arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Pavel Nadolsky.
This report summarizes the work of the Energy Frontier Topical Group on EW Physics: Heavy flavor and top quark physics (EF03) of the 2021 Community Summer Study (Snowmass). It aims to highlight the physics potential of top-quark studies and heavy-flavor production processes (bottom and charm) at the HL-LHC and possible future hadron and lepton colliders and running scenarios.
In this paper, we present a CT18 PDFs fitted with Leading-Order QCD perturbation theory. The CT18 LO PDFs is obtained within the general CT18 framework, along with two additional treatments being imposed to improve the quality of the fit. We take the $W$-boson charge asymmetry and inclusive single-top production at LHC as examples to illustrate the implication of the CT18 LO PDFs.
Precision measurements of heavy-flavor hadroproduction at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) have the ability to probe heavy-flavor parton distribution functions (PDFs) in the proton. Sensitivity of inclusive $B^\pm$ meson production cross section measurements at LHCb 13 TeV to the bottom-quark PDF is illustrated by using theory predictions obtained with a the S-ACOT-MPS general mass variable flavor number (GMVFN) scheme within the QCD factorization formula. This approach can easily be extended to other heavy-flavor production processes, such as $Z$ boson production in association with a bottom- or a charm-jet. The inclusion of such measurements will represent an important improvement for future global QCD analyses that aim at reducing uncertainties of heavy-flavor PDFs, provided that a consistent general mass treatment in $pp$ collisions is used. This work is related to the activities of the Snowmass topic groups EF03, and EF06.
We discuss recent CTEQ-TEA group activities after the publication of the CT18 global analysis of parton distribution functions (PDFs) in the proton. In particular, we discuss a new calculation for the photon content in the proton, termed as CT18lux and CT18qed PDFs, and the impact of novel charm- and bottom-quark production cross section measurements at HERA on the CT18 global analysis.
We discuss the impact of heavy-flavor production measurements in semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering at HERA on the CTEQ-TEA PDFs. In particular, we study the impact of the latest charm and bottom production measurements from the H1 and ZEUS collaborations on the gluon, and the interplay of these measurements with the data ensemble of the recent CT18 global QCD analysis.
We present the new parton distribution functions (PDFs) from the CTEQ-TEA collaboration, obtained using a wide variety of high-precision Large Hadron Collider (LHC) data, in addition to the combined HERA I+II deep-inelastic scattering data set, along with the data sets present in the CT14 global QCD analysis. New LHC measurements in single-inclusive jet production with the full rapidity coverage, as well as production of Drell-Yan pairs, top-quark pairs, and high-$p_T$ $Z$ bosons, are included to achieve the greatest sensitivity to the PDFs. The parton distributions are determined at NLO and NNLO, with each of these PDFs accompanied by error sets determined using the Hessian method. Fast PDF survey techniques, based on the Hessian representation and the Lagrange Multiplier method, are used to quantify the preference of each data set to quantities such as $α_s(m_Z)$, and the gluon and strange quark distributions. We designate the main resulting PDF set as CT18. The ATLAS 7 TeV precision $W/Z$ data are not included in CT18, due to their tension with other data sets in the global fit. Alternate PDF sets are generated including the ATLAS precision 7 TeV $W/Z$ data (CT18A), a new scale choice for low-$x$ DIS data (CT18X), or all of the above with a slightly higher choice for the charm mass (CT18Z). Theoretical calculations of standard candle cross sections at the LHC (such as the $gg$ fusion Higgs boson cross section) are presented.
The strong force which binds hadrons is described by the theory of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD). Determining the character and manifestations of QCD is one of the most important and challenging outstanding issues necessary for a comprehensive understanding of the structure of hadrons. Within the context of the QCD parton picture, the Parton Distribution Functions (PDFs) have been remarkably successful in describing a wide variety of processes. However, these PDFs have generally been confined to the description of collinear partons within the hadron. New experiments and facilities provide the opportunity to additionally explore the transverse structure of hadrons which is described by Generalized Parton Distributions (GPDs) and Transverse Momentum Dependent Parton Distribution Functions (TMD PDFs). In our previous review, we compared and contrasted the two main approaches used to determine the collinear PDFs: the first based on perturbative QCD factorization theorems, and the second based on lattice QCD calculations. In the present report, we provide an update of recent progress on the collinear PDFs, and also expand the scope to encompass the generalized PDFs (GPDs and TMD PDFs). We review the current state of the various calculations, and consider what new data might be available in the near future. We also examine how a shared effort can foster dialog between the PDF and Lattice QCD communities, and yield improvements for these generalized PDFs.
