Precise QCD Predictions for Hadron-in-jet Production in $e^+e^-$ Collisions

TL;DR

This paper presents NNLO QCD calculations for hadron-in-jet production in electron-positron collisions, enabling precise tests of fragmentation functions and comparison with experimental data.

Contribution

The authors provide the first NNLO QCD predictions for hadron-in-jet production in $e^+e^-$ annihilation, enhancing the theoretical precision of fragmentation studies.

Findings

NNLO predictions agree well with ALEPH data.

Improved theoretical accuracy aids in fragmentation function extraction.

Highlights importance of higher-order corrections in jet physics.

Abstract

The production of identified hadrons inside jets in $e^+ e^-$ annihilation allows for detailed studies of parton-to-hadron fragmentation functions in a clean environment. We compute hadron-in-jets production cross sections for $e^+e^- \to 2\,\mathrm{jets}$ and $e^+e^- \to 3\,\mathrm{jets}$ to next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) in perturbative QCD. By comparing with data from the ALEPH experiment, we demonstrate the implications of the newly computed theory predictions for precision phenomenology.