Transverse Momentum Distributions from Effective Field Theory with Numerical Results

TL;DR

This paper develops a Soft-Collinear Effective Theory framework to accurately predict low transverse momentum distributions of electroweak gauge bosons and Higgs particles, matching experimental data without Landau pole issues.

Contribution

It derives a factorization theorem within SCET for low transverse momentum distributions, providing NLL predictions that align with experimental data and are free from Landau pole complications.

Findings

NLL transverse momentum distribution for Z-boson matches Tevatron data.

Predictions for Higgs boson distributions at NLL are provided.

The effective theory approach avoids Landau pole prescriptions.

Abstract

We derive a factorization theorem for the differential distributions of electroweak gauge bosons in Drell-Yan processes, valid at low transverse momentum, using the Soft-Collinear Effective Theory (SCET). We present the next-to-leading logarithmic (NLL) transverse momentum distribution for the Z-boson and find good agreement with Tevatron data collected by the CDF and D0 collaborations. We also give predictions for the Higgs boson differential distributions at NLL based on a factorization theorem derived in earlier work. We derive formulae for all quantities needed to study low transverse momentum production of color-neutral particles within the effective theory. This effective field theory approach is free of Landau poles and can be formulated entirely in momentum space. Consequently, our results are free of the Landau-pole prescriptions necessary in the standard approach.