Multi-dimensional distributions of discrete data that resemble ellipsoids arise in numerous areas of science, statistics, and computational geometry. We describe a complete algebraic algorithm to determine the quadratic form specifying the equation of ellipsoid for the boundary of such multi-dimensional discrete distribution. In this approach, the equation of ellipsoid is reconstructed using a set of matrix equations from low-dimensional projections of the input data. We provide a Mathematica program realizing the full implementation of the ellipsoid reconstruction algorithm in an arbitrary number of dimensions. To demonstrate its many potential uses, the fast reconstruction method is applied to quasi-Gaussian statistical distributions arising in elementary particle production at the Large Hadron Collider.
Understanding the origin and dynamics of hadron structure and in turn that of atomic nuclei is a central goal of nuclear physics. This challenge entails the questions of how does the roughly 1 GeV mass-scale that characterizes atomic nuclei appear; why does it have the observed value; and, enigmatically, why are the composite Nambu-Goldstone (NG) bosons in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) abnormally light in comparison? In this perspective, we provide an analysis of the mass budget of the pion and proton in QCD; discuss the special role of the kaon, which lies near the boundary between dominance of strong and Higgs mass-generation mechanisms; and explain the need for a coherent effort in QCD phenomenology and continuum calculations, in exa-scale computing as provided by lattice QCD, and in experiments to make progress in understanding the origins of hadron masses and the distribution of that mass within them. We compare the unique capabilities foreseen at the electron-ion collider (EIC) with those at the hadron-electron ring accelerator (HERA), the only previous electron-proton collider; and describe five key experimental measurements, enabled by the EIC and aimed at delivering fundamental insights that will generate concrete answers to the questions of how mass and structure arise in the pion and kaon, the Standard Model's NG modes, whose surprisingly low mass is critical to the evolution of our Universe.
We present the new CTEQ-TEA global analysis of quantum chromodynamics (QCD). In this analysis, parton distribution functions (PDFs) of the nucleon are determined within the Hessian method at the next-to-next-to leading order (NNLO) in perturbative QCD, based on the most recent measurements from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and a variety of world collider data. Because of difficulties in fitting both the ATLAS 7 and 8 TeV $W$ and $Z$ vector boson production cross section data, we present two families of PDFs, named CT18 and CT18$Z$ PDFs, respectively, without and with the ATLAS 7 TeV $W$ and $Z$ measurements. We study the impact of the CT18 family of PDFs on the theoretical predictions of standard candle cross sections at the LHC.
We present the new CTEQ-TEA global analysis of quantum chromodynamics (QCD). In this analysis, parton distribution functions (PDFs) of the nucleon are determined within the Hessian method at the next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in perturbative QCD, based on the most recent measurements from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and a variety of world collider data. Because of difficulties in fitting both the ATLAS 7 and 8 TeV $W$ and $Z$ vector boson production cross section data, we present four families of (N)NLO CTEQ-TEA PDFs, named CT18, A, X and Z PDFs, respectively. We study the impact of the CT18 family of PDFs on the theoretical predictions of standard candle cross sections at the LHC.
We discuss implementation of the LHC experimental data sets in the new CT18 global analysis of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) at the next-to-next-leading order of the QCD coupling strength. New methodological developments in the fitting methodology are discussed. Behavior of the CT18 NNLO PDFs for the conventional and "saturation-inspired" factorization scales in deep-inelastic scattering is reviewed. Four new families of (N)NLO CTEQ-TEA PDFs are presented: CT18, A, X, and Z.
The possibility of a (sizable) nonperturbative contribution to the charm parton distribution function (PDF) in a nucleon is investigated together with theoretical issues arising in its interpretation. Results from the global PDF analysis are presented. The separation of the universal component of the nonperturbative charm from the rest of the radiative contributions is discussed and the potential impact of a nonperturbative charm PDF on LHC scattering processes is illustrated. An estimate of nonperturbative charm magnitude in the CT14 and CT14HERA2 global QCD analyses at the next-to-next-to leading order (NNLO) in the QCD coupling strength is given by including the latest experimental data from HERA and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). A comparison between different models of intrinsic charm is shown and prospects for standard candle observables at the LHC are illustrated.
