Polarized and unpolarized $\mu$-pair meson-induced Drell--Yan production and the pion distribution amplitude

Abstract

We present a detailed analysis of meson-induced massive lepton (muon) Drell--Yan production for the process ${\pi }^{-}N\to {\mu }^{+}{\mu }^{-}X$, considering both an unpolarized nucleon target and longitudinally polarized protons. Using a QCD framework, we focus on the angular distribution of ${\mu }^{+}$, which is sensitive to the shape of the pion distribution amplitude, the goal being to test corresponding results against available experimental data. Predictions are made, employing various pion distribution amplitudes, for the azimuthal angle dependence of the ${\mu }^{+}$ distribution in the polarized case, relevant for the planned COMPASS experiment. QCD evolution is given particular attention in both considered cases.

arXiv commentV1: 18 pages, 10 figures (48 eps files), 2 tables. V2: one wrong reference removed, missing reference in text inserted; matches version to appear in Phys. Rev. D

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Cited by in corpus (13)

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• Pion TMDs in light-front constituent approach, and Boer-Mulders effect in the pion-induced Drell-Yan process
• Accessing proton generalized parton distributions and pion distribution amplitudes with the exclusive pion-induced Drell-Yan process at J-PARC
• Chimera distribution amplitudes for the pion and the longitudinally polarized $\rho$-meson
• Gauge invariance, causality and gluonic poles
• Probing the nucleon's transversity and the photon's distribution amplitude in lepton pair photoproduction
• The pionic Drell-Yan process: a brief survey
• New vistas of the meson structure in QCD from low to high energies
• On the pion distribution amplitude. Derivation, properties, predictions
• New contributions to gluon poles in direct photon production
• Drell-Yan hadron tensor: contour gauge and gluon propagator
• Drell-Yan-like processes and duality
• Gauge invariance and gluon poles for direct photon production