Inclusive gauge boson production in the color dipole formalism

TL;DR

This paper investigates the production of W and Z gauge bosons at high energies using the color dipole formalism, incorporating gluon saturation effects, and compares predictions with experimental data and collinear QCD calculations.

Contribution

It introduces a novel application of the color dipole formalism to gauge boson production, including gluon saturation effects at high energies.

Findings

Gluon saturation effects significantly influence gauge boson production at LHC energies.

The formalism's predictions align well with current experimental data.

Predictions for higher energies suggest notable saturation effects.

Abstract

The inclusive production of the gauge bosons $W^{\pm}$ and $Z^0$ is studied within the color dipole formalism. Gluon saturation effects associated to non-linear corrections to the QCD dynamics, which are expected to contribute at high energies, are naturally included in such formalism. We estimate the contribution of these effects at LHC energies and compare our results with the next-to-next-to-leading order collinear predictions. A comparison with the current experimental data is performed and predictions for higher energies are presented.