We calculate the parametrically dominant next-to-next-to-leading order corrections to four-fermion production e^- e^+ -> mu^- nubar_mu u dbar + X at centre-of-mass energies near the W-pair production threshold employing the method of unstable-particle effective theory. In total the correction is small, leading to a shift of 3 MeV in the W-mass measurement. We also discuss the implementation of realistic cuts and provide a result for the interference of single-Coulomb and soft radiative corrections that can easily be extended to include an arbitrary number of Coulomb photons.
The recent evaluation of the parametrically dominant next-to-next-to-leading order corrections to four-fermion production near the W-pair threshold in the framework of unstable-particle effective theory is briefly summarized.
We derive the integrated forms of specific initial-final tree-level four-parton antenna functions involving a massless initial-state parton and a massive final-state fermion as hard radiators. These antennae are needed in the subtraction terms required to evaluate the double real corrections to $t\bar{t}$ hadronic production at the NNLO level stemming from the partonic processes $q\bar{q}\to t\bar{t}q'\bar{q}'$ and $gg\to t\bar{t}q\bar{q}$.
We present the NNLO corrections to top pair production in the quark-antiquark channel proportional to the number of light quark flavors $N_l$. While the double real corrections were derived previously, here we compute the real-virtual and virtual-virtual contributions in this partonic channel. Using the antenna subtraction formalism, we show that the subtraction terms correctly approximate the real-virtual contributions in all their infrared limits. Combined with the integrated forms of the double real and real-virtual subtraction terms, we show analytically that the explicit infrared poles ca…
We compute the virtual O(alpha_s^2) fermionic contributions to the charm quark mass dependent matrix elements of the B -> X_s gamma decay. In the case of a massless quark loop insertion into the gluon propagator, our result obtained as an expansion in z=m_c^2/m_b^2 and an exact expression in terms of multi-fold MB integrals, confirms the findings of Bieri, Greub and Steinhauser [19]. We observe, however, large deviations in the case of a b-quark loop insertion.The charm quark loop shows smaller, but still noticeable differences.
We derive the two-loop corrections to Bhabha scattering from heavy fermions using dispersion relations. The double-box contributions are expressed by three kernel functions. Convoluting the perturbative kernels with fermionic threshold functions or with hadronic data allows to determine numerical results for small electron mass m_e, combined with arbitrary values of the fermion mass m_f in the loop, $m_e^2<<s,t,m_f^2$, or with hadronic insertions. We present numerical results for m_f = m_μ, m_τ, m_{top} at typical small- and large-angle kinematics ranging from 1 GeV to 500 GeV.
A complete, gauge-invariant computation of two loop virtual corrections involving closed fermion loops to the polarized Møller scattering asymmetry is presented. The set of contributions involving two closed fermion loops and the set involving one closed fermion loop are numerically similar in magnitude to the one-loop bosonic corrections and yield an overall correction of 1.3% relative to the tree-level asymmetry. We estimate sizes of remaining two-loop contributions and discuss implications for the upcoming MOLLER experiment.
Recent developements in the calculation of the NNLO QCD corrections to the charm quark mass dependent matrix elements in B -> X_s gamma are reported. Special emphasis is put on the new results of the virtual O(alpha_s^2) fermionic contribution to these matrix elements [1].
The threshold behaviour of the cross section sigma(e+e- -> tau+tau-) is analysed, taking into account the known higher-order corrections. At present, this observable can be determined to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in a combined expansion in powers of alpha_s and fermion velocities.
The theoretical status of NNLO QCD corrections to the inclusive radiative anti-B -> X_s gamma decay in the standard model is briefly overviewed. Emphasis is put on recent results for three-loop fermionic corrections to matrix elements of the most relevant four-quark operators.
The paper discusses the two-loop (NNLO) electroweak radiative corrections to the parity-violating Moller scattering asymmetry induced by insertions to boxes of electron and neutrino mass operators (fermion self-energies), vertex functions and boson self-energies. The results will be relevant to the ultra-precise 11 GeV MOLLER experiment planned at the Jefferson Laboratory, which will measure the weak charge of the electron and search for new physics. The numerical estimations for the NNLO contribution to the cross section asymmetry are presented.
