Predictions for high energy neutrino cross-sections from the ZEUS global PDF fits

TL;DR

This paper provides updated high energy neutrino cross-section predictions using modern PDF fits within NLO QCD, incorporating systematic uncertainties and improved heavy quark threshold treatment, serving as a benchmark for new physics signals.

Contribution

It offers the first comprehensive NLO QCD predictions for neutrino cross-sections with detailed uncertainty analysis based on modern HERA data.

Findings

Predicted cross-sections are precise within the DGLAP formalism.

Deviations below predictions could indicate new QCD phenomena like BFKL or gluon saturation.

Systematic uncertainties are thoroughly quantified.

Abstract

We have updated predictions for high energy neutrino and antineutrino charged current cross-sections within the conventional DGLAP formalism of NLO QCD using a modern PDF fit to HERA data, which also accounts in a systematic way for PDF uncertainties deriving from both model uncertainties and from the experimental uncertainties of the input data sets. Furthermore the PDFs are determined using an improved treatment of heavy quark thresholds. A measurement of the neutrino cross-section much below these predictions would signal the need for extension of the conventional formalism as in BFKL resummation, or even gluon recombination effects as in the colour glass condensate model.