the next-to-leading order dijet production process in hadronic collisions in the framework of POWHEG, which is a method to implement NLO calculations within a shower Monte Carlo context. In constructing the simulation, we have made use of the POWHEG BOX toolkit, which makes light of many of the most technical steps. The majority of this article is concerned with the study of the predictions of the Monte Carlo simulation. In so doing, we validate our program for use in experimental analyses, elaborating on some of the more subtle features which arise from the interplay of the NLO and resummed components of the calculation. We conclude our presentation by comparing predictions from the simulation against a number of Tevatron and LHC jet-production results.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2010

Vector boson plus one jet production in POWHEG

We present an implementation of the next-to-leading order vector boson plus one jet production process in hadronic collision in the framework of POWHEG, which is a method to implement NLO calculations within a Shower Monte Carlo context. All spin correlations in the vector boson decay products have been taken into account. The process has been implemented in the framework of the POWHEG-BOX, an automated computer code for turning a NLO calculation into a shower Monte Carlo program. We present phenomenological results for the case of the Z/gamma plus one jet production process, obtained by matching the POWHEG calculation with the shower performed by PYTHIA, for the LHC, and we compare our results with available Tevatron data.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2010

Improving NLO-parton shower matched simulations with higher order matrix elements

In recent times the algorithms for the simulation of hadronic collisions have been subject to two substantial improvements: the inclusion, within parton showering, of exact higher order tree level matrix elements (MEPS) and, separately, next-to-leading order corrections (NLOPS). In this work we examine the key criteria to be met in merging the two approaches in such a way that the accuracy of both is preserved, in the framework of the POWHEG approach to NLOPS. We then ask to what extent these requirements may be fulfilled using existing simulations, without modifications. The result of this study is a pragmatic proposal for merging MEPS and NLOPS events to yield much improved MENLOPS event samples. We apply this method to W boson and top quark pair production. In both cases results for distributions within the remit of the NLO calculations exhibit no discernible changes with respect to the pure NLOPS prediction; conversely, those sensitive to the distribution of multiple hard jets assume, exactly, the form of the corresponding MEPS results.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2010

Heavy quarks in deep-inelastic scattering

We discuss a general framework for the inclusion of heavy quark mass contributions to deep-inelastic structure functions and their perturbative matching to structure functions computed in variable-mass schemes. Our approach is based on the so-called FONLL method, previously introduced and applied to heavy quark hadroproduction and photoproduction. We define our framework, provide expressions up to second order in the strong coupling, and use them to construct matched expressions for structure functions up to NNLO. After checking explicitly the consistency of our results, we perform a study of the phenomenological impact of heavy quark terms, and compare results obtained at various perturbative orders, and with various prescriptions for the treatment of subleading terms, specifically those related to threshold behaviour. We also consider the heavy quark structure function F2c and discuss issues related to the presence of mass singularities in their coefficient functions.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2009

NLO Higgs boson production via gluon fusion matched with shower in POWHEG

We present a next-to-leading order calculation of Higgs boson production via gluon fusion interfaced to shower Monte Carlo programs, implemented according to the POWHEG method. A detailed comparison with MC@NLO and PYTHIA is carried out for several observables, for the Tevatron and LHC colliders. Comparisons with next-to-next-to-leading order results and with resummed ones are also presented.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2008

Updated predictions for the total production cross sections of top and of heavier quark pairs at the Tevatron and at the LHC

We present updated predictions for the total production cross section of top-quark pairs at the Tevatron and at the LHC, and, at the LHC, of heavy-quark pairs with mass in the range 0.5-2 TeV. For t\bar{t} production at the LHC we also present results at \sqrt{S}= 10 TeV, in view of the expected accelerator conditions during the forthcoming 2008 run. Our results are accurate at the level of next-to-leading order in alpha_s, and of next-to-leading threshold logarithms (NLO+NLL). We adopt the most recent parametrizations of parton distribution functions, and compute the corresponding uncertainties. We study the dependence of the results on the top mass, and we assess the impact of missing higher-order corrections by independent variations of factorisation and renormalisation scales.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2008

NLO vector-boson production matched with shower in POWHEG

We present a next-to-leading-order calculation of W/Z production interfaced to shower Monte Carlo, implemented according to the POWHEG method. Finite width effects, Z/gamma interference and angular correlations of decay products are included. A detailed comparison with MC@NLO and PYTHIA is carried out.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2007

A Positive-Weight Next-to-Leading-Order Monte Carlo for Heavy Flavour Hadroproduction

We present a next-to-leading order calculation of heavy flavour production in hadronic collisions that can be interfaced to shower Monte Carlo programs. The calculation is performed in the context of the POWHEG method. It is suitable for the computation of charm, bottom and top hadroproduction. In the case of top production, spin correlations in the decay products are taken into account.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2007

Matching NLO QCD computations with Parton Shower simulations: the POWHEG method

The aim of this work is to describe in detail the POWHEG method, first suggested by one of the authors, for interfacing parton-shower generators with NLO QCD computations. We describe the method in its full generality, and then specify its features in two subtraction frameworks for NLO calculations: the Catani-Seymour and the Frixione-Kunszt-Signer approach. Two examples are discussed in detail in both approaches: the production of hadrons in e+e- collisions, and the Drell-Yan vector-boson production in hadronic collisions.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2007

The POWHEG-hvq manual version 1.0

This note documents the use of the POWHEG-hvq package, a generator for heavy flavour hadroproduction at next-to-leading order in QCD, that can be easily interfaced to shower Monte Carlo programs, in such a way that NLO and shower accuracy are both maintained.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2007

Radiative quarkonium decays and the NMSSM Higgs interpretation of the HyperCP Sigma+ --> p mu+mu- events

We study the potential of radiative decays of the Upsilon(1S) and of the phi mesons to search for a light pseudoscalar Higgs boson, proposed as a possible interpretation of Sigma+ --> p mu+mu- events observed by the HyperCP collaboration at Fermilab. We conclude that the detection of this signal should certainly be possible with the current CLEO Upsilon(1S) data, and is within the reach of KLOE in at least part of the range of couplings suggested by the HyperCP findings.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2006

Power-suppressed effects in heavy quark fragmentation functions

This talk summarizes the results of a phenomenological analysis of heavy quark fragmentation data published by the CLEO and BELLE collaborations at \sqrt{s} = 10.6 GeV and by the LEP collaborations at \sqrt{s} = 91.2 GeV. Several theoretical ingredients are employed: next-to-leading order initial conditions, evolution and coefficient functions; soft-gluon resummation to next-to-leading-log accuracy; a next-to-leading order matching condition for the crossing of the bottom threshold in the evolution. Important initial-state electromagnetic radiation effects in the CLEO and BELLE data are also accounted for. We find that with reasonably simple choices of a non-perturbative correction to the fixed-order initial condition for the evolution, the data from CLEO and BELLE can be fitted with remarkable accuracy. The fitted fragmentation function, when evolved to LEP energies, does not however represent fairly the D* fragmentation spectrum measured by ALEPH. Large non-perturbative corrections to the coefficient functions of the meson spectrum are needed in order to reconcile CLEO/BELLE and ALEPH results.

hep-ph↗