The rare three-body decay of a Higgs boson to a lepton-antilepton pair and a photon is starting to become experimentally accessible at the LHC. We investigate how higher-order QCD corrections to the dominant gluon-fusion production process impact on the fiducial cross sections in this specific Higgs decay mode for electrons and muons. Corrections up to NNLO QCD are found to be sizeable. They are generally uniform in kinematical variables related to the Higgs boson, but display several distinctive features in the kinematics of its individual decay products.
We determine approximate next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) corrections to unpolarized and polarized semi-inclusive DIS. They are derived using the threshold resummation formalism, which we fully develop to next-to-next-to-leading logarithmic (NNLL) accuracy, including the two-loop hard factor. The approximate NNLO terms are obtained by expansion of the resummed expression. They include all terms in Mellin space that are logarithmically enhanced at threshold, or that are constant. In terms of the customary SIDIS variables $x$ and $z$ they include all double distributions (that is, "plus" dis…
This is a second paper in our ongoing calculation of the next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD correction to the total inclusive top-pair production cross-section at hadron colliders. In this paper we calculate the reaction $q\bar q \to t\bar t + q\bar q$ which was not considered in our previous work on $q\bar q \to t\bar t +X$ due to its phenomenologically negligible size. We also calculate all remaining fermion-pair-initiated partonic channels $qq', q\bar q'$ and $qq$ that contribute to top-pair production starting from NNLO. The contributions of these reactions to the total cross-section…
We present a fully-differential calculation of the NNLO QCD corrections to the t-channel mechanism for producing single top quarks at the LHC. We work in the structure function approximation, computing QCD corrections to the light- and heavy-quark lines separately and neglecting the dynamical cross-talk between the two. The neglected contribution, which appears at NNLO for the first time, is color-suppressed and is expected to be sub-dominant. Within this approximation, we find that, for the total cross section, NNLO QCD corrections are in the few percent range and, therefore, are comparable t…
We compute the dominant term in the expansion in rho=1-M_W/m_t of the unknown next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) nonresonant contributions to the e+ e- -> W+ W- b bbar total cross section at energies close to the top-antitop threshold. Our analytic result disagrees with a previous calculation by other authors [1]. We show that our determination has the correct infrared structure needed to cancel the divergences proportional to the top width arising in the resonant production of the same final state, and we point out to a missing contribution in the computation of [1] to explain the discrepan…
We extend the already existing two-loop calculation of the effective bottom-Yukawa coupling in the MSSM. In addition to the resummation of the dominant corrections for large values of tg$β$, we include the subleading terms related to the trilinear Higgs coupling $A_b$ and contributions induced by the electroweak gauge couplings. This calculation has been extended to the NNLO corrections to the MSSM strange-Yukawa coupling. Our analysis leads to residual theoretical uncertainties of the effective Yukawa couplings at the per-cent level.
We present a complete calculation of the next-to-next-to-leading (NNLO) electroweak corrections involving closed fermion loops to the $e^+ e^- \to ZH$ process. This has been achieved by using a semi-numerical technique for the two-loop vertex and box diagrams, which is based on Feynman parameters and dispersion relations for one of the two sub-loops. UV divergences are treated with suitable subtraction terms. Numerical results for the unpolarized differential and integrated cross-section at center-of-mass energy $\sqrt{s}=240~\text{GeV}$ are provided. Combining the NNLO contributions with one …
We present a study of higher order QCD corrections beyond NLO to processes with an electroweak vector boson, W or Z, in association with jets. We focus on the regions of high transverse momenta of commonly used differential distributions. We employ the LoopSim method to merge NLO samples of different multiplicity obtained from MCFM and from BLACKHAT+SHERPA in order to compute the dominant part of the NNLO corrections for high-pT observables. We find that these corrections are indeed substantial for a number of experimentally relevant observables. For other observables, they lead to significant…
The decay of a light Higgs boson to bottom quarks is dominant and can be exploited for the discovery of the Higgs particle and the measurement of its properties at the LHC and future collider experiments. We perform a first computation of the fully differential decay at next-next-to-leading order in perturbative QCD. We employ a novel method of non-linear mappings for the treatment of singularities in the radiative processes which contribute to the decay width. This constitutes the first physical application of the method.
