Abstract
We compare ‘fixed flavor number scheme’ (FFNS) and ‘variable flavor number scheme’ (VFNS) parton model predictions at high energy colliders. Based on our recent LO- and NLO-FFNS dynamical parton distributions, we generate radiatively two sets of VFNS parton distributions where also the heavy quark flavors h=c,b,t are considered as massless partons within the nucleon. By studying the role of these distributions in the production of heavy particles (hh¯, tb¯, hW±, Higgs–bosons, etc.) at high energy ep, pp¯ and pp colliders, we show that the VFNS predictions are compatible with the FFNS ones (to within about 10–20% at LHC, depending on the process) when the invariant mass of the produced system far exceeds the mass of the participating heavy quark flavor.
Highlights
In a recent publication [1] we updated the dynamical leading order (LO) and –to– leading order (NLO) parton distributions of [2]
It becomes expedient to consider for such calculations the so called ‘variable flavor number scheme’ (VFNS) where the heavy quarks h = c, b, t are taken to be massless partons within the nucleon
The VFNS is characterized by increasing the number nf of massless partons by one unit at Q2 = m2h starting from nf = 3 at Q2 = m2c, i.e. c(x, m2c) = c(x, m2c) = 0
Summary
In a recent publication [1] we updated the dynamical leading order (LO) and –to– leading order (NLO) parton distributions of [2]. As a test of these VFNS distributions we turn to hadronic W ± production and present in Fig. 4 their NLO predictions for σ(pp → W ±X) as compared to the data
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