Precision Studies of Observables in pp->W->l nu and pp->gamma,Z->l+l- processes at the LHC

TL;DR

This paper compares various Monte Carlo simulation codes for Drell-Yan processes at the LHC to enable high-precision electroweak measurements, focusing on NLO and NNLO accuracy and the combination of QCD and EW corrections.

Contribution

It systematically evaluates and compares public Monte Carlo codes for Drell-Yan processes, establishing a framework for precise electroweak observable predictions at the LHC.

Findings

Codes share at least NLO accuracy in total cross sections.

Comparison of NNLO QCD predictions shows agreement levels.

Discussion of higher-order effects and correction combinations.

Abstract

This report was prepared in the context of the LPCC "Electroweak Precision Measurements at the LHC WG" and summarizes the activity of a subgroup dedicated to the systematic comparison of public Monte Carlo codes, which describe the Drell-Yan processes at hadron colliders, in particular at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC). This work represents an important step towards the definition of an accurate simulation framework necessary for very high-precision measurements of electroweak (EW) observables such as the $W$ boson mass and the weak mixing angle. All the codes considered in this report share at least next-to-leading-order (NLO) accuracy in the prediction of the total cross sections in an expansion either in the strong or in the EW coupling constant. The NLO fixed-order predictions have been scrutinized at the technical level, using exactly the same inputs, setup and perturbative accuracy, in order to quantify the level of agreement of different implementations of the same calculation. A dedicated comparison, again at the technical level, of three codes that reach next-to-next-to-leading-order (NNLO) accuracy in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) for the total cross section has also been performed. These fixed-order results are a well-defined reference that allows a classification of the impact of higher-order sets of radiative corrections. Several examples of higher-order effects due to the strong or the EW interaction are discussed in this common framework. Also the combination of QCD and EW corrections is discussed, together with the ambiguities that affect the final result, due to the choice of a specific combination recipe.