We compute the NNLO QCD corrections for the hadroproduction of a pair of off-shell photons in the limit of a large number of quark flavors. We perform a reduction of the two-loop amplitude to master integrals and calculate the latter analytically as a Laurent series in the dimensional regulator using modern integration methods. Real radiation corrections are evaluated numerically with a direct subtraction of infrared limits which we cast in a simple factorized form. The results presented here constitute a gauge invariant part of the full NNLO corrections but are not necessarily dominant. We vi…
We review the status of the calculation of next-to-next-to-leading order corrections to large angle Bhabha scattering in pure QED. After discussing the electron-loop and photonic corrections, we focus on the recently calculated two-loop virtual corrections involving a heavy-flavor fermion loop. We conclude by assessing the numerical impact of these corrections on the Bhabha scattering cross section at colliders operating at a center of mass energy of about 1-GeV.
Based on our recent NNLO dynamical parton distributions as obtained in the `fixed flavor number scheme', we generate radiatively parton distributions in the `variable flavor number scheme' where also the heavy quark flavors (c,b,t) become massless partons within the nucleon. Only within this latter factorization scheme NNLO calculations are feasible at present, since the required partonic subprocesses are only available in the approximation of massless initial-state partons. The NNLO predictions for gauge boson production are typically larger (by more than 1 sigma) than the NLO ones, and rates…
We calculate the contribution of the partonic processes gg->WZ q\bar{q} and gg -> W gamma q\bar{q} to WZ and W gamma pair production at hadron colliders, including anomalous triple gauge-boson couplings. We use the helicity method and include the decay of the W and Z-boson into leptons in the narrow-width approximation. In order to integrate over the q\bar{q} final state phase space we use an extended version of the subtraction method to NNLO and remove collinear singularities explicitly. Due to the large gluon density at low x, the gluon induced terms of vector-boson pair production are expec…
We construct an accurate approximation to the exact NNLO cross section for Higgs production in gluon-gluon fusion by matching the dominant finite top mass corrections recently computed by us to the known result in the infinite mass limit. The ensuing corrections to the partonic cross section are very large when the center of mass energy of the partonic collision is much larger than the Higgs mass, but lead to a moderate correction at the percent level to the total Higgs production cross section at the LHC. Our computation thus reduces the uncertainty related to these corrections at the LHC fro…
A critical subject in fully differential QED calculations originates from numerical instabilities due to small fermion masses that act as regulators of collinear singularities. At next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) a major challenge is therefore to find a stable implementation of numerically delicate real-virtual matrix elements. In the case of Bhabha scattering this has so far prevented the development of a fixed-order Monte Carlo at NNLO accuracy. In this paper we present a new method for stabilising the real-virtual matrix element. It is based on the expansion for soft photon energies inc…
We present next-to-next-to leading order (NNLO) quantum electrodynamics (QED) corrections to the production of the Higgs boson in bottom quark annihilation at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in the five flavor scheme. We have systematically included the NNLO corrections resulting from the interference of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and QED interactions. We have investigated the infrared (IR) structure of the bottom quark form factor up to two loop level in QED and in QCD$\times$QED using K+G equation. We find that the IR poles in the form factor are controlled by the universal cusp, collinear…
We analyze the properties of the ACOT scheme for heavy quark production and make use of the \MSbar massless results at NNLO and N3LO for the structure functions F2 and FL in neutral current deep-inelastic scattering to estimate the higher order corrections. For this purpose we decouple the heavy quark mass entering the phase space from the one entering the dynamics of the short distance cross section. We show numerically that the phase space mass is generally more important. Therefore, the dominant heavy quark mass effects at higher orders can be taken into account using the massless Wilson co…
We present the NNLO QCD virtual corrections for qurak-antiquark -> gluon photon, quark-antiquark -> photon photon and the NNLO QED virtual corrections for electron positron -> photon photon and all processes related by crossing symmetry. We perform an explicit evaluation of the two-loop diagrams in conventional dimensional regularisation, and our results are renormalised in the MSbar scheme. The infrared pole structure of the amplitudes is in agreement with the prediction of Catani's general formalism for the singularities of two-loop amplitudes, while expressions for the finite remainder are …
We present the full next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) corrections to the coefficient function for the polarized cross section $d Δσ/d Q$ of the Drell-Yan process. We study the effect of these corrections on the process $p+p\to l^+l^-+`X'$ at an C.M. energy $\sqrt{S}=200 GeV$. All QCD partonic subprocesses have been included provided the lepton pair is created by a virtual photon, which is a valid approximation for a lepton pair invariant mass $Q<50 GeV$. For this reaction the dominant subprocess is given by $q+\bar q\to γ^*+`X'$ and its higher order corrections so that it provides us with a…
The threshold behaviour of the cross section sigma(e+e+ -> tau+tau-) is analysed, taking into account the known higher-order corrections. At present, this observable can be determined to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in a combined expansion in powers of alpha_s and fermion velocities.
