0000000000171937
AUTHOR
Oliver Dekkers
The real–virtual antenna functions forS→QQ¯Xat NNLO QCD
Abstract We determine, in the antenna subtraction framework for handling infrared divergences in higher order QCD calculations, the real–virtual antenna functions for processes involving the production of a pair of massive quarks by an uncolored initial state at NNLO QCD. The integrated leading and subleading color real–virtual antenna functions are computed analytically in terms of (cyclotomic) harmonic polylogarithms. As a by-product and check we compute R Q = σ ( e + e − → γ ⁎ → Q Q ¯ X ) / σ ( e + e − → γ ⁎ → μ + μ − ) and compare with existing results. Our result for R Q is exact to order α s 2 .
Top-quark pair production at next-to-next-to-leading order QCD in electron positron collisions
We set up a formalism, within the antenna subtraction framework, for computing the production of a massive quark-antiquark pair in electron positron collisions at next-to-next-to-leading order in the coupling $\alpha_s$ of quantum chromodynamics at the differential level. Our formalism applies to the calculation of any infrared-safe observable. We apply this set-up to the production of top-quark top antiquark pairs in the continuum. We compute the production cross section and several distributions. We determine, in particular, the top-quark forward-backward asymmetry at order $\alpha_s^2$. Our result agrees with previous computations of this observable.
The forward-backward asymmetry for massive bottom quarks at the $Z$ peak at next-to-next-to-leading order QCD
We compute the order $\alpha_s^2$ QCD corrections to the $b$-quark forward-backward asymmetry in $e^+e^-\to b{\bar b}$ collisions at the $Z$ boson resonance, taking the non-zero mass of the $b$ quark into account. We determine these corrections with respect to both the $b$-quark axis and the thrust axis definition of the asymmetry. We compute also the distributions of these axes with respect to the electron beam. If one neglects the flavor singlet contributions to the $b$-quark asymmetry, as was done in previous computations for massless $b$ quarks, then the second-order QCD corrections for $m_b\neq 0$ are smaller in magnitude than the corresponding corrections for $m_b=0$. Including the si…