No Arabic abstract
Universality in QCD factorization of parton densities, fragmentation functions, and soft factors is endangered by the process dependence of the directions of Wilson lines in their definitions. We find a choice of directions that is consistent with factorization and that gives universality between e^+e^- annihilation, semi-inclusive deep-inelastic scattering, and the Drell-Yan process. Universality is only modified by a time-reversal transformation of the soft function and parton densities between Drell-Yan and the other processes, whose only effect is the known reversal of sign for T-odd parton densities like the Sivers function. The modifications of the definitions needed to remove rapidity divergences with light-like Wilson lines do not affect the results.
The combination of collinear factorization with effective field theory originally developed for soft interactions of heavy quarks provides the foundations of the theory of exclusive and semi-inclusive B decays. In this article I summarize some of the later conceptual developments of the so-called QCD factorization approach that make use of soft-collinear effective theory. Then I discuss the status and results of the calculation of the hard-scattering functions at the next order, and review very briefly some of the phenomenology, covering aspects of charmless, electroweak penguin and radiative (semi-leptonic) decays.
We analyze two consequences of the relationship between collinear factorization and $k_t$-factorization. First, we show that the $k_t$-factorization gives a fundamental justification for the choice of the hard scale $Q^2$ done in the collinear factorization. Second, we show that in the collinear factorization there is an uncertainty on this choice which will not be reduced by higher orders. This uncertainty is absent within the $k_t$-factorization formalism.
Glauber gluons in Drell-Yan processes are soft gluons with the transverse momenta much larger than their momentum components along the directions of initial hadrons. Their existence has been a serious challenge in proving the factorization of Drell-Yan processes. The recently proposed soft collinear effect theory of QCD can provide a transparent way to show factorizations for a class of processes, but it does not address the effect of glauber gluons. In this letter we first confirm the existence of glauber gluons through an example. We then add glauber gluons into the effective theory and study their interaction with other particles. In the framework of the effective theory with glauber gluons we are able to show that the effects of glauber gluons in Drell-Yan processes are canceled and the factorization holds in the existence of glauber gluons. Our work completes the proof or argument of factorization of Drell-Yan process in the framework of the soft collinear effective theory.
We examine some of the complications involved when combining (matching) TMD factorization with collinear factorization to allow accurate predictions over the whole range of measured transverse momentum in a process like Drell-Yan. Then we propose some improved methods for combining the two types of factorization. (This talk is based on work reported in arXiv:1605.00671.)
We calculate the probability that the rapidity gaps in diffractive processes survive both eikonal and enhanced rescattering. We present arguments that enhanced rescattering, which violates soft-hard factorization, is not very strong. Accounting for NLO effects, there is no reason to expect that the black disc regime is reached at the LHC. We discuss the predictions for the survival of the rapidity gaps for exclusive Higgs production at the LHC.