We compute the leading logarithmic behaviour of the cross-section for the production of a pseudoscalar Higgs boson in gluon-gluon fusion to all-orders in perturbation theory, in the limit of large partonic centre of mass energy. We also calculate the Higgs rapidity distribution to the same accuracy. We include the contributions of top and bottom quarks, together with their interference. Our results are given in terms of single and double integrals, evaluated explicitly up to next-to next-to leading order (NNLO). We use our results to improve the known NNLO inclusive cross-section computed in t…
We study the impact of next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD corrections on partial decay rates in B --> X_u l nu decays, at leading-order in the 1/m_b expansion for shape-function kinematics. These corrections are implemented within a modified form of the BLNP framework, which allows for arbitrary variations of the jet scale mu_i \sim 1.5 GeV. Our analysis includes a detailed comparison between resummed and fixed-order perturbation theory, and between the complete NNLO results and those obtained in the large-$β_0$ approximation. For the default choice mu_i=1.5 GeV used in current extractio…
Virtual hadronic contributions to the Bhabha process at the NNLO level are discussed. They are substantial for predictions with per mil accuracy. The studies of heavy fermion and hadron corrections complete the calculation of Bhabha virtual effects at the NNLO level.
We determine at NNLO (3-loop) of QCD the dynamical parton distributions of the nucleon generated radiatively from valencelike positive input distributions at an optimally chosen low resolution scale (Q_0^2<1 GeV^2) by employing the "fixed flavor number factorization scheme" (FFNS). These are compared with "standard" NNLO distributions, generated at some fixed and higher resolution scale (Q_0^2>1 GeV^2). The NNLO corrections imply in both approaches an improved value of χ^2, typically χ^2_{NNLO} \sim 0.9χ^2_{NLO}. The dynamical NNLO uncertainties are somewhat smaller than the NLO ones and both …
We calculate the O(alpha_s) corrections to the Z^0-penguin and electroweak box diagrams relevant for non-leptonic Delta F = 1 decays with F = S, B. This calculation provides the complete O(alpha_w alpha_s) and O(alpha_w alpha_s sin^2 theta_w m_t^2) corrections (alpha_w = alpha/sin^2 theta_w) to the Wilson coefficients of the electroweak penguin four quark operators relevant for non-leptonic K- and B-decays. We argue that this is the dominant part of the next-next-to-leading (NNLO) contributions to these coefficients. Our results allow to reduce considerably the uncertainty due to the definitio…
Next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD corrections to Higgs boson hadroproduction have recently been calculated in the heavy top-quark limit m_t -> \infty. The m_t -> \infty limit introduces double-logarithmic corrections in ln x, with x = m_H^2 / s. We identify these corrections order by order in alpha_s. As an application, we derive an analytic expression for the dominant x << 1 part of the NNLO coefficient.
