Extraction of F_2^c(x,Q^2) from D* cross sections at H1

TL;DR

This paper measures the charm contribution to the proton structure function, F_2^c, using D* meson production data from deep-inelastic scattering at H1, covering a wide Q^2 range and comparing results with QCD predictions.

Contribution

It provides a new determination of F_2^c(x,Q^2) from D* meson cross sections over a broad kinematic range, testing perturbative QCD models.

Findings

F_2^c is extracted across 5 < Q^2 < 1000 GeV^2.

Results agree with leading and next-to-leading order QCD predictions.

Provides insights into charm quark contributions to proton structure.

Abstract

The charm contribution to the proton structure, F_2^c(x,Q^2), is determined using the inclusive cross sections of D*(2010) meson production in deep-inelastic scattering. The cross section measurement covers the region 5 < Q2 < 1000 GeV2 in photon virtuality and 0.02 < y < 0.70 in the inelasticity of the scattering process. The D* meson is measured in transverse momentum and pseudo-rapidity down to p_T > 1.5 GeV and up to |eta| < 1.5. The data were taken with the H1 detector corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 347 pb-1. F_2^c is determined from the D* production cross sections and compared to leading and next-to-leading order perturbative QCD predictions.