In the framework of quantum chromodynamics (QCD), parton distribution functions (PDFs) quantify how the momentum and spin of a hadron are divided among its quark and gluon constituents. Two main approaches exist to determine PDFs. The first approach, based on QCD factorization theorems, realizes a QCD analysis of a suitable set of hard-scattering measurements, often using a variety of hadronic observables. The second approach, based on first-principle operator definitions of PDFs, uses lattice QCD to compute directly some PDF-related quantities, such as their moments. Motivated by recent progress in both approaches, in this document we present an overview of lattice-QCD and global-analysis techniques used to determine unpolarized and polarized proton PDFs and their moments. We provide benchmark numbers to validate present and future lattice-QCD calculations and we illustrate how they could be used to reduce the PDF uncertainties in current unpolarized and polarized global analyses. This document represents a first step towards establishing a common language between the two communities, to foster dialogue and to further improve our knowledge of PDFs.
We investigate the possibility of a (sizable) nonperturbative contribution to the charm parton distribution function (PDF) in a nucleon, theoretical issues arising in its interpretation, and its potential impact on LHC scattering processes. The "fitted charm" PDF obtained in various QCD analyses contains a process-dependent component that is partly traced to power-suppressed radiative contributions in DIS and is generally different at the LHC. We discuss separation of the universal component of the nonperturbative charm from the rest of the radiative contributions and estimate its magnitude in the CT14 global QCD analysis at the next-to-next-to leading order in the QCD coupling strength, including the latest experimental data from HERA and the Large Hadron Collider. Models for the nonperturbative charm PDF are examined as a function of the charm quark mass and other parameters. The prospects for testing these models in the associated production of a Z boson and a charm jet at the LHC are studied under realistic assumptions, including effects of the final-state parton showering.
We analyze the impact of the recent HERA run I+II combination of inclusive deep inelastic scattering cross-section data on the CT14 global analysis of PDFs. New PDFs at NLO and NNLO, called CT14$_{\textrm{HERA2}}$, are obtained by a refit of the CT14 data ensembles, in which the HERA run I combined measurements are replaced by the new HERA run I+II combination. The CT14 functional parametrization of PDFs is flexible enough to allow good descriptions of different flavor combinations, so we use the same parametrization for CT14$_{\textrm{HERA2}}$ but with an additional shape parameter for describing the strange quark PDF. We find that the HERA I+II data can be fit reasonably well, and both CT14 and CT14$_{\textrm{HERA2}}$ PDFs can describe equally well the non-HERA data included in our global analysis. Because the CT14 and CT14$_{\textrm{HERA2}}$ PDFs agree well within the PDF errors, we continue to recommend CT14 PDFs for the analysis of LHC Run 2 experiments.
We explore connections between two common methods for quantifying the uncertainty in parton distribution functions (PDFs), based on the Hessian error matrix and Monte-Carlo sampling. CT14 parton distributions in the Hessian representation are converted into Monte-Carlo replicas by a numerical method that reproduces important properties of CT14 Hessian PDFs: the asymmetry of CT14 uncertainties and positivity of individual parton distributions. The ensembles of CT14 Monte-Carlo replicas constructed this way at NNLO and NLO are suitable for various collider applications, such as cross section reweighting. Master formulas for computation of asymmetric standard deviations in the Monte-Carlo representation are derived. A correction is proposed to address a bias in asymmetric uncertainties introduced by the Taylor series approximation. A numerical program is made available for conversion of Hessian PDFs into Monte-Carlo replicas according to normal, log-normal, and Watt-Thorne sampling procedures.
We present new parton distribution functions (PDFs) up to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) from the CTEQ-TEA global analysis of quantum chromodynamics. These differ from previous CT PDFs in several respects, including the use of data from LHC experiments and the new D0 charged lepton rapidity asymmetry data, as well as the use of more flexible parametrization of PDFs that, in particular, allows a better fit to different combinations of quark flavors. Predictions for important LHC processes, especially Higgs boson production at 13 TeV, are presented. These CT14 PDFs include a central set and error sets in the Hessian representation. For completeness, we also present the CT14 PDFs determined at the leading order (LO) and the next-to-leading order (NLO) in QCD. Besides these general-purpose PDF sets, we provide a series of (N)NLO sets with various $α_s$ values and additional sets in general-mass variable flavor number (GM-VFN) schemes, to deal with heavy partons, with up to 3, 4, and 6 active flavors.