We discuss the prescription for the Dirac matrix gamma_5 in dimensional regularization used in most second- and third-order QCD calculations of collider cross sections. We provide an alternative implementation of this approach that avoids the use of an explicit form of gamma_5 and of its (anti-) commutation relations in the most important case of no more than one gamma_5 in each fermion trace. This treatment is checked by computing the third-order corrections to the structure functions F_2 and g_1 in charged-current deep-inelastic scattering with axial-vector couplings to the W-bosons. We deri…
Strengthening constraints on new physics from the B -> X_s gamma branching ratio requires improving accuracy in the measurements and the Standard Model predictions. To match the expected Belle-II accuracy, Next-to-Next-to-Leading Order (NNLO) QCD corrections must be calculated without the so-far employed interpolation in the charm-quark mass m_c. In the process of evaluating such corrections at the physical value of m_c, we have finalized the part coming from diagrams with closed fermion loops on the gluon lines that contribute to the interference of the current-current and photonic dipole ope…
First results on the radiative corrections of order O(N_fα_sα) are presented for the off-shell production of W or Z bosons at the LHC, where N_f is the number of fermion flavours. These corrections comprise all diagrams at O(α_sα) with closed fermion loops, form a gauge-invariant part of the next-to-next-to-leading-order corrections of mixed QCD x electroweak type, and are the ones that concern the issue of mass renormalization of the W and Z resonances. The occurring irreducible two-loop diagrams, which involve only self-energy insertions, are calculated with current standard techniques, and …
We study the production of a W boson in association with a c-jet at the LHC. We calculate, for the first time, the complete set of NNLO QCD corrections to the dominant CKM-diagonal contribution to this process. Both signatures, ${\rm p}{\rm p}\to μ^+ν_μ{\rm j}_{\rm c}$ and ${\rm p}{\rm p}\to μ^-\barν_μ{\rm j}_{\rm c}$ are considered. We present predictions for fiducial cross sections and differential distributions for each one of the two signatures as well as for their ratio. The theoretical predictions are compared with ATLAS measurements at $7 \; {\rm TeV}$. The results of this work are esse…
We present the full next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) coefficient functions for the polarized cross section $dΔσ/dQ$ for the Drell-Yan process $p + p\to l^+l^- + 'X'$. Here $'X'$ denotes any inclusive hadronic state and $Q$ represents the invariant mass of the lepton pair. All QCD partonic subprocesses have been included provided the lepton pair is created by a virtual photon, which is a valid approximation for $Q<50$ GeV. Unlike the differential distribution w.r.t. transverse momentum the dominant subprocess for the integrated cross section is given by $q+\bar q \to γ^* + 'X'$ and its high…
We compute the Next-to-Next-to-Leading Order (NNLO) QCD corrections to the partonic reaction that dominates top-pair production at the Tevatron. This is the first ever NNLO calculation of an observable with more than two colored partons, and/or massive fermions, at hadron colliders. Augmenting our fixed order calculation with soft-gluon resummation through Next-to-Next-to-Leading Logarithmic (NNLL) accuracy, we observe that the predicted total inclusive cross-section exhibits a very small perturbative uncertainty, estimated at +-2.7%. We expect that once all sub-dominant partonic reactions are…
The ambiguity in the choice of a renormalization scheme and scale for the top-quark mass leads to an additional source of theoretical uncertainty in the calculation of the Higgs boson production cross section via gluon fusion. These uncertainties were found to be dominant in the case of off-shell Higgs production at next-to-leading order in QCD for large values of the Higgs virtuality $m_H^*$. In this work, we study the uncertainties related to the top-quark mass definition up to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in QCD. We include the full top-quark mass dependence up to three loops in the…
In this paper we present a next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) calculation of the process $pp\rightarrow γγ$ that we have implemented into the parton level Monte Carlo code MCFM. We do not find agreement with the previous calculation of this process in the literature. In addition to the $\mathcal{O}(α_s^2)$ corrections present at NNLO, we include some effects arising at $\mathcal{O}(α_s^3)$, namely those associated with gluon-initiated closed fermion loops. We investigate the role of this process in the context of studies of QCD at colliders and as a background for searches for new physics, p…
We compute all helicity amplitudes for four-particle scattering in massless QCD with $n_f$ fermion flavours to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in perturbation theory. In particular, we consider all possible configurations of external quarks and gluons. We evaluate the amplitudes in terms of a Laurent series in the dimensional regulator to the order required for future next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order (N$^3$LO) calculations. The coefficients of the Laurent series are given in terms of harmonic polylogarithms that can readily be evaluated numerically. We present our findings in the con…
The inclusive radiative decay of the B meson is known to provide strong constraints on many popular extensions of the Standard Model. Such constraints crucially depend on precision of the Standard Model predictions. One of the main contributions to the theoretical uncertainty is due to certain Next-to-Next-to-Leading Order QCD corrections whose values at the physical charm quark mass m_c have been estimated using interpolation between the m_c=0 and m_c >> m_b limits. A direct determination of such corrections at the physical value of m_c requires calculating hundreds of two-scale four-loop pro…
We study J/psi production in pp collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96 and 7 TeV using the Colour-Singlet Model (CSM), including next-to-leading order (NLO) corrections and dominant alphaS^5 contributions (NNLO*). We find that the CSM reproduces the existing data if the upper range of the NNLO* is near the actual --but presently unknown-- NNLO. The direct yield polarisation for the NLO and NNLO* is increasingly longitudinal in the helicity frame when P_T gets larger. Contrary to what is sometimes claimed in the literature, the prompt J/psi yield polarisation in the CSM is compatible with the experimental …
We compute the structure functions F2 and FL in the ACOT scheme for heavy quark production. We use the complete ACOT results to NLO, and make use of the MSbar massless results at NNLO and N3LO to estimate the higher order mass-dependent corrections. We show numerically that the dominant heavy quark mass effects can be taken into account using massless Wilson coefficients together with an appropriate rescaling prescription. Combining the exact NLO ACOT scheme with these expressions should provide a good approximation to the full calculation in the ACOT scheme at NNLO and N3LO.
We present the double real radiation corrections to the hadronic $t \bar{t}$ production stemming from partonic processes with fermions only. For this purpose, we extend the NNLO antenna subtraction formalism developed originally for the computation of jet observables in $e^+e^-$ annihilation to include the evaluation of hadronic observables involving a massive pair of particles. In all partonic processes, we checked the validity of our subtraction terms given for leading and subleading colour contributions numerically by showing that the ratio between real radiation matrix elements and subtrac…
We analyze the properties of the ACOT scheme for heavy quark production and make use of the MS-Bar massless results at NNLO and N3LO for the structure functions F2 and FL in neutral current deep-inelastic scattering to estimate the higher order corrections. The dominant heavy quark mass effects at higher orders can be taken into account using the massless Wilson coefficients together with an appropriate slow-rescaling prescription implementing the phase space constraints. Combining the exact ACOT scheme at NLO with these expressions should provide a good approximation to the full calculation i…
We complete the next-to-next-to-leading order QCD calculation of the branching ratio for B -> X_s l^+ l^- including recent results for the three-loop anomalous dimension matrix and two-loop matrix elements. These new contributions modify the branching ratio in the low-q^2 region, BR_ll, by about +1% and -4%, respectively. We furthermore discuss the appropriate normalization of the electromagnetic coupling alpha and calculate the dominant higher order electroweak effects, showing that, due to accidental cancellations, they change BR_ll by only -1.5% if alpha(mu) is normalized at mu = O(m_b), wh…
Virtual fermionic N_f = 1 and N_f = 2 contributions to Bhabha scattering are combined with realistic real corrections at next-to-next-to-leading order in QED. The virtual corrections are determined by the package bha_nnlo_hf, and real corrections with the Monte Carlo generators Bhagen-1Ph, Helac-Phegas and Ekhara. Numerical results are discussed at the energies of and with realistic cuts used at the Phi factory DAFNE, at the B factories PEP-II and KEK, and at the charm/tau factory BEPC II. We compare these complete calculations with the approximate ones realized in the generator BabaYaga@NLO u…
